Sales force automation system with focused account calling tool

• US 8,775,234 B2
• Filed: 12/04/2006
• Issued: 07/08/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Callahan Cellular LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Ziti Technologies LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Jackness, Jeffrey, Sutton, Douglas Kendall
• Primary Examiner(s): FEENEY, BRETT A
• Application Number:
  US11/633,251
• Publication Number:
  US 20070282650A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,773 Days
• US Class Current: 705/7.42
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0637 Strategic management or analysis, e.g. setting a goal or target of an organisation; Planning actions based on goals; Analysis or evaluation of effectiveness of goals
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06375 Prediction of business process outcome or impact based on a proposed change
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0639 Performance analysis of employees; Performance analysis of enterprise or organisation operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06393 Score-carding, benchmarking or key performance indicator [KPI] analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06398 Performance of employee with respect to a job function
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data

Abstract

A sales force automation method (30), comprises providing instructions which operatively direct a computer system (100) to employ one or more predetermined input-parameters (60), wherein each input-parameter is applicable to one or more clients. Sets of input-values are operatively sorted to the input-parameters for a corresponding, individual client, and the input-values that pertain to a selected client-set (62) are operatively gathered. The computer system sorts the input-values from the client-set according to sales-parameters (64) that pertain to the selected client-set. The sorted input-values are compiled and analyzed to generate an actual sales-performance-value (84) for each sales-parameter. Upon a comparison between the sales-performance-value for a sales-parameter and a corresponding parameter-target-value or target-range, the computer system can determine an appropriate sales performance-rating. Upon such determination of the sales performance-rating, the computer system can be operatively directed to display a graphical indicator (68) that corresponds to the sales performance-rating.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving one or more activity parameters indicating at least one of total calls, total end user calls, trial rate, conversion rate, plan execution for end users, plan execution for distributors, target account focus for end users, or target account focus for distributors;

receiving a weighting factor and a target activity value for the received one or more activity parameters, each target activity value associated with one of a plurality of performance levels;

receiving customer data related to customer interactions with respective members of a sales force wherein the customer data indicates which of the one or more activity parameters were performed by each of the respective members of the sales force;

determining a performance value for the received one or more activity parameters for a particular member of the sales force, said determining based at least in part on the customer data;

comparing the performance values for the received activity parameters to the respective target activity value;

determining, by a computing system having one or more computer processors, performance scores for the received one or more activity parameters for the particular member of the sales force, the performance scores based at least partly on said comparing of the performance values, said weighting factor for the associated activity parameter, and the one or more activity parameters that were performed by the particular member of the sales force;

determining, by the computing system, one of the plurality of performance levels for the received activity parameters based at least in part on the respective performance scores; and

generating, by the computing system, a report including performance scores for the particular member of the sales force and performance levels associated with respective performance scores, wherein the performance levels are indicated by graphical indications.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of performance levels comprise a first level associated with a weight of 0%, a second level associated with a weight of 50%, and a third level associated with a weight of 100%.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a ranking for the particular member of the sales force, the ranking based at least partly on the overall score for the particular member, the ranking corresponding to performance of the particular member of the sales force relative to other members of the sales force.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the target account focus for distributors indicates an amount of distributor-interactions with high priority distributors relative to a total number of distributor-interactions.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the plan execution for distributors indicates an amount of distributor-interactions with high priority distributors for a time period relative to a number of planned distributor-interactions for the time period.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the target account focus for end users indicates an amount of customer-interactions with high priority customers relative to a total number of customer-interactions.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the trial rate indicates a number of customer-interactions resulting in a trial of a product relative to a total number of customer-interactions.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the conversion rate indicates a number of customer-interactions resulting in an order of a product relative to a total number of customer-interactions.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a target organizational score and one or more of the activity parameters for the target organizational score; and

generating an organizational score based on the performance scores for members of the sales force.

10. A computing system comprising:

one or more computer processors configured to cause the computing system to;

receive one or more activity parameters indicating at least one of total calls, total end user calls, trial rate, conversion rate, plan execution for end users, plan execution for distributors, target account focus for end users, or target account focus for distributors;

receive a weighting factor and a target activity value the received one or more activity parameters, each target activity value associated with one of a plurality of performance levels;

receive customer data related to customer interactions with respective members of a sales force wherein the customer data indicates which of the one or more activity parameters were performed by each of the respective members of the sales force;

determine a performance value for the received one or more activity parameters for a particular member of the sales force, said determining based at least in part on the customer data;

compare the performance values for the received activity parameters to the respective target activity value;

determine performance scores for the received one or more activity parameters for the particular member of the sales force, the performance scores based at least partly on said comparison of the performance values, said weighting factor for the associated activity parameter, and the one or more activity parameters that were performed by the particular member of the sales force;

determine one of the plurality of performance levels for the received activity parameters based at least in part on the respective performance scores; and

generate a report including performance scores for the particular member of the sales force and performance levels associated with respective performance scores, wherein the performance levels are indicated by graphical indications.

11. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the plurality of performance levels comprise a first level associated with a weight of 0%, a second level associated with a weight of 50%, and a third level associated with a weight of 100%.

12. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the computing system is configured to determine a ranking for the particular member of the sales force, the ranking based at least partly on the overall score for the particular member, the ranking corresponding to performance of the particular member of the sales force relative to other members of the sales force.

13. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the target account focus for distributors indicates an amount of distributor-interactions with high priority distributors relative to a total number of distributor-interactions.

14. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the plan execution for distributors indicates an amount of distributor-interactions with high priority distributors for a time period relative to a number of planned distributor-interactions for the time period.

15. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the computing system is further configured to:

receive a target organizational score and one or more of the activity parameters for the target organizational score; and

generate an organizational score based on the performance scores for members of the sales force.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that, in response to execution by a computing system, cause the computing system to perform operations comprising:

receiving one or more activity parameters indicating at least one of total calls, total end user calls, trial rate, conversion rate, plan execution for end users, plan execution for distributors, target account focus for end users, or target account focus for distributors;

receiving a weighting factor and a target activity value for the received one or more the received activity parameters, each target activity value associated with one of a plurality of performance levels;

receiving customer data related to customer interactions with respective members of a sales force wherein the customer data indicates which of the one or more activity parameters were performed by each of the respective members of the sales force;

determining a performance value for the received one or more activity parameters for a particular member of the sales force, said determining based at least in part on the customer data;

comparing the performance values for the received activity parameters to the respective target activity value;

determining performance scores for the received one or more activity parameters for the particular member of the sales force, the performance scores based at least partly on said comparing of the performance values, said weighting factor for the associated activity parameter, and the one or more activity parameters that were performed by the particular member of the sales force;

determining, by the computing system, one of the plurality of performance levels for the received activity parameters based at least in part on the respective performance scores; and

generating a report including performance scores for the particular member of the sales force and performance levels associated with respective performance scores, wherein the performance levels are indicated by graphical indications.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the plurality of performance levels comprise a first level associated with a weight of 0%, a second level associated with a weight of 50%, and a third level associated with a weight of 100%.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, said instructions causing the computer system to perform further operation:

receiving a target organizational score and one or more of the activity parameters for the target organizational score; and

generating an organizational score based on the performance scores for members of the sales force.