Belton Industries, Inc.
Manufacturer of Toys and Bicycles
Selecting Soles Personnel
Albert Thompson, general sales manager for Belton Industries, Inc., faced a problem or high turnover of sales personnel. He was led to believe that some¬thing was wrong with the selection process and that the selection procedure should be evaluated.
Belton manufactured a wide tine of children's toys and bicycles. Its sales organization consisted of 110 salespeople operating out of seventeen branch sales offices. The branch sales managers reported directly to Thompson. Belton products were selectively distributed to department stores, discount houses, toy stores, bicycle shops, and general hardware stores.
Belton Industries recruited its sales personnel from colleges and universi¬ties throughout the country, as well as from other sources. The branch sales managers performed the initial screening interview at college placement centers, and at the branch sales offices in the case of applicants from other sources. The preliminary interview served as an initial "screen" to eliminate obviously unqualified applicants. At the initial interview, applicants judged as "possibili¬ties" were handed a standard application form requesting information such as personal history, education, previous experience, and the like. When the appli-cant returned the form, the branch sales manager contracted business and per¬sonal references by mail. As soon as references responded, a second interview was scheduled.
In the second interview, the applicant was given considerable information about the company, its history, organization, record, products, markets, and, in particular, the specific nature of the sales operation. The branch manager probed the applicant's ha ...