{"product_id":"the-machine-justin-roff-marsh-9781096000556","title":"The Machine: A Radical Approach to the Design of the Sales Function","description":"\u003cp\u003eDon't read this book if you're looking for an affirmation of the sales status quo. Roff-Marsh argues that the marketplace has changed dramatically since the evolution of the standard sales model and that radical change is being forced on organizations-like it or not!\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHere are just some of the radical changes that Roff-Marsh advocates (and sacred cows he slays) in this comprehensive and impeccably-argued treatise.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSalespeople should be inside, not in the field.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEngineers should perform necessary field sales activities.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eRevenue should be the responsibility of Operations, not Sales.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSales should focus exclusively on the pursuit of new business.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eOnly commercial relationships are truly important.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePersonal relationships are more likely to be the consequence of good commercial relationships than they are to be the cause of them.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSalespeople should be paid their market value in the form of a salary.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePiece-rate pay (commissions) should be eliminated in sales, just like it has been elsewhere.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSales performance should be mandatory, not optional.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSalespeople should be actively managed, and it should be a condition of their employment that they generate a commercially reasonable volume of new business.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSalespeople should not prospect.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe marketing department should be responsible for replenishing salespeople's opportunity queues daily.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe qualification of sales opportunities (or leads) destroys value\u003c\/b\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eSalespeople should be selling to your competitors' customers-not to folks who are actively looking for a new supplier. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Sales Development Rep role should be eliminated.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSDRs are one of many common examples of sub-optimization in sales environments. You increase the salesperson's win rate but you reduce the total volume of business won.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSalespeople should focus on selling programs, not products.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eUnless a product is new and revolutionary, it should be packaged into a program of some kind (or it should be sold without salespeople).\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eShut down your branch offices and open (fewer) distribution centers.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt's speed to customer that's important (not proximity).\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Machine is a field guide for the executive who's prepared to wrestle sales away from autonomous field-based artisans in favor of a tightly synchronized team of specialists. Readers will embrace The Machine either to exploit the new sales order or to avoid falling victim to it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIf you employ salespeople and you're committed to the growth of your organization, you really should read this book.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Justin Roff-Marsh\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1096000555\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781096000556\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Independently Published\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/01\/2015\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 268\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.87lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.61d","brand":"Justin Roff-Marsh","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":44047540355327,"sku":"9781096000556","price":15.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_f5991aa2-bdae-4f3b-90c5-d771934d8a30.jpg?v=1684990799","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-machine-justin-roff-marsh-9781096000556","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}