Week 4 Assignment 2 Submission If you are using the Blackboard Mobile Learn IOS App, please click “View in Browser.” Click the link above to submit your assignment. Students, please view the “Submit a Clickable Rubric Assignment” in the Student Center. Instructors, training on how to grade is within the Instructor Center. Assignment 2: Sales Force Compensation Due Week 4 and worth 150 points For companies that have a mission of selling, a major objective is to motivate the salespeople. While that are many factors that go into motivating these people, one of the primary factors is the compensation plan that describes how they will be rewarded. Research a large organization’s sales force and its compensation plan.Write a five to seven (5-7) page paper in which you: In order to motivate the sales force to produce the highest number of clients, describe six (6) features of an effective total rewards program. Describe the behaviors of the sales force that are targeted with the compensation plan. Assess how a value proposition is achieved for current and future employees in the plan you have outlined. Based upon the type of plan you have created, indicate how attracted you think future salespeople may be to this plan. Use at least five (5) quality academic resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not quality as academic resources. Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements: Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions. Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required page length. The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are: Define total rewards and describe the advantages of a total rewards approach. Analyze an organization’s strategy, workforce, operating environment, and key stakeholders to identify critical factors in designing a total rewards strategy. Use technology and information resources to research issues in total rewards. Write clearly and concisely about total rewards using proper writing mechanics. Grading for this assignment will be based on answer quality, logic / organization of the paper, and language and writing skills, using the following rubric. Click here to view the grading rubric for this assignment. Virus-free. www.avast.com

Verizon: Sales Compensation Plan

Insert Name

Insert Institution

Insert Instructor’s Name

Date

Verizon: Sales Compensation Plan

A sales compensation plan of an organization is the base salary, incentives, and commission combined to form the earnings of the sales representatives of the company. The main objective of designing an effective sales compensation plan is to drive the performance of the sales representatives and increase the revenue of the company. Verizon is a proactive organization which engages in the use of total rewards approach to attract, retain as well as motivate the company’s best talent. The company does this through identification of the different types of sellers and the different compensations provided, implementing a value proposition plan to attract future employees.

Features of an Effective Total Rewards Program

Total rewards can be defined as anything the employees of a company can perceive as rewarding and valuable (Mone & London, 2014). Hence, the creation of a positive work environment includes implementation of the total rewards approach which allows for the provision of compensation opportunities tailored to meet the professional and personal needs of the employees.

Reflects on the Objective, Culture, Vision and Aligns with the Organizational Goals.

The total rewards system with the aim of nurturing their sales force through attracting, retaining and engaging them should have a rewards system which reflects and align with the goals, objectives, mission, and culture of the organization (Cichelli, 2017). For instance, an organization with an effective compensation plan and a substantial commission for the sales force matches the needs of the sale people to the organizational system so as to motivate the employees to continue working for the organization.

Transparency

The calculation of the employees’ incentives should be done in a transparent manner. The employees of a company would wish to know how their rewards are arrived at (Shields, et al., 2015). This can be done by providing easy access to their individual performance report and the schedules for commissions’ payouts. This includes a detailed report and information concerning all transactions were done to arrive at the commissions provided to them.   

A flexible mix of benefits

An effective reward program should have both the short and the long-term options including provision of diverse health care plans, Growth and development opportunities, pay raise and promotion opportunities.

Appreciation of employees

The organization which shows its workforce that they value and appreciates their time and efforts is likely to maintain their best employees (Phillip & Gully, 2013). An organization can demonstrate that they value and appreciate their employees through different ways including clearly defining the expected performance in regards to the bonuses, commission, and incentives. The employees who achieve the set performance standard can be rewarded by being given certain types of rewards such as car allowance and trips.

Open Communication

Communication in an organization creates a positive environment for the salespeople and the organization which ultimately will have a positive impact on the revenues and general growth of the company. An open communication system will provide information and feedback concerning the rewards employees receive.

The behavior of Target Sales Force

Recognizing the contribution of the sales force by the management of the company can provide insight into the contributions of the employees to the design of the compensation plan (Phillip & Gully, 2013). Verizon offers their sales force a base salary as well as an incentive based on the performance of the individual and the company by combining the sales commission, bonuses, gain sharing and team awards for motivation. The sales force positioned at the entry level are provided with a salary and commissions to help them establish their customer base and sales volumes through selling and relationship building. Others are given more flexibility by not being provided with the base salary in relation to the sales made and location. Others are given straight commissions which is helpful for them to directly relate their sales activities with the compensation given.

Moreover, bonus plans for salespersons and groups are provided so that each group or individual is given a quota for each territory. The quota target determines the incentive payments for the sales group or individual. In addition, the gainsharing plan is used in a team or group of salespersons who share a portion of the incentives gained from the improvement of effectiveness and productivity. Also, the short-term incentive plan supports paying salespeople for their performance through aligning a certain percentage of the total compensation of the individual to the goals of the company and the individual’s performance objectives. This plan is also used as a retention tool for the employees, where the regular, part-time and the full-time employees qualify to participate.

Achievement of Value Proposition

Employee value proposition (EVP) involves creating a balance between the rewards and the recognition with the performance of employees (Braumann, 2016). Verizon compensation program offers rewards, payment, opportunity, and advantage to the employees. This program matches skills set to the talent of the employees and is based on the pay-for-performance philosophy. The objective of this philosophy is the improvement of the recruitment and retention of the competent employees, communication of the values and objectives of the company while developing a reward system for both the individual and the groups’ achievement.

The company also has a performance-based culture in regards to the yearly incentive bonuses to individuals. The 401 plan of saving gives an opportunity for the employees to save for their future. The employees are also offered health care benefits such as health literacy and health and wellness centers which would enhance their wellbeing. Moreover, the company invests financially in training, development, and education of employees to align the needs of employees to the financial goals of the company. This helps the employees to keep pace with the technology by enhancing their competence levels for long-term responsibilities and long-term career development. Also, the opinion survey gives an opportunity to the employees to give their perspectives on company issues and uses the VZLearn technology to offer the company’s employees with training and development opportunities.

The attractiveness of the Plan of the Company to the Future Sales People

The decisions of employees concerning which company to seek employment or deciding on whether to stay in a company or leave is heavily determined by the total rewards program. Hence, they look at the tools used by an organization to attract, engage, retain, recruit and motivate talented workforce (Shields, et al., 2015). An appropriate rewards and incentives policy determines whether the company will retain and attract competent employees.

Future sales personnel will focus on the following

The incentive-based compensation plan attracts competent sales people as it has the opportunities for sharing profits. This type of plan motivates salespeople to reach their maximum potential. Therefore, Verizon offers base salary bonuses and flexible commissions which cater to the needs of the company and the employees. This encourages the sellers to sell more to increase the profit margins of the company which will mean that they are also gaining from the increase in margins. The compensation plan becomes better with the experiences and success in regards to the performance of the employees.  

Enhance Health and Wellbeing

Health and wellbeing of an employee is a significant aspect of an organization seeking to attract and sustain competent employees. As a result, a company having perks which help employees live a healthy lifestyle will experience lower rates of absenteeism, improved morale and productive which eventually attracts competent employees. The company provides discounts for the top sellers, health care spending account for individual and their dependents, and for commuter spending.  

Advancement Opportunities

An organization must provide opportunities for growth for the new talent acquired. Competent employees might be having many reasons for changing employers and one of these reasons is for career development. Hence, Verizon offers continuous and extensive training in addition to the provision of resources mapping the career promotion path. Consequently, this would attract competent individuals seeking career development and motivate those already in the company.

Communication of the Sales Communication Plan

A company has to put efforts in selling their compensation strategies to the employees of the company and potential employees. An effective effort will ensure that the employees or the sales team understand the plans (Shields, et al., 2015). The compensation plans for Verizon is effective as the employees and potential employees are encouraged to provide feedback through initiatives such as the employee’s voice and the employee portal.

Therefore, an effective compensation plan must be able to attract, retain and motivate employees so that they produce the highest number of clients. The sales force has to be grouped into different categories with different compensation plans. The value proposition is then used to match the needs of the current and future employees so as to attract competent employees.

References

Braumann, M. (2016). Conceptual Foundations and Case Studies of Salesforce Compensation Plans. London: WHU Publishing.

Cichelli, D. J. (2017). Compensating the Sales Force, Third Edition: A Practical Guide to Designing Winning Sales Reward Programs. New York City: McGraw-Hill Education.

Mone, E. M., & London, M. (2014). Employee Engagement Through Effective Performance Management: A Practical Guide for Managers. Abingdon-on-Thames: Routledge.

Phillip, J. M., & Gully, S. M. (2013). Human Resource Management. Boston: Cengage Learning.

Shields, J., Brown, M., Kaine, S., Dolle-Samuel, C., North-Samardzic, A., McLean, P., . . . Plimmer, G. (2015). Managing Employee Performance & Reward: Concepts, Practices, Strategies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.