Unfair/Constructive/My Fault? Confused

Kazm

Hello

I really need some good advise. I joined a company just under a year ago at a senior management position in a new division. My task to recruit and manage a self employed sales force. The promised provisions of cost effective marketing literature, online support and incentives to move this forward and enhance growth have not been delivered. Instead the sales team rely on poor admin support resulting in costly mistakes, unprofessional web support, marketing literature too expensive to utilise effectivley, product prices not competative to the market they are able to reach. I have communicated this many times to the directors who appear to bury their heads in the sand and hope that the team will manage, alwasy pushing the promised goal post further back. I do not have any computerised reports to know sales/stock figures, and therefore work blind. I do not have a set budget in order to travel the UK for face to face mentoring and setting up of sales events/promotions etc. When I do travel or book events I do so on my own credit card and have to claim it back at the end of each month. I am tasked to do online marketing and update the website of which I have no knowledge or experience to do effectively. To top this off I was was given a low basic (compared to national average for my job title) with a commission to bring it up to national average, based on the company revenue of £250,000 sales per year which they said they were about to inherit from the previous agent) it appears they did not do their homework and those sales have never materialised. Now the company are not happy that things are not working and that the sales team have become demotivated. I work from home and on the road and communication has become sparce. I feel that the finger of blame is pointed at me, yet I have done everything I can without resources. They are about to be offered a lifeline of support from the manufacturer whose products they distribute, which if they accept could help move this forward slightly. If they don't accept then I think it is safe to say my job will no longer exsist. If they do accept I am not certain I have enough faith left in them to continue anyway. I am not in a financial position to leave this employment. I have been with them less than 2 years and therefore would not be entitled to redundancy, yet I feel the lack of comittment on their part to provide the tools to do the job properly has been unfair in my ability to carry out my role. Would I be able to claim unfair or constructive dismisal should I resign or if they close my role? My stress levels are now affecting my home life, I cannot carry on much longer promising my workforce improvements when I know there are none to be had for the foreseeable future, nor can I provide results from a team now so demotivated I only have a quater of them even making an attempt to get sales.

Constructive advice greatefully accepted please:(

go_cat

Can u edit it please with paragraphs it's so hard to read then am sure u will get some advice

Vejovis

i wouldn't have said that there was anything there that warrants constructive dismissal if you left, not sure where you think unfair would come into it if they close your role. it sounds rather commonplace tbh, many companies i've worked for promise the earth but then make do with half baked systems and wonder why sales aren't higher, par for the course imo.

getmore4less

Looks like you did not do enough due diligence on the company before you took the job on.

What is your relationship with the manufacturer, if you really believe there are fundemental problems do they know about them.

Sounds like it is just a reseller, any others selling the same product?

Jarndyce

I can't be bothered to read that solid block of text, but your first line tells me you have no case - you have not been employed for a year so cannot claim unfair dismissal - constructive or otherwise. If you drag it out until you do have a year's service, you undermine your case by not resigning immediately in response to an event.

agrinnall

The only sensible answer is to look for another job and put this one behind you.

Kazm

thanks for the advice guys, yes the manufacturer knows whats going on, and perhaps yes I should have looked into the company more carefully too,

in doing this post I suppose I have answered my own concerns and have confirmed its time to move on, time to dust off the old cv

Lavendyr

Kazm wrote: »

Hello

I really need some good advice.

I joined a company just under a year ago at a senior management position in a new division. My task was to recruit and manage a self employed sales force.

The promised provisions of cost effective marketing literature, online support and incentives to move this forward and enhance growth have not been delivered.

Instead the sales team rely on poor admin support resulting in costly mistakes, unprofessional web support, marketing literature too expensive to utilise effectivley, product prices not competative to the market they are able to reach.

I have communicated this many times to the directors who appear to bury their heads in the sand and hope that the team will manage, alwasy pushing the promised goal post further back.

I do not have any computerised reports to know sales/stock figures, and therefore work blind. I do not have a set budget in order to travel the UK for face to face mentoring and setting up of sales events/promotions etc.

When I do travel or book events I do so on my own credit card and have to claim it back at the end of each month. I am tasked to do online marketing and update the website of which I have no knowledge or experience to do effectively.

To top this off I was was given a low basic (compared to national average for my job title) with a commission to bring it up to national average, based on the company revenue of £250,000 sales per year which they said they were about to inherit from the previous agent) it appears they did not do their homework and those sales have never materialised.

Now the company are not happy that things are not working and that the sales team have become demotivated.

I work from home and on the road and communication has become sparse. I feel that the finger of blame is pointed at me, yet I have done everything I can without resources.

They are about to be offered a lifeline of support from the manufacturer whose products they distribute, which if they accept could help move this forward slightly.

If they don't accept then I think it is safe to say my job will no longer exsist. If they do accept I am not certain I have enough faith left in them to continue anyway. I am not in a financial position to leave this employment.

I have been with them less than 2 years and therefore would not be entitled to redundancy, yet I feel the lack of comittment on their part to provide the tools to do the job properly has been unfair in my ability to carry out my role.

Would I be able to claim unfair or constructive dismisal should I resign or if they close my role? My stress levels are now affecting my home life, I cannot carry on much longer promising my workforce improvements when I know there are none to be had for the foreseeable future, nor can I provide results from a team now so demotivated I only have a quarter of them even making an attempt to get sales.

Constructive advice gratefully accepted please:(

voila.....

Elvisia

See this as a positive, get out your CV, think of your positive strengths and experience, and create a plan to find something new, better, well paid and that will change your life. It's very easy to get demotivated and depressed about it. I have found when I've had a job where things are ridiculous but there's little or nothing I can do then it's a good springboard to get me into finding new work, and I've had some great experiences because of it.

getmore4less

If this company is failing the manufacturer there is room to do better either on your own with others or a competitor.

hcb42

TBH if there is such a team as there appears to be and only £250K revenues, I dont know how you will be in business long.

Unfortunately also, these things are the norm with regards to resources and getting the job done. Got the same issues myself, in a blue chip company.

Stick it out as long as you can, and they are solvent...and start managing your job search strategy..