How does our account management really work in practice?
Before you carry out any serious review of your account management function, you have to know how it works in practice.  This can be very different from the theory!  It is vital to first get a clear idea of how your company, as a supplier, is perceived in the market.  Ask around systematically, and you will quickly find that most suppliers have a clear reputation within their channels. 

How do you set targets for your partners?
Many suppliers may pay lip service to the idea of consulting partners before setting the partner's sales goals for the year, but in practice fail to do so.  Intermediaries can tell whether the consultation process is a cosmetic exercise played whilst head office works out the annual quotas. 

A better approach is to visit partners, discuss their business goals in detail and then draw up unique, mutually agreed account plans for the year. 

This approach is the only way to get real buy-in and commitment from the partner.  Goals set this way have real meaning to both sides.  It also offers the chance to agree goals which go beyond simple sales targets.

How do you reward your account managers?
This is a crucial issue, which has to be addressed.  As one supplier put it: "We know it is important to look at our overall relationship, but, in this company, you are only as good as last month's sales."

If you really value long-term relationships with partners, then account managers should be rewarded on whether annual, rather than quarterly, targets are reached.  And some of these goals should be with reaching new market segments, or the completion of joint marketing campaigns, rather than hitting financial targets.

What is your attitude to sharing information with your partners?
For many suppliers, locked into short-termist account management strategies, knowledge is power.  Often, there is a fear of divulging weaknesses or concern that information may be passed to competitors.  For such companies a simple question such as "How are we as a supplier doing in meeting your needs?" is viewed as a sign of weakness.

In practice, you are far more likely to get serious benefit by sharing information and business plans.  You are unlikely to maximise your sales through a partner unless you have read their annual business plan. Your corporate knowledge base can be massively extended through this mutual exchange.

How much do your account managers understand your partners' business models?
It is still the case that account managers, in even the largest companies, fail to understand precisely how their individual partners make their money.  Could your account managers tell you how your top ten distributors differentiate themselves in the market?  Could they tell you the real source of profitability in each account?  It may be worth restructuring account managers by business model category rather than on a country-by-country basis. That way, they can develop real expertise and insight.