(This post is part of an ongoing series of Ask the Experts questions, put to readers of our blog. Please share your thoughts and experiences by posting comments!)
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Who I am:
I am a newly appointed Director of Inside Sales for a large US Medical Device company.
Current State:
Currently, we have a sales force of approximately 175 sales representatives, of which 15 are Inside Sales. All 15 ISR's work from home, with the ability to come into the home office based on their needs (approximately 30% live close enough to take advantage of this). My team's sole responsibility is to generate revenue from new and existing customer bases.
What I'm being asked to do:
I have been asked to validate the structure of this group. Specifically, develop a recommendation on whether the team would be more productive at corporate, with the ever-watchful eye of management, or in their current state, as a virtual team.
Questions for the group:
- What are the pros and cons of a centralized / decentralized structure?
Items to think of:
- Productivity
- Accountability
- Team Culture
- Communication
- What technology tools can be instituted to support virtual teams and reduce the corporate anxiety on virtual ISR productivity?
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So c'mon. I know you have lots of opinions on this topic and we need to hear them. Thanks in advance for your answers and for participating in the discussion!