Sales Force Management Chapter 6 Minicase Vaughn Manufacturing

MINICASE-06

Vaughn Manufacturing

1.) Given that Raul’s first three quarters were meeting company quotas I would initially rule out any deficiencies in aptitude and skill level. I would start with what has changed with Raul. His wife is almost due to deliver their child and this may be a factor weighing on Raul. Horton believes that the full commission compensation is the greatest motivator, but for someone like Raul, who is most likely seeking financial security for his new family, it can be a great deterrent. We don’t know what percent commission Raul earns or if there is a possibility for an increase, but it doesn't matter if the difficulty of making sales has increased. Recently, the customers have become more difficult and increased the difficulty of making sales - further decreasing Raul’s financial security. Raul is most likely experiencing perceived role conflict between Vaughn’s attorneys and the OEMs’ because of contract negotiations, as well as conflict between Vaughn’s engineers’ abilities and the OEMs’ product specification requirements. Additionally, because the organization provides little training, Raul may be finding it hard to adjust to the new pressures exerted by Vaughn and the OEMs. Role expectations are less likely because Horton’s expectations haven’t changed, but they could be a factor in play. Given that Raul is sensitive in nature, the cut-throat mentality Horton expects of the salespeople could have worn Raul out. I believe that people can only fake a personality (disregarding people with personality disorders) for so long before they become mentally exhausted. Raul would most likely perform better if he could use a sales approach more suited to his aptitude.

2.) Horton can do a few thing to help Raul succeed once again, albeit, I don’t have much faith in his personality and the needed practices to be agreeable.