Introduction Personnel management is one of the topics distributors can never avoid. In an unfavorable industry climate, the more complete internal management is, the higher the ability to resist risks; otherwise, success remains elusive. We have compiled ten common management problems distributors face; see how many you have.
- High Employee Turnover Manifestations "Difficulty retaining people" is one of the challenges most distributor companies face. Within a certain range, a reasonable turnover rate can increase company vitality, but if it is too high, it can hinder development. The reasons for employee turnover are varied, including company, employee, and industry factors. Affected by the unfavorable industry climate, the problem of employee turnover in distributor companies has become more prominent.
Case Example Hunan Zhuzhou Yida Wine Marketing Co., Ltd. – Retaining People through Shareholding Zhuzhou Yida Wine has adopted a shareholding system to retain people, with remarkable results. Since the company's inception, the shareholding system has taken shape, and they encourage employees to become shareholders, hoping they will regard the company's development as their own career. Regarding employee shareholding, Yida has several principles: First, only employees who have worked for a certain number of years and been promoted to a certain position are eligible to buy shares. The more shares, the higher the position, and vice versa. Second, the investment amount ranges from 50,000 to 150,000 yuan, depending on the employee's contribution. Third, since department managers are shareholders, they must be responsible for the company and their own departments, bearing the profit and loss of their departments. Fourth, employees can voluntarily apply to manage subsidiary companies controlled by the company, giving them a larger development platform.
Applicable Principle The Rainier Effect The Rainier Effect refers to the idea that beautiful scenery can better retain talent. This effect has implications for attracting and retaining talent: only by showing the company's "human touch" and providing employees with sufficient development platforms can you win people's hearts and truly retain them. Distributors should create a good company and development environment for employees, provide necessary guarantees, enhance their sense of identity, belonging, and loyalty, so they work hard and contribute without complaint. This is the foundation of corporate culture and the key to stabilizing morale and retaining talent.
- Salespeople Not Proactive Manifestations Salespeople's lack of proactivity is mainly manifested in laziness, poor mental state, and low work efficiency. This can be caused by both internal and external factors. Internal factors refer to self-motivation, including expectations, self-standards, and self-encouragement. External factors mainly refer to the work atmosphere, including supervisors, colleagues, incentives, and the work itself.
Case Example Changsha Jinding Wine Co., Ltd. – Contract System to Boost Motivation To improve employee motivation, Jinding Wine adopts a department manager contract system. On a voluntary basis, with last year's sales as the benchmark, if the department can achieve the same task this year, employees can earn higher wages than last year. If they exceed last year's target, commissions increase accordingly. Once a department manager contracts a department, all departmental expenses can be handled by the manager, who also selects their own staff and pays their wages.
Applicable Principle The Garbage Can Law The Garbage Can Law simply tells us that installing a sensor-activated recorder on a garbage can that plays a story or joke when trash is thrown in is far more effective than punitive measures; it saves money and doesn't cause aversion. From this, we see that humanized management is more effective in boosting employee motivation. If you rigidly dictate what employees should do and how, with penalties for non-compliance, the result is often counterproductive. It not only breeds rebelliousness but also stifles initiative and creativity. Helping employees change lazy behavior at the conscious level is more effective for sustaining motivation.
- Managing the Post-90s Generation Manifestations In the eyes of most distributors, managing post-90s employees is notoriously difficult. Post-90s employees seem to be a "concentration camp of shortcomings," such as instability, lack of motivation, aloofness, willfulness, rebelliousness, and irresponsibility. Whether or not distributors hold biases against post-90s employees, they do have some problems, but they will also become the main force in the future.
Case Example Shandong Xinxing Group – Creating a Platform for Young Employees Xinxing Group has always implemented military-style management, with three levels and nine ranks within the company, including employee, team leader, section chief assistant, section chief, general manager assistant, deputy general manager, and general manager. In the team, all talented employees have the opportunity for exceptional promotion, without discrimination. To motivate young employees and enhance team cohesion, the company has established a talent association, mainly composed of young university graduates, which regularly organizes various activities and periodically conducts activities related to corporate culture.
Applicable Principle The Halo Effect The Halo Effect, also known as the "halo effect," is a psychological concept where people's cognitive judgment of others is first based on personal likes and dislikes, and then they infer other qualities from this judgment. If you label post-90s employees from the start, it's easy to develop biases, and subsequent management will face many obstacles. If you fully recognize the strengths of post-90s employees, management can develop in a positive direction.
- Difficulty in Talent Development Manifestations Many distributor companies face difficulty in talent development. This is mainly because when training salespeople, wine distributors focus on sales skills and pay little attention to other cultural and quality aspects. Therefore, when needed, they often cannot find suitable talent. How to cultivate your own talent?
Case Example Wuhan Huaxia Sugar, Wine, and Non-staple Food Co., Ltd. – Basic Training is Important; Internal Promotion is Also a Good Way to Develop Talent. General Manager Xia Jinghuang of Huaxia Sugar and Wine believes that talent is the primary productive force, so he places great emphasis on talent development. He mainly adopts a phased training method. First, basic training for new employees is crucial. For new employees, Xia Jinghuang assesses their understanding of common knowledge; if they fail, they are required to study on their own, as a hard rule. Xia Jinghuang believes that a good foundation helps employees grow quickly. Second, he pays attention to employee growth and promotes promising employees in a timely manner, allowing them to further improve themselves in appropriate positions. Xia Jinghuang believes that promoting excellent internal employees to managers not only ensures they are competent but also earns the respect of subordinates, making the team more cohesive.
Applicable Principle The Darong Principle Talent development determines the survival and development of an enterprise. The prosperity of an enterprise is the prosperity of talent; the prosperity of talent is the prosperity of the enterprise. The future survival and development of an enterprise should focus on talent development. In enterprise development, improving equipment is far less important than improving employee quality. To improve employee quality, education and training should be carried out at all times, inspiring employees' thinking and updating their skills. Talent building is the top priority for any enterprise's survival and development; without talent, nothing can be discussed. Therefore, talent development is crucial to the success or failure of an enterprise.
- Salespeople "Feeding from Both Sides" Manifestations Since many salespeople are often out in the field, it is difficult for distributors to supervise and manage them. Therefore, some salespeople take advantage of this to earn extra money, such as holding multiple jobs or helping others with goods, which not only affects their original work and causes losses to the company but also disrupts market order. Such employees are not a minority, and dismissal cannot completely solve the problem.
Case Example Hunan Zhuzhou Yongxing Food Co., Ltd. – Fully Tapping Salespeople's Potential To prevent salespeople from seeking outside income, Yongxing Food Co., Ltd. adopts a method of fully tapping salespeople's potential. General Manager Peng Jie believes that every employee has potential that can be tapped, and the potential varies from person to person, depending on their conditions and pressures. Employees "feed from both sides" because the company cannot meet their needs. Generally, the wages of ordinary employees in trading companies are not very high. If this wage cannot meet their needs, they are likely to do other jobs. So giving them more work is a good solution. Giving employees more work is not exploitation but providing them with more ways to earn money. Generally, when effort and reward are proportional, employees' work content is limited, and their income is also limited. To let employees earn more money, they need to be given more work.
Applicable Principle Maslow's Theorem Maslow's Theorem states that a person must become what they can be. As one need is satisfied, a higher-level need emerges. Employees at different stages have different needs. Truly satisfying employees' needs at different stages can prevent them from "seeking food" outside.
- Employees Flying Solo Manifestations Many distributors, while cultivating employees, also cultivate many competitors, which troubles them. Distributors can understand employees wanting to start their own businesses for development, but their departure often takes away many resources, causing immeasurable losses to the company.
Case Example Jiangsu Wuxi Zhongtang Wine Co., Ltd. – Right Person for the Right Job, Improve Organizational Structure General Manager Xu Liping of Zhongtang Wine believes that employees flying solo has two reasons: one is the boss's own problem, and the other is that employees feel their talents are unrecognized. The former requires the boss to improve their own qualities; the latter requires adjustments in internal management. Zhongtang Wine has designed a relatively complete organizational structure with clear responsibilities for different positions, ensuring the right person does the right thing. Each link has procedural, systematic operating rules and systems, with dedicated personnel responsible. No one can monopolize power, but power is appropriately delegated. This way, employees have status in the company, can maximize their role, and gain satisfaction.
Applicable Principle The Right Person for the Right Job Principle The Right Person for the Right Job Principle simply means placing the right person in the most suitable position. Employees who can fly solo are generally capable, so the company should strive to retain such talent, give them room for development, and let them contribute maximum energy to the enterprise while realizing personal value.
- Difficulty Managing Veteran Employees Manifestations In most distributor companies, there are veteran employees who fought alongside the boss. They are heroes, familiar with company business, highly skilled, and respected by the boss and other employees. However, they also have problems, such as considering themselves founders, having a sense of superiority, lacking passion, being rigid in thinking, and being complacent.
Case Example Hubei Renren Da Economic and Trade Co., Ltd. – Regular Training to Enhance Internal Vitality. Renren Da Economic and Trade Co., Ltd. gives outstanding employees opportunities for self-improvement every year, allowing them to attend professional training institutions to change their mindset and enhance team awareness. This keeps veteran employees energetic and prevents complacency. At the same time, to make the team more stable, Renren Da also starts from the "source," focusing on team leaders to maintain stability.
Applicable Principle The Catfish Effect To increase the survival rate of sardines, catfish are used to stimulate them. Applied to employee management, this means taking measures to stimulate company development, such as injecting fresh blood to stimulate complacent veteran employees and encourage internal competition to improve performance.
- Limited Employee Development Manifestations A good development platform can avoid many problems, such as employee turnover due to limited development, earning extra money, and difficulty improving performance. Every distributor wants to build a good development platform for employees. However, building a platform is a major project, not an overnight task. How to create a good development platform for employees?
Case Example Shijiazhuang Qiaoxi Sugar, Tobacco, and Wine Food Co., Ltd. – Cultivating Employees as Partners Shijiazhuang Qiaoxi Sugar, Tobacco, and Wine Food Co., Ltd. adopts the approach of "cultivating employees as partners," turning former managers into legal representatives of independent legal entities. They are no longer employees but general managers of independently operated and accounted companies, stimulating their vitality and motivation. On this basis, subsidiaries become Qiaoxi's customers. All of Qiaoxi's previous promotion and management tasks are now completed by subsidiaries across the country. Distributors who previously had direct business dealings with Qiaoxi are now handled by subsidiaries, and Qiaoxi headquarters will become a comprehensive service backend.
Applicable Principle The Not Worth Principle The Not Worth Principle states that if something is not worth doing, one will not do it with heart. If a person is engaged in a job they consider not worth doing, they often adopt a perfunctory attitude. Not only is the success rate low, but even if successful, they won't feel much sense of achievement. Therefore, in employee management, this principle can be used to create development platforms for employees. Different employees have different development needs. For example, for ambitious and capable employees, you can develop them into partners, making them feel the work is worth doing and giving them a sense of achievement, thereby stimulating their potential and motivation.
- Difficulty Implementing Company Systems Manifestations Every distributor company has its own systems, but not every system can be implemented. Once company systems become ineffective, management falls into chaos. The main reasons for difficulty in implementing and formulating systems are: first, unreasonable system design; second, managers not setting an example; third, managers not implementing thoroughly, and employees not taking it seriously.
Case Example Inner Mongolia Baotou Mengquan Trading Company – Transparent Systems Gain Employee Recognition Mengquan Company has a complete and transparent incentive mechanism. General Manager Tian Kai believes that even a 10-yuan penalty or reward should be clear to employees. Only with financial openness and transparency can employees be convinced, have no worries, and devote themselves wholeheartedly to work.
Applicable Principle The Goldfish Bowl Effect The Goldfish Bowl Effect refers to a highly transparent democratic management model. Transparent management systems are more easily recognized and implemented smoothly. Applied to management, leaders must increase the transparency of rules, regulations, and various tasks. This way, leaders' behavior is under employee supervision, effectively preventing abuse of power and strengthening self-discipline. At the same time, while employees fulfill their supervisory duties, their sense of ownership and responsibility is enhanced, and they become more active in implementing systems.
- Unreasonable Performance Appraisal Manifestations Performance appraisal is not only a concern for distributors but also a personal concern for salespeople. Unreasonable performance appraisal can easily cause the following problems: first, internal conflicts; second, decreased employee motivation; third, decreased employee satisfaction, leading to turnover; fourth, weak team cohesion, with employees prioritizing personal interests; fifth, overstaffing, making it difficult for employees to showcase their talents.
Case Example Henan Yixing Guoju Sales Co., Ltd. – Multiple Assessments to Increase Management Rationality In recent years, Yixing has mainly adopted a "bi-monthly assessment + annual assessment" method for employee evaluation, following the "433" assessment principle. The "4" represents 40% of annual salary, which is monthly wages. Monthly wages are divided into two parts: half is for living security and attendance records; the other half is for the assessment of job responsibility fulfillment. The first "3" represents 30% of annual salary, which is the bi-monthly assessment wage, calculated every two months based on employee performance, linked to business indicators. The second "3" represents 30% of annual salary, which is the annual assessment wage. The biggest change in the new assessment system is shortening the assessment cycle, allowing the company to respond quickly to market changes and improve market adaptability. At the same time, in the composition of total employee income, it reduces the proportion of monthly wages and increases the proportion of job wages and year-end performance assessment, which better stimulates employee initiative and motivation.
Applicable Principle The Money Problem The money problem is actually about money. When problems like salesperson turnover or low motivation arise, and the excuse is "it's not money, it's other reasons," then it's likely a money problem. Generally, money is a medium of exchange and the basis for meeting basic needs. When distributors formulate assessment mechanisms for salespeople, they should consider not only company development but also employees' salary needs. Only after solving the money problem can performance appraisal truly play its role.
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