Course Description

Business Development & Selling Skills enables professionals to improve the entire sales cycle of a business. Sales is among the most important function to transportation, supply chain, and logistics business – yet relatively few in those roles have formal, specialized training in this surprisingly complex discipline.

The course begins with principles of networking and business development and continues all the way to the creation of effective contracts. Learners will develop an understanding of the strategies involved in every step of the sales cycle and the ability to use practical and proven sales tactics.

Business Development & Selling Skills assignments include the use of planning tools, as well as interactive role-playing exercises, to hone the abilities most valuable to the sales cycle. This course delivers immediate, practical benefits for professionals in supply chain logistics who are involved in sales and business development functions. The curriculum is highly relevant to those who manage complete sales cycles; those responsible for sales planning and strategy; and those on the front lines of the salesforce. 

By the end of the course, learners will be able to more effectively create a sales plan and execute on it with confidence and improved pitching skills – leading to more prospects and more successfully closed sales.

Module topics include:

• Opportunity Management & Networking
  
• Business Development & Prospecting
  
• Trust-Based Selling
  
• Customer Need Discovery
  
• Effective Questioning Practice Role-Play
  
• Influencing
  
• Objection Handling
  
• Presenting with Impact
  
• Effective Contracting
  
  

Course grads will be able to:

• Identify new prospects and know how to effectively approach them with business development tools

• Influence your customers by understanding their needs, using mirroring techniques and other strategies 
  
  
• Confidently handle prospect concerns with objection-handling techniques, conflict management, and nimble contingency planning
  
  
• Present with impact by creating a compelling story, connecting with your audience, and using best practices for pitching
  
  
• Lead an effective contracting process by understanding potential contract roadblocks, contract languages, and key provisions
  
  
• Initiate and close more sales by optimizing every step in the sales cycle

 

 

 

Course Work and Final Exam:

This online course consists of weekly readings, discussions, and quizzes. You will also have videos and practice opportunities to support your learning. All learning activities and materials are cumulative and designed to incrementally build your knowledge and skills, so it's important that you review all resources provided. Discussions and role-plays provide opportunities to apply the knowledge and skills you are learning.

Course work for Business Development & Selling Skills includes:

• Multiple Choice Quizzes (30%)
• Group Discussion Assignments (10%)
• Case Study & Role Play (20% f course mark - 10% per assignment )
• Final Exam (40%)

Multiple Choice Quizzes - 30% of course mark

Students complete 6 short quizzes throughout the course of the semester. Each quiz is due at 11:59 pm ET on the published due date. Quizzes can be completed early for learners who need to plan ahead for business travel, vacations or other commitments, but must be completed before their individual deadlines.

Group Discussions - 10% of course mark

Each week, students will participate in online group discussions. These online discussions engage students in reflection, dialogue and debate, challenge you to apply the course material in real-world business scenarios.

Case Study & Role Play - 20% of course mark

During the course of the semester, learners will complete two role-playing exercises to practice the skills learned. Each exercise is worth 10% of your final grade. Learners will schedule their role-playing exercise with the facilitator no later than one week prior to the due date.

Final Exam – 40% of course mark

The final examination will be completed on-line. It consists of multiple-choice and long-answer questions and you will have two and one-half hours (2.5 hrs) to complete it.

The final exam period runs over the course of several days at the end of the semester. You can choose any (continuous) 2.5 hour window of time to begin & complete your exam during the exam period. Once exam period dates have been set for each semester, they will become available on the Key Dates page. The exam requires access to a computer with a reliable internet connection. In order to reduce the chances of technical issues, learners should use the Firefox web browser.

Learning Assessment and Grades

Grades are reported as Honours, Pass, or Fail. To obtain a Pass, learners must earn a minimum grade of 50%. To achieve Honours, learners must earn a total grade of 80% or higher.  
The final grade is assessed based on both term work and the final examination, as follows:

• Multiple Choice Quizzes - 30% of final mark
• Group Discussion Assignments - 10% of final mark
• Business Case & Role Play (2) - 20% of final mark
• Online Final Exam - 40% of final mark

Approximately one month after the final exam, you will receive your course results from CITT.