The company in brief

The company’s business was in the food industry in Italy. The organisation was over 60 people and had a turnover of 20 million a year. In the last 30 years it has produced a consistent and, year after year, increased cash flow. The management has set the business procedures on their best way to meet the seasonal demands of the tourist areas and it allowed them to become the leading company in the market for the last 3 decades. The risk management strategy also led to several real estate investments.

The challenge

Problems in sales started in 2008. Suddenly in
that season sale dropped down in volumes
dramatically. For a couple of years the
management struggled to look for solutions
meanwhile competitors appeared on the scene.
Prices were soon under pressure.
A deep analysis of the sales department was
required in order to answer the following
questions:

• How can we sell more notwithstanding
  the shrinking market?
• Why that when the CEO himself meets the
  clients they buy more?
• Clients require too many different
  products outside the range, how to
  manage it?
• What products we can add or what
  product can be boost to compensate the
  reduced volume of the main products?
• How to reward the salesforce and
  motivate them to improve their sales ability?

Requirements

The CEO invited the consultant in order to
develop a sales management change solution
that would help them to recover the lost
market share. The visible reason for an
intervention came from the idea of a lack in
salesforce motivation and the salesmen’s poor
skills pattern to fight effectively in a troubled
market.

How to work?

The double-ways approach allows to start straight on with a focused intervention upon the symptoms which creates a first step in change. The second way requires more time and an openness by managers as well the ability to understand the whole business picture by numbers, data and information. Then proceeding with comparing qualitative information to reach the final evaluation. Then manage people’s feeling is a risky area: everyone can feel a judgment risk about themselves; create trust rather than judgements is the final goal. Be able to state the correct prognosis fast and straight on topics is the main value of a consulting.

AS IS analysis

• Its market is highly dependant by holidays of high
  spending people who have reduced their holidays
  spending during the financial crisis.
• Salesforce was in trouble because volume shrink and then lacks in motivation. Competition fought mostly on prices. Sales manager asked for prices to fight and maintain volumes. The facility has been set for the next step in growth: up to 35-45 million of turnover.
• Financial costs rose up and market shrink in real
  estate has reduced values.
• The company was under pressure for running
  expenses due to expensive habits in management and high cost for human resource.
• Banks were going to reduce their allowances even
  because properties values were shrinking.
• If values were going down, costs rose up, mostly on
  delivery department.
• The entrepreneur was getting older and his
  attachment to the company was slightly changing:
  often the management were in trouble for it and
  decision making was slower and less clear.
• Financial situation became rapidly very critical and,
  under that picture, it can only go worst.
  
  

HOW to change?

The real prognosis was complex, in one hand we provided skills compensation to salesforce, improving their ability to face troubled markets, it made them gain happiness and effectiveness. This affects their motivation: become able to get results affects salesperson motivation immediately. In the other hand we supported the company’s management in starting different tasks:

A marketing politics’ fine tuning to create a new model in how market the products

 Products

• Reduction of the range of over 8000 references to create more focus on fast running and higher valuable products
• Suppliers reduction to create better partnerships allocate effort

Prices

• Industrial analysis of prices and margins to manage carefully higher margin products
• Value proposition analysis to support qualitative products

Advertising

• Promote the brand by qualitative communication focusing the target group
• Set a Brand policy to support clients in trust

Distribution

• Operational area shrinking, clients dismiss or selling
• Salesforce restructuring providing skills enhancement programs and performances support

Sales programs support

• Client services enhancement programs
• Procedures enhancement, digital ordering, clients and order management by digital platform
• Sales programs support
• Client services enhancement programs
• Procedures enhancement, digital ordering, clients and order management by digital platform

Crafting solutions about changes financial assets

• Selling non strategic properties
• Create a new company
• Allocate all assets
• Deal banks mortgages and interest amounts
• Reducing storage building

Deploying a leadership enhancement program

The managers have expressed the need to develop trust and effectiveness in their role, we developed these trainings:

• Time management
• Communication effectiveness
• Team leading
• Leadership enhancement
• Performances appraisal