Case Analysis Of Asclepius Consulting: The Sales Force Dilemma

Introduction

In this case Asclepius Consulting is looking to increase their sales volume. Although they are stuck with a difficult decision of either investing more into their in-house sales team or in resellers. A further analysis of the dilemma will be discussed further.

Part A: Market Segments and Attractiveness

Some of the top things that make a market attractive are the size, growth rate, profitability, differentiation, accessibility, and competition. Many businesses will measure these attributes of attractiveness before making a final decision. The healthcare information systems market in India will be segmented into groups such as single specialty, multi-specialty, nursing homes, charity hospitals, corporate chain of hospitals, and daycare centres.

The top three recommendations for Asclepius to take advantage of consist of the single-specialty, multi-specialty, and day care centres. This is because these segments are underdeveloped and have market shares of 26%, 33%, and 14%. See Appendix B. While Asclepius’s market share within these segments sit at 6%, 0%, and 4%. See Appendix B. Asclepius can take advantage of these segments and gain a larger market share.

Part B: Resellers & In-house Sales Force

The pros towards Asclepius’s resellers consist of reduced costs, expansive geographics, and scalability. The overall cost of utilizing resellers as a sales force is only 100, 000 IRN with commission compared to 828, 000 IRN. Furthermore Asclepius’s scalability attribute helps them grow and maintain increased customer demand. They hire resellers in different metros and Tier-2 cities to cover more ground. This helps the company save 24, 000 IRN in travel reimbursements per annum.

The cons against the resellers consist of their inability to service the products and close deals alone, they have poor knowledge on the products, since they are contractors they have little company loyalty, and they cannot do sales cycles. The first pro for the direct inside salesperson is that they can truly represent the Asclepius brand well through having extensive company/product knowledge. The second pro to having a direct sales force team was that they are able to close deals. The cons towards a direct sales force consisted of the expensive cost and the low scalability. The case states that this model option moving forward is more expensive and likely to stretch the companies insufficient resources. Choosing the resellers model over expanding their own direct sales team would be the best recommendation. This is because it will overall reach a larger platform of customers due to their scalability. Resellers are also the less expensive model. This option is also more adaptable to the changing needs and demands of Asclepius’s customers. A final suggestion would be that Asclepius increases their training budget in order for the resellers to be more knowledgeable and be able to close deals.

Conclusion

In conclusion, there are many pros & cons to each sales force although the best recommendation would be to expand and invest more in resellers. It is the least expensive model and will reach a larger platform of customers.