University of Alberta, School of Business

Syllabus for

Selling and Sales Management
Mark 470, Section B1

Class Location: B-09

Class Times: 9:00 a.m. – 9:50 a.m.

Class Days: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday

Course Duration: January 6th – April 9th 2003

Course Web Site:

Instructor: Jim Swaffield MBA

Office: BusinessBuilding, Room 2-32B

Office Hours: MWF 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. (or by appointment)

Office Phone: 492-6935

E-mail:

Textbook: Spiro, Rosann L, Stanton, William J, Rich, Gregory A. (2003) Management of a Sales Force. 11th Edition, McGraw-Hill Irwin.

Course Description

Marketing 470 is a course that deals with the management of an outside sales force. Specifically, this course will involve the study of the selling process, sales force recruitment and training, motivation, compensation, territory design and management, and sales performance evaluation.

Method of Evaluation:

  • Midterm - 35% (February 10, 2003)
  • Sales Manager Interview Assignment - 20% (Due February 14, 2003)
  • Final Exam - 45%

Important Note:
The Sales Manager Assignment is due on Friday, February 14th, 2003 at the beginning of class. Assignments received 15 minutes after the start of class are considered late and will be assessed a late penalty of 10%. Late assignments will be penalized 10% per day.

Absences from Exams:
Absences from exams can be excused ONLY on the basis of illness (accompanied by a University of Alberta Medical Statement) or, a family emergency/distress. In the event of an illness a University of Alberta Medical Statement must be provided to the instructor within two working days following the missed exam. The Medical Statement form can be downloaded at

Course Schedule:DateTopic Assigned Reading

January 6thCourse Introduction and Overview

January 8thThe Field of Sales Force ManagementChapter 1
January 10thThe Field of Sales Force Management continued

January 13thStrategic Sales Force ManagementChapter 2

January 15thStrategic Sales Force Management continued

January 17thThe Personal Selling ProcessChapter 3

January 20thStrategic/Consultative Selling

January 22ndGuest Speaker: Mr. Cam Dafoe, IBM Canada
Topic: The consultative selling process used by IBM

January 24th Sales Force OrganizationChapter 4

January 27th Profiling and Recruiting SalespeopleChapter 5

January 29th Guest Speakers: from Drake Personnel
Connie Veenbaas, Business Development Manager
Grant Gerlitz, Business Development Manager
Topic: Personality Profiling for Sales Managers and Sales Reps

January 31st Selecting and Hiring ApplicantsChapter 6

February 3rdSelecting and Hiring Applicants continued

February 5thDeveloping, Delivering, and Reinforcing a Sales Chapter 7
Training Program

February 7thDeveloping, Delivering, and Reinforcing a Sales
Training Program continued

February 10thMidterm Exam (covers all material up to Chapter 7)

February 12thMotivating a Sales ForceChapter 8

February 14th Motivating the Sales Force continued
Sales Manager Interview assignment due at beginning of class
February 17th Reading Week – No class
February 19thReading Week – No class
February 21stReading Week – No class

February 24thGuest Speaker TBA

February 26thDiscussion of Sales Manager Interviews

February 28thDiscussion of Sales Manager Interviews continued
March 3rdSales Force CompensationChapter 9

March 5thSales Force Compensation continued

March 7th Sales Force Expenses and TransportationChapter 10
March 10thLeadership of a Sales ForceChapter 11
March 12thLeadership of a Sales Force continued
March 14th Sales Forecasting and Developing Budgets Chapter 12
March 17thDesigning and Managing Sales TerritoriesChapter 13

March 19thAnalysis of Sales VolumeChapter14

March 21stAnalysis of Sales Volume continued

March 24thMarket Cost and Profitability AnalysisChapter 15

March 26thMarket Cost and Profitability Analysis continued

March 28thEvaluating a Salesperson’s PerformanceChapter 16

March 31stEvaluating a Salesperson’s Performance continued

April 2nd Ethical and legal Responsibilities of Sales ManagersChapter 17

April 7thEthical and Legal Responsibilities of Sales Managers

April 9thCourse Review and Last Day of Class.

1