Abstract: Marketing and sales teams have long disputed who’s responsible for converting leads into sales opportunities. Marketing argues that it has generated leads and tosses them over to sales, while sales complains the leads aren’t qualified. Learn how to convert more leads into sales with five key strategies, starting with encouraging sales and marketing to work together. Better lead management means you can win more deals.

Abstract: Primarily due to rapid development of technology in the past thirty years, the market structure throughout the world has changed considerably. Local markets have become accessible to foreign manufacturers, who are able to perform well in their newly established territories in part due to their superior application of technology. In this light, most companies, including small and medium size, have embedded globalization in their expansion strategies, consistently seeking for new markets abroad. Consequently, local manufacturing companies are facing global competition, forcing them to adopt new concepts with respect to people, process and technologies. This document describes these approaches to production planning in detail as well outlines a software solution. The software solution (Production/3) combines both pull and push techniques and enables small to medium size organizations to fully automate their production system while retaining their investment in their legacy enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems.

Abstract: With a turnover of CHF 85 billion and 470 sites, Nestle is the world's largest food group. Learn how Nestle is able to plan its production and to accommodate finite capacity calculations in terms of manpower and material resources, strategic material availability, and through the significant production constraints of Nestle's different production environments.

Abstract: Manufacturers and service companies are facing a blackhole in sales lead management: costing sales. By using a workflow for lead and opportunity management, that efficiently routing and tracking sales, sales efficiency will increase and produce a bigger pipeline, and more sales will be closed.

Abstract: Enterprises understand the value of integration. One area that has been ignored is the plant. Plant systems and corporate systems must be complementary and leverage each other to provide their maximum value. Production intelligence provides both integration and valuable information which is not available in either type of system.

Abstract: The sales lead generation process for technology companies is very different from lead generation in other industries. Technology sector needs are more precise, and the target market is almost exclusively business-to-business (B2B), with the individuals often being decision makers high up the corporate ladder. Find out how to reach this difficult target, with prospecting methods and tips for making more complex sales.

Abstract: The Internet offers a wealth of information for buyers, who can window-shop from their desks. Power has shifted to buyers, who no longer need to rely on salespeople for information. But sales managers can use Sales 2.0 to tap into these new buying habits to instantly interact with prospects and provide personalized service. Find out how Sales 2.0 can help you instantly view and serve prospects entering your online store.

Abstract: To work through all the issues necessary to improve sales performance, executives have a number of options for leveraging people and knowledge. However, an area that shows significant potential for helping sales teams meet or exceed their goals is the effective alignment of sales process and technology. Executives looking to optimize performance should consider this approach to achieve their goals.

Abstract: Endress+Hauser (e+h), an international group of specialists for measurement devices and automated solutions for industrial process engineering, implemented both mySAP CRM mobile sales and e-selling capabilities to reinforce its market- and customer-focused orientation. As a result, it saw a stronger field sales force and increased sales through the Internet.

Abstract: Sales benchmarking is a diagnostic discipline that objectively identifies opportunities for sales-related performance improvement and enables best-practice solutions. This Sales Benchmarking Primer includes two important chapters from the best-selling book Making the Number—and provides a process-based framework for marketing and sales that can help your company survive and prosper in an unstable economy.

Abstract: Among all customer relationship management (CRM) user groups, the sales organization is often the most important—and challenging—to win over. With sales force automation (SFA) one of the primary drivers for a CRM initiative, and one of the primary measures of its success, user adoption among the sales force is crucial. Learn the principles you can use to select a CRM system that sales users feel was built just for them.

Abstract: Customer relationship management (CRM) solutions have changed. What was once used to help sales personnel maintain records of contacts, sales-related activities, and individual team progress has now become so much more. But since CRM is now intertwined with other sales management solutions, it has left businesses that have implemented it in a bit of a quandary when it comes to the global sales market. Find out why.

Abstract: The Surado CRM Sales module empowers sales teams by providing an intuitive system that presents a comprehensive single view of the customer across your entire organization. Combine this with a powerful knowledge base and automated business rules to create a consistent sales methodology throughout your entire team. With Surado CRM, your sales teams are enabled to manage the complete prospect to customer life cycle with efficiency and effectiveness.

Abstract: The consequences of fleeting customer attention—as companies with complex sales cycles know only too well—include lengthening sales cycles, stalled opportunities, and quarters that bring unpleasant surprises. The easy answer is to spend more time with your customers. But a better answer is having more comprehensive visibility into the sales pipeline and a complete understanding of the end-to-end sales process. Learn more.

Abstract: Showing value has always been key to greater sales and higher prices. However, the bar has been raised. It’s often no longer enough to claim value—now the customer has to see, believe, and care about the value. Sales organizations must get their eyes back on the value ball, with five value-selling maturity levels that tie in to sales effectiveness. Learn how to improve your revenues while reducing sales effort and costs.

Abstract: Iwate Toshiba, a semiconductor fabricator, sought a supply chain solution to resolve recurring production issues. The solution had to be capable of quickly planning and scheduling lots during peak production, providing accurate order commitments, reducing planning cycles for production, optimize use of production resources, and achieving a more accurate supply chain model by integrating business planning with factory-level scheduling.

Abstract: The textile industry is famous for its very different characteristics when compared to industries in either process or discrete manufacturing. Developing production planning and scheduling software for any textile mill is a real challenge even for seasoned industry experts. This article focuses on some of the unique challenges posed to master requirement planning and master production scheduling (MRP / MPS) software vendors by the textile industry.

Abstract: Invensys has created a new group within its Production Management Division called Invensys Production Solutions. The group includes the PRISM and Protean process ERP products plus the resources of Invensys Validation Services group. While the unit should have much strength, it also has certain liabilities that must be addressed.