To keep up with the latest developments in production, management, operations and technology, organizations continually train their employees in these fields. Personnel handling these areas form a vital core of an enterprise; they are its base and backend. However, sales personnel constitute its front-end and are equally, if not more, important to the organization.

It is recommended that employees undergo management training to prepare them for roles as leaders, allowing them to change their career path or facilitate promotion to higher positions in the company. Often those participating in such courses come from production and office roles. While sales managers also take part in such training programs, it is less common in many companies.

These training programs are not usually open to sales personnel. However, other types of training are provided to an organization's sales personnel. These types of training are specifically geared towards sales careers, and include sessions on topics such as customer relations, sales management, interpersonal relationships and ethical selling.

Sales are ential for an organization's existence and sales force are its backbone. An organization can therefore be unwilling to send this vital resource away on a lengthy training period, especially if there is no adequate backup. It is hard to find suitable personnel to act in place of those sales persons who know their customers in their geographical areas by their visits, meetings and interactions. By this way, the plus points of a capable sales person sometimes become a stumbling block to his taking part in management training.

It is important that the structure of sales personnel training programs be tailored differently for each type of employee. Employees may be more comfortable if encouraged to access training modules section by section, at their own pace. Also, they should be encouraged to discuss their experiences and ideas with other similar trainees. Another useful tool is to have senior managers be available, if needed, as a coach or mentor. These policies should make for a more user-friendly, relaxed, and therefore, more efficient process.

Modern technology also lends a helping hand in the form of interactive web-based lessons and training modules as well as distance learning. Training sessions can be provided to the sales force on these platforms. Chapters of a management book can even be sent to them via email or they can be provided access to an online library to access management book of their choice.

By virtue of being on the frontline sales personnel know the customers, they know the products and excel in interpersonal dealings. They are accustomed to thinking quickly and taking prompt action. Sales personnel with such characteristics are valuable and they need not be restricted to work in sales functions only. Many organizations should become aware of this aspect and promote more sales people to managerial functions.