As discussed earlier, apart from a person's incompetence there may be various other reasons for the poor performance of a territory, for example, distribution problems, questionable integrity of the team member, motivational problems (lack of interest or willingness to perform or lack of involvement) or some organisational constraints.

If the lack of required knowledge or skill is the cause of the poor performance of a territory, you may apply the appropriate method discussed in the unit ‘on-the-job training’. However, despite your putting in efforts if the team member is unable to communicate the right message or fails to handle the objections raised by doctors, the sales of a particular territory may decline. This could be due to one of the reasons given below.

• poor communication

• difficulty in speaking English

• fumbling while detailing

• getting stuck if an objection is raised

• lack of confidence inside doctor's chamber

Once again, you need to train and coach your team members to overcome these limitations. In contrast, the sales in another territory may be declining because of some serious family problem a team member is encountering. Questionable integrity, or motivational problems could cause poor performance too. These issues can only be addressed through counselling. In order to conduct a proper counselling, you must know the exact reason for the poor performance of the territory. In addition, there may be other issues related to the personality of the team member which need to be addressed through a counselling session.