Posts Tagged ‘taking on new challenges’

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The differences between marketing and sales departments

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

My name is Nicole. I have been working as a trainee here at Reckitt Benckiser in Brazil since July 2009. Being a trainee at RB is something really different from any other job I had before and completely different from the trainee programs in other big companies. This is mainly because our graduate program gives you exposure to two departments: marketing and sales/trade. Right from the start of your assignment you have responsibility and ownership of complex projects.

I have started in the sales department where I had to deliver 3 main projects in a period of six months:
1) build stronger partnership with golden stores attended by the indirect channel,
2) develop a tool to measure clients sell out and stock and finally
3) the Pharma GTM (Go To Market plan), for the brands which are not launched, yet.
Three strategically very important projects which had to be attractive for our sales team as well as our clients, but of course the client is always the king. 

Last month I started working in the marketing department and I am responsible for future launches of RB products. Also strategically important but in this case what matters most are our consumers and what they think or feel about our products. In the marketing department you are also responsible for the financials of your brand: the product GM (Gross Margin) and everything that impacts the cost of the product needs to be managed and tracked. 

Besides these differences both departments have also other specific characteristics. For example: the results in sales are very short term driven and you have monthly targets to achieve and are constantly evaluated. In marketing you tend to have longer term targets and in some cases you start to see first results after one year. Another clear difference between both areas is that most of decisions in marketing are made based on researches and official reports such as Nielsen, whereas in sales sometimes – because it is so difficult to measure results in the trade (one of the main reasons for it is that the market is too big, in Brazil we have more than 400.00 stores) – some decisions are made based on not only quantitative data (Nielsen), but also on more qualitative data delivered from our field team.

Clearly, there are much more differences between both areas but I believe those are the most important ones. All in all, having the opportunity to work on both sides is really good and important for one’s career. At the end of the program you will get a 360° view of the commercial area and the most important parts of the business. I can only recommend to joining Reckitt Benckiser´s trainee program.

Find out more about our graduate programs on http://www.reckittbenckiser.jobs/graduates

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Rock ’n’ Roll at the Point of Sale…

Friday, February 26th, 2010

…and how to make it happen.

 

Wikipedia says that “Rock ’n’ Roll is a genre of popular music…” To me this guy right here represents perfectly what Rock ’n’ Roll is all about:

 


 

 

Entertaining, talented, unique, powerful, impressive – Rock ‘n’ Roll.

 

I will never forget Jan 6th 2010. The store manager of one of my biggest stores in my sales area called me:
“Holger, we will make the deal you offered me three weeks ago.”
My first thought: “ROCK ‘N’ ROLL!”
During my first weeks at RB Michael, one of my colleagues, told me a saying. I don’t think you can translate it one by one but maybe you will get the meaning: “Mass sells mass.”
The meaning is: the more entertaining, unique, powerful and impressive your appearance at the point of sale (POS) is, the more you will sell.
And yes, by using these four words you see the connection to the dance-video on top. The last description of Rock ‘n’ Roll missing is “talented”. This you only get when you are able to sell highly talented products like ours at RB.

 

You might ask me to explain and describe what we did at this specific store but I am not able to put it into words. To really make you understand what I mean by talking about “Rock ‘n’ Roll at the POS”, you have to take a look at the pictures below.

 

 

Entertaining, talented, unique, powerful, impressive – Rock ‘n’ Roll.

 

And it is true. Customers buy more. They are entertained and they know that this impressive appearance goes along with very talented brands which stand for a high quality and unique products.

 

The secret behind this story is not really a secret. Why did the store manager order this huge amount of products at once? He understands how the business works. He knows how customer think. He is aware of the topic “Rock ‘n’ Roll at the POS”.
But in my eyes the key factor was trust. The buyer trusted me. He was sure that I would never sell him products which he would not be able to sell to his customers again.
Being a good salesman means in my eyes to be open minded, caring, understand a buyer’s needs, find a connection to him.

 

I am sure that everybody can be a good salesperson. The most important thing is to listen to a buyer’s needs. Find out if you are able to read needs.

 

Rock on…

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A peek behind the scenes of a fast-moving FMCG company

Monday, January 4th, 2010

praveens-territory

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!

 

 

 

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Bart Becht: A CEO worth celebrating

Friday, December 18th, 2009

bart

 

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. 
One has to admire the man. I keep kicking myself on not having bought RB’s stock earlier!

 
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!

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Good Health + Good Pay = Dream Job

Friday, December 4th, 2009

I am now entering the third month of my stay at the corporate office. Three months of air conditioned office, lavish lunches, polite conversations and  lots of Excel.

 

My BMI is hitting the danger level and I can no longer find my own chin. Given the startling change in body contours (among other factors), I am looking forward to getting some exercise.

 

Word is out in the grapevine that all the Management Trainees will be given their posings by the first of January. We will be posted as Area Sales Managers (ASMs) in different parts of India. You are given your targets, two days of time and shipped off to develop business in that territory for the next two years.

There are no simulations in RB, you cannot afford to make mistakes, you are expected to be perfect – but then if you are in RB you probably are!

 

Our reviews are scheduled for December 12th and at stake are plum positions … Wish me luck people

:)

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