How do you approach setting targets, such as sales goals and revenue projections, for each of your store managers?
Many District Managers also take the role of a sales manager, which means that you could be responsible for forecasting sales, setting projections, and communicating targets and goals to your store managers. Typically, from that point, your store managers will relay expectations to their sales and customer service team. Provide the interviewers with an overview of your approach when determining targets for the locations in which you are responsible.
"Sales estimates and revenue projections are important since an understanding of these numbers allows me to relay predictions to my team of managers, giving them the ability to set expectations to their team members. The forecasting that I perform also helps us determine upcoming hiring needs and uncover any critical gaps in employee training efforts. When I approach setting targets, I will review our most critical KPIs and dissect the results from historical reports. I look at sales outcomes, each store's budget, planned and unexpected expenses, and whether or not the location has a history of strong resource management. After that point, I also look at the economic conditions that may impact each location. I also take my time in dissecting the market competition in each area that I oversee. After that, I can accurately predict our sales capabilities and present each store manager with personalized numbers. I sit down with each manager in a one-on-one meeting, and we discuss how to ensure that we exceed these goals each quarter."
