Reference no: EM132089743
Jeff Scott, the general manager at Carr Chevrolet, had a problem he needed to solve. The new car sales force was not productive enough. Specifically, they were slow to greet, meet, and determine the new car buyer’s needs and were not meeting the dealership’s sales plan projections. Scott wanted to find a way to help them become more efficient. To solve the problem, Scott called a meeting with the new and used car sales manager; he also included the parts and service manager in the hope there was a nugget of inspiration to be found. He and the other managers brainstormed a list of possible solutions. Afterward, they discussed the pros and cons of each of their ideas. As Scott left the meeting, he passed a wall of plaques listing the names of past “Salesperson of the Month” and “Salesperson of the Year” awards. He noticed the name of Leroy Perez appeared on multiple plaques over the past five years. Scott walked over to the cubicle where Perez was stationed and found him completing paper work for a sale he had just closed. Scott thanked Perez for his hard work and contributions to the performance of the store. Then he asked him how he managed to be such an effective sales person over the past several years—even during an economic downturn. Scott learned more than he expected from that simple question. Perez explained that he had formed a team of individuals from the parts and service department, as well as the receptionists and cashiers. They listened to customers as they talked about old cars with problems, family members with car needs, safety concerns for teenage drivers, as well as upcoming birthdays and anniversaries. All of these team members were willing to share the information with Perez because he was willing to reward them with dinners and tickets to events if their information led to a sale. In addition he often bought lunch for them just because he genuinely liked them. Scott asked Perez for other examples of salesmanship techniques and received many. He actually got more ideas for improving car sales in a fifteen-minute discussion than he and his fellow managers had thought of in their previous brainstorming session. Scott thought Perez might be the key to turning around a slow sales period and offered Perez the opportunity to be sales trainer/sales manager—a position that offered the chance to learn a new skill while maintaining touch with the skills that made him so valuable to the organization. Perez worked with the sales force, passing on his ideas as well as uncovering many other sales techniques. Soon, the dealership was surpassing the sales plan projections, the sales force was setting monthly records, and Perez became much sought after as a sales consultant in the industry. Scott knew that the simple act of listening to a hidden in-house sales expert improved the attitudes and productivity of his sales force.
What was the difference in the way Scott and Perez viewed the problem in this case?
How did the initial problem definition affect the approach to, and solution of, the problem?
How does this case illustrate any advantages or disadvantages of group decision making?
Discuss some ways Scott can apply what he learned from this situation to continue improving the quality and productivity of sales.
How might Scott continue to include the sales force in problem solving?
Concerning the third question, conduct additional research on the Internet. Discuss your findings and also explain if what you discovered is similar or different to what you read in the textbook. Be sure to link to the URL address(es) of the articles you read. For a refresher on how to create hyperlinks, click herePreview the document.