Image Case Study B2B

1. What do you think of Mr. Reynolds’ management methods in general? I think that Mr. Reynolds’ management method is very trusting and his style is somewhat laissez-faire, making it a somewhat fragile system. Reynolds doesn’t require paperwork which is usually used to detail and keep track of each employee’s actions but instead relies on trust and maturity amongst the salespeople. Generally such a method is a very risky but it seems that the intensive training that the employees receive builds their notion of responsibility.Furthermore, Reynolds’ management method tends to shy away from â€Å"burdening† his employees with potential estimates and quota targets like many other companies but believes each worker is ambitious for the company and themselves. His use of rewards and contests are very desirable for the employees but are very costly to implement – Reynolds must really trust his employees to make a return to cover such expenses. I do admire Reynolds discussion approach: discuss all work-related problems weekly or daily if necessary by telephone with their managers.The openness of the workplace probably uses the communication to replace the paperwork, a very admirable relationship in my opinion. I think Reynolds’ has crafted a very unique system which, although currently is effective under his management, seems very delicate to implement elsewhere and is very burdening on the company’s budget. I would not recommend it be to be adopted by other managers unless there is a strong financial foundation. 2.Does he have a quota system? What are quotas used for? Reynolds does not have a specific quota system to manage his sales force or use them as targets for his employees, but he does use a quota system to figure out the monthly shipment schedule. Quotas are figures that act as an individual’s target within a set time period, derived from past performances and â€Å"potential† or expec tations, and used as a benchmark for performance evaluations.Instead of a ‘quota’ system to evaluate, Reynolds uses a point system which is also dependent on one’s level of sales and uses it to rank employees based on their performance. The main difference, as perceived by Reynolds, is that the point system uses â€Å"personal objectives, not arbitrary quotas, to stimulate [his] salesmen. † 3. Do you think that the expenses of the US sales force are too high?I do think the expenses of the US sales force are too high. Reynolds’ incentives indeed are very creative and motivating, however, they are a bit too extreme and extravagant. I think it is possible for Reynolds to cut some of the costs whilst maintaining the same effect. For example, the Palm Springs convention could be cut by two days and top salesman and district manager can only go to one or two locations instead of three each year.