1
What are the common instructions given to sales managers using evaluation forms?
Answer:
Feedback:
Read the definitions of each trait thoroughly and carefully before rating. Guard against the
common tendency to overrate. Do not let personal like or dislike influence your rating.
Have sound reasons for your ratings. Never rate an employee on several instances of good
or poor work but rather on his or her general success or failure over the whole appraisal
period. Base your rating on the observed performance of the salesperson.
2
A BARS system focuses on:
(A)
A full range of factors that affect any employee’s performance
(B)
A few critical success factors
(C)
Only objective performance indexes
(D)
The one critical incident that separates successful salespeople from unsuccessful ones
(E)
Only those factors that motivate employees
Answer:
(B)
3
Which of the following statements about BARS (behaviorally anchored rating scale)
systems is true?
(A)
There are often many factors that are critical to the success of a salesperson and these are
identified in the procedure for developing a BARS system
(B)
A BARS system emphasizes behavior rather than performance and effectiveness
(C)
Unlike other performance appraisal systems, a BARS system requires appropriate personnel to
consider in detail the components of a salesperson’s performance
(D)
One advantage of a BARS system over other performance appraisal systems is the fact that it
is an inexpensive system to implement
(E)
A BARS system is a sophisticated type of merit rating form
Answer:
(A)
There are often many factors that are critical to the success of a salesperson and these
are identified in the procedure for developing a BARS system
4
Which of the following would NOT be an advisable instruction to management for the
completion of performance rating forms?
(A)
Guard against the common tendency to overrate
(B)
Do not let personal like or dislike influence your rating
(C)
Have sound reasons for your ratings
(D)
Never rate an employee on several instances of good or poor work, but rather, on his or her
general success or failure over the whole appraisal period
(E)
Base your rating on the salesperson’s potential ability
Answer:
(E)
Base your rating on the salesperson’s potential ability
5
A review of a salesperson’s evaluations shows that the average score given, on a 7-point
scale, was 4.5 with a variance of 1.0. This indicates that the appraiser may have been
adversely affected by:
(A)
The central tendency effect
(B)
The halo effect
(C)
Organizational use influence
(D)
Leniency
(E)
An interpersonal bias
Answer:
(A)
The central tendency effect
6
If promotion and monetary rewards hinge on ratings, management can be affected by:
(A)
The halo effect
(B)
Leniency
(C)
The lack of outcome focus
(D)
The central tendency
(E)
An interpersonal bias
Answer:
(B)
Leniency
7
The instruction, “”Do not permit your evaluation of one factor to influence your evaluation
of another,”” would prevent _____ from affecting a performance measurement rating
form.
(A)
Organizational use influences
(B)
A lack of outcome focus
(C)
The halo effect
(D)
The central tendency effect
(E)
Interpersonal bias
Answer:
(C)
The halo effect
8
The worst type of merit rating forms:
(A)
Are superior to all other subjective performance appraisal methods
(B)
Burden managers by requiring written justification for each rating
(C)
Are overly concerned with behaviors and not with actual performance
(D)
Simply list attributes of interest along one side of the form and evaluation adjectives along the
other
(E)
Require mangers to assess such hard-to-measure attributes as job knowledge and customer
relations
Answer:
(D)
Simply list attributes of interest along one side of the form and evaluation adjectives
along the other
9
Interpersonal bias, lack of an outcome focus and the halo effect are all problems
encountered with:
(A)
Marketing audits
(B)
Cost/profitability analyses
(C)
Performance measures based on a salesperson’s service record
(D)
The BARS system
(E)
Subjective performance rating forms
Answer:
(E)
Subjective performance rating forms
10
Outcome bias occurs when a sales manager:
(A)
Allows the outcome of a mistake made by a salesperson to overly influence the his or her
decision
(B)
Allows the basis of a decision made by the manager to overly influence the salesperson
(C)
Allows the basis of a decision made by a salesperson to overly influence the his or her decision
(D)
Allows the input of a decision or a series of decisions made by a manager to overly influence
the performance ratings made by the manager
(E)
Allows the outcome of a decision or a series of decisions made by a salesperson to overly
influence the performance ratings made by the manager
Answer:
(E)
Allows the outcome of a decision or a series of decisions made by a salesperson to overly
influence the performance ratings made by the manager
11
Which of the following is NOT a commonly evaluated subjective attribute used in merit
rating forms?
(A)
Customer and company relations
(B)
Job knowledge
(C)
Sales results
(D)
Dependability
(E)
Resourcefulness
Answer:
(C)
Sales results
12
Which of the following is an example of an objective evaluation method?
(A)
Personality rating factors
(B)
Active and new prospect account tallies
(C)
Behaviorally anchored rating scales
(D)
Technical skills
(E)
Good customer relationship tallies
Answer:
(B)
Active and new prospect account tallies
13
Working two days in the Madison area, Bettina Kharian made thirteen planned sales calls
and achieved a planned call ratio of 81 percent. She left the city with orders from fourteen
customers and an orders-per-call ratio of:
(A)
75.2 percent
(B)
81 percent
(C)
87.5 percent
(D)
93 percent
(E)
107.5 percent
Answer:
(C)
87.5 percent
14
Which of the following statements about methods of measuring a salesperson’s
performance is true?
(A)
Number of days worked x calls per day is used to determine a salesperson’s optimum territory
size
(B)
Non-selling activities are hard to measure because the data must be collected from current
and potential customers
(C)
A salesperson who makes 30 calls (20 planned and 10 unplanned) and collects 24 orders has a
batting average of .8 and a planned call ratio of 2
(D)
Days worked x call rate x batting average x average order size = sales
(E)
Account share is a key measure for companies that rely on team selling
Answer:
(D)
Days worked x call rate x batting average x average order size = sales
15
A salesperson’s hit ratio or batting average is the:
(A)
Number of new accounts/total number of accounts
(B)
Sales dollar volume/total sales volume in dollars
(C)
Number of orders/total number of sales
(D)
Total costs/number of calls
(E)
Number of new accounts/total number of accounts
Answer:
(C)
Number of orders/total number of sales
16
The account penetration ratio:
(A)
Provides a direct measure of whether the salesperson is skimming the cream off the territory
(B)
Measures how well a salesperson is able to keep prior accounts as active customers
(C)
Measures how successful a salesperson is at turning leads into suspects
(D)
Indicates a salesperson’s average success per account
(E)
Reveals the salesperson’s call patterns
Answer:
(A)
Provides a direct measure of whether the salesperson is skimming the cream off the
territory
17
Which of the following ratios does NOT reflect how well a salesperson is capturing the
potential business that exists in his or her territory?
(A)
Account penetration ratio
(B)
The cost per call ratio
(C)
The new account conversion ratio
(D)
The sales per account ratio
(E)
The average order size ratio
Answer:
(B)
The cost per call ratio
18
Which of the following is an example of a productivity ratio that a sales manager might use
to evaluate a sales representative?
(A)
Order cancellation ratio
(B)
Lost account ratio
(C)
Planned call ratio
(D)
Average order size ratio
(E)
All of the above
Answer:
(C)
Planned call ratio
19
Which of the following describes an advantage inherent in the BARS (behaviorally
anchored rating scale) system?
(A)
A BARS system removes the possibility of bias
(B)
A BARS system is inexpensive to develop and implement
(C)
A BARS system emphasizes behavior and performance rather than effectiveness
(D)
A BARS system provides an accurate measure of behavior, performance and effectiveness
(E)
A BARS system gives management the ability to develop one scale to assess the performance
of all types of salespeople within their firm
Answer:
(C)
A BARS system emphasizes behavior and performance rather than effectiveness
20
The customer relationship management philosophy embraces the idea that the customer is
a customer of:
(A)
The sales representative
(B)
The sales team
(C)
The sales manager
(D)
The company
(E)
The customer
Answer:
(D)
The company
21
In 360-degree sales performance feedback, which of the following people would NOT be
included?
(A)
The customer
(B)
The sales team
(C)
The sales manager
(D)
The competitors
(E)
The delivery personnel
Answer:
(D)
The competitors
22
What are the common problems associated with subjective measures of sales
performance?
Answer:
Feedback:
The common problems include: lack of outcome focus, ill-defined personality traits, halo
effect, leniency, central tendency, interpersonal bias, and organizational uses of influence.
23
What are the most commonly used attributes in evaluating salespeople’s performance?
Answer:
Feedback:
Sales results, job knowledge, management of territory, customer and company relations,
and personal characteristics.
24
What are some of the subjective measures used in sales performance analysis and how are
they typically used?
Answer:
Feedback:
Some subjective measures include job knowledge, management of territory, customer and
company relations, and personal characteristics. Sales performance measures seem to be
more important in termination and compensation decisions, while product knowledge and
customer relations seem to be more important in transfer and promotion decisions.
25
What objective measures of performance are used in evaluating salespeople?
Answer:
Feedback:
Objective measures reflect statistics the sales manager can gather from the firm’s internal
data. Objective measures include output measures such as sales, percentage of quota, and
number of new accounts and input measures such as sales calls, days worked, calls to
prospects, etc. There are also ratios of output to input measures.
26
What is 360-degree performance feedback?
Answer:
Feedback:
360-degree performance feedback is performance appraisal using all sources of feedback
including customers, internal customers (the sales and other members of the organizational
team), objective sales performance measures, and sales manager’s evaluation.
27
Which performance measure would a manager use to determine whether the salesperson
was skimming the best accounts or working a territory systematically and hard?
Answer:
Feedback:
The account penetration ratio, accounts sold divided by total accounts available, would help
determine this concern.
28
What sales performance ratio would a manager most likely use to measure a salesperson’s
effectiveness in acquiring new accounts. How is this measure calculated?
Answer:
Feedback:
One measure that could be used is the new account conversion ratio, which is calculated by
dividing the number of new accounts by the total number of accounts.
29
How is a salesperson’s hit rate measured?
Answer:
Feedback:
Hit rate is the number of orders divided by the total number of calls.
30
What is the difference between a cost per call ratio and an order per call ratio?
Answer:
Feedback:
A cost per call ration is the ratio of total costs divided by the number of sales calls. An
order per call ratio is the ratio of number of orders divided by the total number of calls.
31
When assessing a salesperson’s division of time among sales calls, traveling, office work,
and other activities, what is the assumed goal?
Answer:
Feedback:
The assumed goal is to maximize face-to-face customer time.
32
What three factors could cause a salesperson to fall below quota?
Answer:
Feedback:
The salesperson, the quota, or a change in the environment.
33
In attribution theory, how is performance measured?
Answer:
Feedback:
Performance = (Ability times Effort) +/- Task difficulty.
34
What are the typical measures of effectiveness used in assessing salespeople?
Answer:
Feedback:
The typical measures include sales volume, market share, profitability of sales, and
customer retention rate.
35
Cost per call is _________.
(A)
Total cost divided by number calls.
(B)
Total sales divided by number of calls.
(C)
Expenses divided by sales.
(D)
Sales divided by expenses.
(E)
None of the above.
Answer:
(A)
Total cost divided by number calls.
36
Input measures for calls includes all the following EXCEPT:
(A)
Total Number of Calls
(B)
Total calls to retrieve lost clients
(C)
Number of planned calls
(D)
Number of unplanned calls
(E)
None of the above
Answer:
(B)
Total calls to retrieve lost clients
37
The concept of performance management is analogous to:
(A)
Behavioral anchored rating scales (BARS)
(B)
Total quality management (TQM)
(C)
Performance promotion policies (PPP)
(D)
Just-in-time sales (JIT)
(E)
Accelerated sales analysis (ASA)
Answer:
(B)
Total quality management (TQM)
38
When appraisals of salespeople __________________ job satisfaction increases.
(A)
Provide clear criteria
(B)
Meet the approval of salespeople
(C)
Are perceived as fair
(D)
Are perceived as fair and used in determining rewards
(E)
All of the above
Answer:
(E)
All of the above
39
Which of the following is an example of an account development and servicing ratio that a
sales manager might use to evaluate a sales representative?
(A)
Sales expense ratio
(B)
Account penetration ratio
(C)
Calls per account ratio
(D)
The hit ratio
(E)
Planned call ratio
Answer:
(B)
Account penetration ratio
40
The sales expense ratio combines salespeople’s ______ and __________
(A)
Outputs; behavior
(B)
Effectiveness; Attribution
(C)
Bias; objectivity
(D)
Inputs; results
(E)
Effort; expense
Answer:
(D)
Inputs; results
41
(Days Worked) x (Calls per Day) provides a direct measure of:
(A)
Inequities in territory potential
(B)
A salesperson’s level motivation
(C)
Inequities in territory size
(D)
The extent of customer contact
(E)
A salesperson’s aptitude
Answer:
(D)
The extent of customer contact
42
360-degree performance feedback focuses on those sources of sales performance
measures that can be observed most closely, within a 360-degree radius.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
Uses sources of feedback about salespeople including external customers, internal
organization members who serve as resources in serving external customers, other
members of the salesperson’s selling team, any direct reports the sales manager may
have, and the sales manager.
43
Customer relationship management (CRM) emphasizes the relationship of the customer to
the salesperson.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
CRM systems focus much of the information on product development and formulation of the
overall marketing message. Also, CRM typically facilitates the gathering, analysis, and
dissemination of a great deal of information directly relevant to the performance of the
sales force.
44
As a rating system, BARS is costly to implement.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(A)
True
45
As a rating system, BARS tends to emphasize effectiveness rather than behavior and
performance.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
BARS system focuses on critical success factors and evaluates behaviors that are key to
performance rather than effectiveness.
46
The acronym BARS stands for Behavior Activated Ranking System.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
BARS system is a Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale.
47
Unlike sales and cost analyses, the objective measures of performance have no
disadvantages.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
Many objective measures are redundant in what they measure, but no one measure exists
that can fully capture the scope of salesperson effectiveness.
48
The average order size ratio is also called the salesperson’s batting average.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
The orders per call ratio is also known as the batting average.
49
Low sales per account ratio could indicate that a salesperson is not servicing his or her
smaller, less profitable accounts.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
A low sales per account ratio could indicate the salesperson is spending too much time
calling on small, less profitable accounts and not enough time calling on larger ones.
50
A salesperson’s call rate refers to the ratio of calls made to the number of sales closed.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
A call rate is the number of calls made per the number of days worked.
51
Total costs divided by number of calls equals “”hit ratio.””
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
The orders per call ratio is the hit ratio.
52
Many objective measures of performance evaluation focus on the efforts sales
representatives expend rather than the results of those efforts.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(A)
True
53
The average size of the orders a salesperson secures is as important as the number of
orders.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(A)
True
54
Ability equals task difficulty multiplied by effort.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
Ability is task difficulty divided by effort.
55
Careful specification of performance standards by territory will eliminate inequities across
territories.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(B)
False
Feedback:
A comparison of salespeople with respect to percentage of quota attained is a better
measure of their performance than is a comparison that simply looks at absolute sales.
However, quotas may not be well developed. Even when done well, the percentage of
quota attained omits much of a salesperson’s performance.
56
In addition to sales and profits, the other measures firms use to evaluate salespeople fall
into two broad categories: (1) objective measures and (2) subjective measures.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(A)
True
57
Attribution theory classifies performance based on effectiveness, difficulty, and effort.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(A)
True
58
Even when quotas are done well, the measure “”percentage of quota attained”” still omits
much with respect to a salesperson’s performance.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(A)
True
59
Salespeople should be asked to prepare a self-evaluation prior to the formal performance
evaluation.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(A)
True
60
Ultimately sales organizations need to work toward developing a performance
management system.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(A)
True
61
“”Input measures”” fall under which broad category of measures firms use to evaluate
salespeople?
(A)
Objective measures
(B)
Subjective measures
(C)
Output measures
(D)
Output to input ratios
(E)
None of the above
Answer:
(A)
Objective measures
62
Martin is looking at the number of sales calls, travel time and office work time of his sales
force. Martin’s goal in time and utilization analysis is to have salespeople:
(A)
Maximize face-to-face customer time
(B)
Minimize output
(C)
Develop a CRM system to replace anchored ratings
(D)
Expedite expense maximization
(E)
All of the above
Answer:
(A)
Maximize face-to-face customer time
63
Warren is evaluating his salespeople’s performance and finds Fred is well below his quota.
The problem could be:
(A)
Fred
(B)
The quota
(C)
A change in the marketing environment
(D)
Any of the above
(E)
None of the above
Answer:
(D)
Any of the above
64
Total number of calls, days worked, calls to prospects are measures of:
(A)
Output
(B)
Effort expended
(C)
Sales revenue
(D)
Account servicing
(E)
All of the above
Answer:
(B)
Effort expended
65
The various account measures provide a sales manager with perspective on the equity of
territory assignments and:
(A)
The cost per call ratio
(B)
The call productivity ratio
(C)
How well the territory is being handled
(D)
The attribution theory effort to aptitude quotient
(E)
The salesperson’s behavioral personality effectiveness percentage
Answer:
(C)
How well the territory is being handled
66
In reviewing Tom’s sales performance, his sales manager sees Tom had a very high rate of
canceled orders. This may indicate Tom:
(A)
Is not calling on enough customers
(B)
Is using high-pressure tactics
(C)
Avoids calling on difficult customers
(D)
Is not putting sufficient effort into his job
(E)
Is pursuing too many small orders
Answer:
(B)
Is using high-pressure tactics
67
In the most recent sales evaluation, Greg had twenty percent more sales than the next
best salesperson. This is indicative of Greg’s:
(A)
Advertising effectiveness
(B)
Time utilization
(C)
Ability to close sales
(D)
Personality
(E)
Nonselling activities
Answer:
(C)
Ability to close sales
68
Lori is deciding which input measures to use as part of her assessment of sales
performance. Which of the following is a measure of a salesperson’s input?
(A)
Number of orders
(B)
Average order size
(C)
Number of canceled orders
(D)
Number of active accounts
(E)
Days worked
Answer:
(E)
Days worked
69
Which of the following is NOT an output factor used to evaluate salespeople?
(A)
Number of orders
(B)
Average order size
(C)
Number of calls
(D)
Number of active accounts
(E)
Number of canceled orders
Answer:
(C)
Number of calls
70
Cost and sales analyses for evaluating salespeople:
(A)
Ignore many contributions that a salesperson might make
(B)
Inject bias into the evaluation process
(C)
Are the most common methods used by Fortune 1000 companies
(D)
Are accurately described by none of the above
(E)
Usually give the most representative indication of performance
Answer:
(A)
Ignore many contributions that a salesperson might make
71
Percentage of quota attained sales performance evaluation ignores:
(A)
Probability of sales success
(B)
Profitability of sales
(C)
Cost of goods purchased
(D)
Sales force effort
(E)
Quota definition
Answer:
(B)
Profitability of sales
72
An often neglected part of sales performance evaluation is:
(A)
Input measures
(B)
Expense analysis
(C)
Output assessment
(D)
Differences in territories
(E)
Feedback
Answer:
(D)
Differences in territories
73
In attribution theory, performance equals:
(A)
(ability x effort) +/- task difficulty
(B)
Task difficulty/effort
(C)
Ability x luck
(D)
Effort/ability
(E)
(task difficulty x effort)/ability
Answer:
(A)
(ability x effort) +/- task difficulty
74
The problem of contextual or background information affecting sales performance, often
ignored by sales managers is called _______________ by psychologist Fritz Heider.
(A)
Quota attainment deficit
(B)
Motivation management monitoring
(C)
Fundamental attribution error
(D)
Frequency allocation factor
(E)
Attributed allocative efficiency
Answer:
(C)
Fundamental attribution error
75
_____________ is behavior evaluated in terms of its contribution to the goals of the
organization.
(A)
Attribution
(B)
Retribution
(C)
Bias
(D)
Performance
(E)
Selling
Answer:
(D)
Performance
76
Which of the following is NOT a measure of salespeople’s effectiveness?
(A)
Sales volume
(B)
Market share
(C)
Profitability of sales
(D)
Effort
(E)
Customer retention rate
Answer:
(D)
Effort
77
_____ will affect a salesperson’s behavior and performance.
(A)
Role perceptions
(B)
Aptitude
(C)
Skill level
(D)
Motivation level
(E)
All of the above
Answer:
(E)
All of the above
78
Behavior is what salespeople:
(A)
Do
(B)
Avoid
(C)
Find rewarding
(D)
Offer customers
(E)
All of the above
Answer:
(A)
Do
79
In light of attribution theory, evaluating the performance of a salesperson is all about the
sales manager attributing causes of that performance.
(A)
True
(B)
False
Answer:
(A)
True