The other day my team and I were celebrating February’s success at a non descript open air hotel just outside town when dusk set in.
This typically means the onset of the malaria-carrying troops, and soon we were performing the ‘mosquito dance’ shifting from one leg to another.
After five minutes, a request was shot off to the owner to do something about it. He ordered one of his workers:“Mortein jala re, Machar bahut hain” (burn Mortein <coil>, too many mosquitoes).

Googling has become a generic term for search engines, Xeroxing a term for photocopying … I am glad that Mortein is now becoming a word for pest control!

It is a part of my job description to build the equity of each of my brands in a price-sensitive market. My sales officer took up this challenge and we have put up iron framed gates all over the Wholesale Market at Raipur my headquarter town, and also my largest market.
Needless to say, sales have shot through the roof.

At the beginning of every year, we have a budget to scale every month; every quarter and for the full year. I am now ‘two months old as an ASM’ and can claim to understand the finesse of the sales business.

I am responsible for a territory that is heavily dependent on wholesale (indirect distribution). This is a reality given the demographics of my territory. The split between urban and rural areas is 20:80 and the per capita income in this region is among the lowest in the country. But the contribution that comes from the pest control category is among the highest in the country. This region has a tropical climate with intermittent rains and the use of open drainage systems makes it a breeding haven for mosquitoes.

Mosquito coils that are the primary format of mosquito pest control in India. It is a category that can be termed as hot as cigarettes. When the season sets in all you can hear is that unpleasant ‘bzzz bzzz bzzz’. Coils are sold in truckloads.

Mortein is the single largest brand in the pest control market in India. Mortein Power Booster is our most effective coil:

Its been a while since I could stand still without shifting my legs every ten seconds. I really wish I had a long tail to brush em off

It is a nice feeling being at 110% of your budget at the end of two months.

In my previous post, I mentioned that I had been posted as an Area Sales Manager.
And just 44 days into the job I can now start to appreciate the art of sales from a more strategic perspective.

It is no longer about going into that store and making the sale, I now monitor things and step in only when I realise there is a problem.

I am learning to decode a sales story through numbers on an Excel sheet. I have a review 7 days down the line where I am supposed to explain what happened in this area in the last 12 months.
It is a thrill to watch the region’s happenings through numbers.

My last month has been full of Excel sheets, desolate rural roads and oily food. I cannot remember the last day I woke up without thinking of coil sales.

In the end when my achievement for the month is 111% of my budget, it all suddenly seems worth it. I can now truly appreciate why the people at RB need to be passionate in order to succeed.
It really does take a certain type of person to thrive here: and you can find out who on the RB careers site.

It’s fun – but in a very RB way.

Dec 24: 1500hrs
(Corporate Office, Gurgaon, National Capital Region)

HR: “Congratulations, You have been posted as Area Sales Manager Chattisgarh.”
*My Last 3 days in a Metro…. Description has been censored!*

Dec 28: 0500hrs
(Delhi Airport, New Delhi)

JetLite Counter: “Sorry sir, your flight has been cancelled.”
*Many excruciating hours and lots of shouting later, I land at our Regional Office – Mumbai.*

Dec 28: 1700hrs
(Regional Office, Mumbai, Maharashtra)

Zonal Sales Manager: “Did you ask to be posted to Chattisgarh or did they give it to you?”
*I understand the amusement. Chattisgarh is a state that has 44% forest cover, and only 20% of its population resides in urban areas.
It requires 2 CFAs (Carry & Forward Agencies) and 2 ASEs (Employees who drive our business in upcountry locations) to service it.
70% of our business here is driven by powerful wholesalers, and mosquito coils drive our revenues.*

Dec 29: 1030hrs
(Hotel Mayura, Raipur, Chattisgarh)

I meet the seven men who will work with me for the next 24 months – seven men whose loyalty is of utmost importance.
Each one is responsible for approximately 15% of our business in the area. The plans for the coming month are drawn and everyone disperses to their respective locations.

Dec 31: 2359hrs
(Dont remember the name of the place, Raipur, Chattisgarh)

I am a part of the ‘most happening’ party at Raipur. The thing is I have never seen such a high density of 40+ people at any party.
The cover charge was approximately $30 which included dinner and 4 drinks. The entertainment was supposed to include ‘exotic dancers’ and ‘fire artistes’  but all we got to see in the night was one fine young lady in attires that seemed to shrink by the hour. Nobody complained.

We at Raipur believe in the concept of ‘Value for Money’. When we pay a certain charge, we need to be fully satiated both in terms of calories and ethyl alcohol. The gentry were entitled to 4 drinks per pass which isn’t enough to get you sloshed. But then who said 1 drink = 60 ml. The bartender was harassed until each drink didn’t measure less than 200ml!

I welcomed the New Year in the company of 6 members of CASMA (Chattisgarh ASM Association – an informal body comprising of young ASMs of different companies).

I have 7 men with a combined experience of 60 years directly reporting to me. Under them there are another 42 salesmen. Add to this 41 distributors and their employees, and you would understand the job description.
The challenges involved give me a high.

 

The first few lines of this post are just to give you a flavour of what life is like in a fast-moving FMCG company.
If you think RB is the place for you, you can also visit our website which details the qualities Reckitt Benckiser looks for in it’s employees.
I am responsible for delivering 11% of my region’s budget – and, deliver it I SHALL!

 

 

 

 

There was an interesting  article I read recently about RB’s CEO Bart Becht, called Do we celebrate the wrong CEOs?
He has been named as one of a handful of  “quiet CEOs” who are getting the job done, and getting it done well. 

The conversation, over at Harvard Business Review,  quite rightly asks the question: “Where do our leadership models and leadership lessons come from? We may just be learning from the most admired, but not the best-performing leaders.”

 

It is an art to explain the most complex of strategies in a few lines - Bart is known within the company to tell the story of a company’s future in 4 slides.Â
One has to admire the man. I keep kicking myself on not having bought RB’s stock earlier!

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At RB, there is a lot of emphasis placed on being mobile. I have been at Delhi for the past 5 months, and it is now time for me to move on to new challenges that a fresh territory would pose.
A few days back, I had a presentation. The audience sat in front of 4 men and a lady. Between them, they hold the reins of RB’s business interests over India and South Asia.

Time Given to impress = 25 minutes
Content = 7 months worth of work (across roles, across territories)
End Result = Managing Director: “Excellent Presentation, Great Work!!”
Where I am in January? = Your guess is as good as mine!

 

There is no inertia here … keep your bags packed and your spirit pumped!