Sales & Distribution Management

Chapter 15: Leading the Sales Force

 Nature of leadership

+Characteristics of an effective leader

+Leadership Styles of Sales Managers

+Skills Essential for a Leader

Chapter Summary

Leadership is a process wherein one person influences others to accomplish a mission, task, or an objective. A weak leader heading an organization tends to demotivate others in the organization. Effective leaders, on the other hand, enhance the morale of their subordinates and followers and lead the organization towards success and growth. Thus, effective leadership is not optional but a prerequisite for success of an organization.

There are several characteristics that make a sales manager an effective leader of his sales team. These include the personal characteristics or traits of the sales manager, his needs and motives, the bases of his power as well as his past experience. The personal characteristics of a sales manager that make him an effective leader include clarity, consistency, urgency, assertiveness, ego drive, ego strength, risk taking ability, innovativeness, empathy, and an eye for talent.

Also, the need and motives of the manager determine how successful he will be as a leader. The bases of power that a sales manager is equipped with determine his ability to lead the sales force. There are five bases of power available to a sales manager -- expert, referent, legitimate, reward, and coercive power. Past experience of the sales manager is also one of the characteristics that influence his leadership behavior.

The leadership styles displayed by various sales managers can be broadly classified into traditional and modern styles of leadership. The traditional leadership styles include autocratic, bureaucratic, consultative, democratic, and laissez-faire leadership. Modern leadership styles include transactional or transformational leadership, and situational leadership. Transactional leadership is based on contingent rewards, management-by-exception and follower's level of experience.

Transformational leadership is characterized by charisma, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration. The situational leadership model, a widely accepted style of leadership, describes leadership along two dimensions -- task behavior and relationship behavior. Accordingly, the model describes four leadership styles, namely, high task behavior-low relationship behavior, high task behavior-high relationship behavior, low task behavior-high relationship behavior and low task behavior-low relationship behavior.

To be effective as a leader, a sales manager should possess certain soft skills or people-focused skills. These include the skills of delegation, communication, team-building, administrative, and interpersonal skills.

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