Area Sales Manager

Responsibilities & Key Deliverables

As an Area Sales Manager, you will be pivotal in driving end-to-end retail sales performance across the assigned territory. Your core responsibility involves managing the entire Enquiry to Booking to Retail (E-T-B-R) cycle, ensuring seamless execution and achieving targeted sales metrics. You will strategically plan, coordinate, and implement activation campaigns aimed at increasing enquiry generation and enhancing customer engagement.

You will oversee the quality and volume of test drives generated from all enquiry sources, ensuring a superior customer experience and accurate tracking of potential sales opportunities. Precision in booking data authenticity and accuracy will be fundamental to maintaining reliable sales pipelines and forecasting.

Meeting retail sales targets is essential, with a focus on maintaining the optimal Vehicle Delivery Note (VDN) to retail ratio. You will continuously improve conversion ratios (CVR) by analyzing existing processes and implementing best practices to drive efficiency. DMS data integrity and accuracy will be monitored diligently to support operational excellence.

Sales planning is a key function, entailing the development of robust sales forecasts and manpower productivity strategies for 'N' month horizons. Identifying training needs, facilitating skill development, and motivating your sales teams through structured rewards and incentives are critical components of fostering a high-performing workforce. You will ensure strict adherence to the established sales narrative to maintain brand consistency across all touchpoints.

Champion the adoption and effective utilization of digital tools including Test Drive Anytime Anywhere (TDAA), Personal Voice Assistant (PVA), Bring Showroom Home (BSH), Virtual Reality (VR), and tablets, to maximize customer engagement and CVR. You will also ensure the digital engagement team is adequately staffed and trained to enhance sales capabilities.

Financial stewardship responsibilities include managing dealer working capital rotations and closely monitoring stock aging to facilitate timely liquidation of aged inventory. Proactive forecasting for the upcoming months and stringent oversight of dealer market outstanding will be required to maintain healthy business operations.

Collaboration with cross-functional teams and field stakeholders to orchestrate enquiry generation activations will be vital. You will drive continuous improvement initiatives to optimize sales processes, enhance customer satisfaction, and achieve sustainable business growth.

Preferred Industries
Consumer FMCG / Food Automotive Industry Education Qualification

The ideal candidate will possess a strong academic background with an MBA or Post Graduate Diploma in Management from a recognized institution. This education provides foundational insights into business strategy, marketing, financial management, and organizational behavior, equipping you to navigate complex sales environments effectively.

Additional professional development or certifications related to sales management, digital marketing, or automotive industry trends are advantageous but not mandatory. We value continuous learning and encourage participation in relevant training programs to stay abreast of evolving market dynamics and technological advancements.

Your education will serve as a cornerstone for analytical thinking, strategic planning, and leadership capabilities essential in managing diverse teams and driving business results in a competitive automotive landscape.

General Experience

A solid background in core automotive sales or FMCG sales with experience ranging from 3 to 8 years is essential for this role. This experience should encompass direct sales responsibilities, sales planning, achievement of targets, and team management within dynamic and fast-paced business environments.

Experience working in regions with diverse market conditions and customer demographics will be particularly beneficial, enabling you to tailor sales strategies effectively and drive market penetration. A track record of managing multiple sales channels and leveraging digital sales tools to enhance performance is highly desirable.

In addition, familiarity with dealer relationship management, financial metrics such as working capital and inventory turnover, and the ability to analyze and act upon market intelligence are integral parts of your experience base. Exposure to training and capability building initiatives to uplift team performance will contribute significantly to success in this role.

Critical Experience

Critical to this role is demonstrable experience managing end-to-end retail sales operations within the automotive or FMCG sector, with a particular emphasis on overseeing the E-T-B-R process. You should have proven expertise in organizing and executing sales activations that effectively generate customer enquiries and convert these into confirmed bookings and retail sales.

Experience leveraging digital engagement platforms and tools such as TDAA, PVA, VR, and tablets to optimize customer interaction and increase conversion rates is essential. You should also have a demonstrated ability to maintain accuracy in digital management systems (DMS) and sales reporting to support data-driven decision making.

Strong capabilities in manpower management, including identifying training requirements, motivating teams with rewards and incentives, and ensuring adherence to standardized sales procedures, are vital. The role demands a strategic approach to managing dealer working capital, reducing stock aging, and improving inventory liquidation practices.

Additionally, experience coordinating with cross-functional teams to develop and implement effective sales plans and forecast sales for multiple months ahead will be critical. Your ability to adapt to and lead change, while sustaining focus on customer satisfaction and business results, will distinguish your performance in this role.

System Generated Core Skills
Credit Management Consumer Focus Manpower Management Dealer Relationship Management Manpower Planning Market Acumen Sales Planning Capability Building System Generated Secondary Skills
Capability Building Change Management Consultative Selling Statutory Compliance Designing Customer Experience Financial Management Identifying Customer Needs Market Intelligence Order Management Performance Management Product Knowledge & Application Product Knowledge - Hybrid Vehicle Territory Coverage Optimization Working Capital Management

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