Room in sales for the best

The past few years have been extremely tough for sales and marketing job seekers, particularly those at the higher end", says Sian Humphrey, manager of Robert Walters' sales and marketing division.

But the outlook for job seekers seems brighter as optimism and increased demand for goods and services returns to the market.

For the majority of organisations, the days of recruitment freezes and positions being put on hold have passed as clients are given the green light to recruit, Humphrey says.

However, she also warns job hunters not to be complacent. Competition for roles is tough with Kiwis returning home armed with international experience, changing post-recession demand for particular skill sets and the heightened need for candidates to communicate their value clearly.

So, what's hot and what's not? Robert Walters says roles in demand in the third quarter of this year include junior to middle management positions. An extremely competitive economy has increased demand for candidates who can engage with and retain customers through traditional and new channels.

There is a new focus on social media with many companies looking to identify candidates that can help them understand the relevance and value of this channel. Skill sets in demand include relationship and account management.

There is, however, still a strong focus on return on investment and a demand for candidates who are comfortable demonstrating this through analytics and insights.

Strong FMCG account managers and category development managers are also still wanted as organisations look to advance these functions - Kiwis returning from the United Kingdom with these skills are in hot demand.

Strategic marketing will become even more critical as companies find they must do a better job of differentiating their products.

"Suppliers are taking a more strategic approach to how they sell-in new products and develop existing ones. More emphasis is being placed on developing a strategy for each product category and each key account, using data and also qualitative inferences.

"This then leads to the need for skilled account managers to communicate the 'category story' back to retailers, as well as general day-to-day management," says Humphrey.

Paul Flatt, managing director of recruitment firm Wheeler Campbell, says FMCG account managers and category development managers are seen as specialists who use hard science behind their sales approaches.

"Category management skills are similar to the procurement industry - there are specific methodologies behind the sector. It's not just about working with fast-moving 'cool' brands."

Flatt says coming out of the recession there's much more focus on hard sales skills and revenue generation.

"Proven business development skills and experience, the ability to hunt and find business in a very professional (not shiny shoe) way, and international experience with brands New Zealand employers can identify with are all in hot demand," he says.

Conceptual marketing and innovation skills are in demand, while account management without hard sales skills in a target-driven environment are less valuable and valued.

International research also suggests that the sales and marketing professionals who will survive and thrive are those who embrace a more scientific approaches.

"The changes happening in business are profound; they are changing the fundamental roles that departments used to hold," says United States marketing expert Paul Barsch. "A large part of this will involve breaking down the silos that exist between departments and crunching the metrics."

Barsch says there is room for those in the middle ground between IT folks who are good at crunching numbers and marketing folks who love the branding work.

He says a case study of a successful marriage between marketing and IT can be found at Harrah's, which has become the most profitable company in the US gaming industry.

"As his first strategic move as [chief operating officer] at Harrah's, Gary Loveman [who later became the CEO] replaced all of Harrah's existing marketing staff with marketers who had data-crunching skills and knew how to work with IT."

Loveman says: "[The original staff] were never going to get our programme where it needed to go." And they were "never going to build the decision tools or be able to plot out the mathematics of this Room in sales but only for the best programme the way we needed. So we brought in the kind of people we have now, who have the horsepower to do this kind of work."

The internet continues to affect sales and marketing functions. By linking everyone's home directly to manufacturers and service providers, the entire infrastructure of sales channels has been changing.

Futurists warn that those who makes their livings as middlemen should change careers or become experts at adding unique value.

Despite a thawing job market, the shortage of roles available and the abundance of job seekers, recruiters say employers are struggling to identify talented candidates who have relevant industry skill sets.

Recruitment experts suggest that many sales and marketing professionals have been slow to adjust to changing trends and many fail to market themselves effectively.

Candidates should:

* Position themselves as experts in high-demand fields, rather than as generalists with broad skill sets;

* Look at their core transferable skills and remove context that is less relevant to the role they are going for;

* Search proactively for opportunities by looking for complementary/related industries and looking up and down the supply chain of the business they want to be in;

* Apply for jobs that fit their skill sets and experience rather than trying to up-sell themselves and overstate their abilities;

* Be clear about what they can offer an employer in terms of tangible and hard value adds;

* Future-proof their careers by ensuring they gain experience in high-demand skills and roles. This may involve seizing secondment opportunities, volunteering or looking for opportunities offshore.

"Being passionate about what you do and engaging with others in the business, regardless of your level, is a great way to gain experience," says Humphrey. "You can always learn from others and add value to your skill set whilst expanding your internal network."

Carla Sheen, marketing and communications strategist at HainesAttract, says the best thing professionals can do is build and maintain their personal brands online - whether via LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or their own blog - and market themselves to organisations that align with their personal values.

"A number of our clients are utilising our precision sourcing service to actively identify candidates who have an electronic footprint and proactively approaching them with relevant opportunities," she says.

"With companies increasingly using search strings to find passive candidates, it's worthwhile keeping your personal brand alive and your professional electronic footprint up-to-date."

Recruitment firms report consistent demand for contractors but say candidates still have a preference to secure permanent roles.

As more companies strive to maintain competitiveness, just-in-time hiring could become more dominant and permanent job seekers may need to adjust their mindset accordingly.

Robert Walters says the greatest demand for marketing contractors is within the banking and financial services space for candidates who can establish themselves quickly, drive internal projects and roll out product or legislative updates.

Marketing stands ready to reclaim its role as the generator of business value through brand loyalty and customer management.

Sales and marketing positions should see good demand, but only for the best.

It's one of those fields in which the mediocre don't survive.