Professional Development

Dell Expands Online Testing and Training for Services Sales

July 2001—Like many product-centric firms, Dell Computer Corporation has dedicated a great deal of energy in recent years to building up its services business. The enterprise market is a critical target for Dell in this regard; the PC giant has a major initiative to become the premier provider of products, services, and integrated solutions in the enterprise space.

To ensure success, Dell's "enterprise credibility campaign" includes an ambitious online testing and training program for the sales force, including a major emphasis on services. As Jim Vance, training consultant for Dell's enterprise marketing team, notes, "In the computer manufacturing business, it's usually easier for the sales force to establish hardware credibility with customers. When it comes to services, it's more of a challenge." The new training program is under development now, with a launch planned for Fall 2001.

Dell's enterprise services marketing team began to include services information in sales training modules for various products about 18 months ago and then developed a separate, detailed training module specifically on services. Some of the services material has been posted online, but most of the training has taken place at periodic national and regional sales training events.

The new initiative is designed to take enterprise sales training to the next level. The in-person training will continue, but the big initiative is an expansion of the online training program. Perhaps most important, the program as a whole includes required pre- and post-training testing. According to Terri Mirka, senior manager for enterprise services marketing and sales training at Dell, "We have just recently gained strong sales management endorsement to enforce the product and service training requirements." The testing program will include all field account executives and systems consultants who sell products with services within Dell's large business segments.

The tests cover core knowledge areas related to Dell products, services, and integrated solutions. For services, the tests examine knowledge of key services features, benefit/value propositions, and how to identify opportunities. The goal of the tests, according to Jim Vance, who helped designed them, is to determine whether or not the salespeople are able to present the key points of the specific offers to a client—not an easy thing to do in an objective test format. If the salespeople don't pass the tests, they will be required to take appropriate online training modules.

Vance has been working hard to ensure that the new online training modules are engaging and interactive. "When you don't have an instructor in front of you," he says, "and you have a relatively 'soft' topic like services, it's hard to keep the student engaged." The new modules highlight situational learning, presenting students with a variety of questions, incidents, or interactions that typically happen to sales personnel. Students are then prompted to develop short services-based solutions for the hypothetical clients.

Dell's refined approach to services sales training provides an excellent carrot-and-stick model for other product companies to consider. The testing requirement ensures that services sales training becomes a priority for sales personnel, and the new online modules make the training itself more convenient and engaging. The new online program will be a great improvement over the old, according to Mirka, "since it will be individualized and just-in-time."

ITSMA feels strongly that face-to-face training remains critical to any sales force transformation initiative but that well-designed online learning efforts, such as the Dell program, do hold great potential to contribute to services sales success. Dell expects to roll out the program to its entire enterprise sales force by the end of 2001. Stay tuned for ITSMA coverage of the results.

—Rob Leavitt <rleavitt@itsma.com>

About ITSMA
ITSMA specializes in helping companies market and sell services and solutions more effectively. As a membership organization, we provide research, consulting, and training to the world's leading technology, communications, and professional services providers to generate increased demand, strengthen customer relationships, and improve brand differentiation. ITSMA is based near Boston, and has offices in London and Tokyo. Learn more at www.itsma.com.