In the light of the poll that
we had on the group regarding professions you would like to know more about I
was wracking my brain to find the right person on board. One who talks not from the
books but from the invaluable experience of working in the corporate sector.
Humayun Shan, Regional Head
Sales (North) at Mondelez, Pakistan has been in this field for over ten years
now and today he shares with us some tips that will help kindle that salesman
spirit in all of you here.
What are the key 3 things that
you look out for in a candidate when hiring new entrants?
There are two sets of
candidates that come to us, one group is the experienced lot who have worked in
the industry for quite some time and know it inside out so for them the metrics
to gauge are totally different, what's more pertinent to this group are the
fresh candidates. These are the ones aspiring to enter in their first
profession. I look out for
1) Persistence
2) Positive (Attitude/Coachable)
3)Passionate
I would add a 4th one here which in recent times has taken as much
importance as the 3 above.
4) Resourceful (someone who can shift gears if a sale isn't going the
way they envisioned. They look for a different approach using creativity and
imagination
On many instances, fresh graduates
feel that companies negate the idea that they have to start from somewhere and
ask for an experience of 2-3 years even for an entry level job. What is your
take on it?
Work experience is important in cases
where stakes are really high. I look after 35% of Pakistan and
Islamabad/Rawalpindi are important parts of my performance. I would hesitate in
taking someone on board who has zero work experience as a manager in Islamabad.
Whereas I might be very happy taking can them on board as a manager in Jehlum
or Abbottabad.
This also depends on an organization and the position. In Mondelez an
Area Manager is as significant as Regional Managers of many other companies. So
we might not take him/her on as ASM Islamabad but we can look at him/her as
Territory Manager Islamabad where he/she will
have colleagues and responsibilities will be shared. I also
want to add that fresh graduates keep a track of management trainee
programs and never hesitate from relocation.
In your view point should everyone at some point in their careers take
up sales? Theory says this power to convince people to buy your product/service
really plays a pivotal role in one's career success in later years.
A sales based
job is always a challenge, making someone to buy products that they might not
even sometimes want or consciously think about is even a much challenging feat.
However, the growth that one experiences in this job role surpasses all others
as the results are so quantifiable. It’s more like you achieve your targets and
you can vouch for better future prospects.
From a
financial standpoint a job in an MNC like Mondelez, Nestle, Pepsi Co or RB is
very lucrative. They normally pay above market range and the perks are good as
well. FMCG sector is a fast paced sector. People mostly get addicted to it.
Normally all MNC's share career path ways with individuals. Some call it check
in's other call it development plan. I
strongly believe that in order to prove yourself in category planning &
activation, trade marketing or brand management roles you need to have a little
or some experience of sales. You just can't sit in office or do a market visit
or two and plan or finalize a trade plan. Most of the companies have now
adopted the same approach. They either move people in to sales for a stint or
hire people from sales in to positions of trade marketing or brands
Any tips that you might have to
offer for our younger lot?
I would say bring enthusiasm to
the office when you are aspiring to take a sales position. The start will
always be tough, maybe at times tougher than other fields as you have got
targets to meet, often seems like a rat race but the consistent players always
make it big. Hone your muscles now for its a rocky road ahead with a lot of leg
work but that feeling of satisfaction,personal growth and not to forget the
perks will make it all worth it!
Humayun Shan
https://www.linkedin.com/in/humayun-shan-b11aa88/
Comments
Post a Comment