In today's ever-changing marketplace, the need to fully understand a client's exact business strategy is even more relevant than in the past.
In recognition of this, DSV Road and DSV Solutions have launched a Sales Academy in the UK, a series of workshops to help their sales staff look at client needs and how to meet them.
The Sales Academy, structured as eight two-day courses, is aimed at sales staff in the UK and Ireland. Sessions are run by DSV senior management as well as external specialists, helping the salespeople understand the need to focus on what the client wants and not necessarily on the services they want to sell.
"Some of the sessions involve briefings on DSV and what we do for our clients," says Chris Malyon, Director Sales and Marketing, DSV Road. Other sessions deal with, for instance, e-services, insurance, finance and understanding client buying patterns, so that the salespeople are always able to answer queries about these services - or at least know where to go to quickly source the relevant information.
"We are such a large organisation, with a huge range of activities across the world, that we sometimes are unaware of the complex and specialised services we are delivering elsewhere in the group," Mr Malyon explains. DSV has grown quite rapidly in the last few years with acquisitions including Frans Maas and ABX Logistics.
"Between the three divisions of Road, Air & Sea, and Solutions, we are able to offer our clients everything they need to manage their global supply chain," he says. "Obviously we are keen to carry as much of a client's business as possible, so we have to make sure we have the knowledge and sales tools to win that business."
The Sales Academy was already proved successful with DSV teams in other countries, will run until March next year.
DSV is a global supplier of transport and logistics solutions, with more than 21,000 highly experienced employees in 60 countries. It is the third largest road freight operator in Europe.