The Future is Profitable Growth
New Solutions Require New Talent & Sales Support Resources
While industry sales may be on the rise, so is pricing, which leads to an impact on net growth. Industrial and electrical products and systems distributors are looking for ways to achieve differentiated growth, productivity and efficiency. Leaders are replacing the legacy “one-and-done” selling by focusing on creating value for customers.
With this comes the need for new talent and investments in robust revenue enablement and operations teams to effectively collaborate on strategic offerings. A focus on solution selling vs. a more traditional fulfillment sales motion gives way to the need for specialists and overlay roles for connected products and services.
Are you revamping your talent acquisition strategies to ensure you can meet new customer demands?
How We Help
- Integrate Marketing, Sales and Service under one leader: the chief revenue officer, who owns the entire customer continuum, has a pulse on customer needs and a solid vision for the future.
- Develop manufacturing partner program alignment to offer customers a complete solution – the resources, support and specialized knowledge to demonstrate your unique value.
- Segment customers based on their needs and requirements – build out e-commerce capabilities for ease of ordering while focusing in-person sales time on customers who necessitate more coverage.
- Move from product pusher to service-oriented experience provider with subject matter expertise on connected products and services and simplification of the purchasing process.
- Focus on marketing strategy by evaluating current and new markets, areas of opportunity and optimize marketing channels, mix and return.
- Develop sales compensation programs aligned with new product offerings and solutions.
Related Insights
Participate in Our Research
Open Opportunities Briefing Offers- Advanced Practices for Commercial Talent Management Manufacturers and distributors achieve revenue and margin outperformance with a lower proportion of above-market pay compared to other industries. Over 60% of leading firms meet monthly to discuss performance with their commercial teams. What are the best practices for developing a talent management strategy that brings a competitive advantage?
- Digital Go-to-Customer Study Discover the industry trends, insights and frameworks on the digital impact on revenue growth, as well as recommendations for increased sales performance and growth in a digital environment.
- Digital Insights Study Digital means changing how companies engage with customers and enable their commercial teams. Determining where and when your customers interact with your products and solutions can impact your organization’s digital maturity and where to guide your investments.
- Manufacturing & Distribution Industry Trends Research: Strategies | Insights | Metrics Digital is altering the way customers interact and purchase your offerings. Integrating sales, marketing and service to provide customer value will differentiate your firm, command a premium and deliver sustainable growth. Compare your business processes and performance metrics to your competition to see if you’re hitting the mark.
- Manufacturing & Distribution Productivity Drivers Rising inflation, supply chain constraints and uncertain demand are just a few economic factors that are impacting commercial models. What drivers are manufacturers and distributors investing in to prioritize customer segments, protect margin, and maintain and grow market share?
- Marketing Insights Study Over 150 marketing executives were interviewed to determine the marketing initiatives being prioritized to maximize customer lifetime value. From marketing roles and resource allocation to marketing mix, channels and spend, get the latest insights on where marketing leaders are investing to advance their organization’s marketing maturity.
- Prioritizing Quality Over Quantity: An Analysis of Marketing Demand Generation Performance Leaders in manufacturing and distribution have increased demand generation investments by over 13%. Marketing now accounts for 33% of functional pipeline development. As marketers look to allocate resources between channels and initiatives to increase conversion rates while navigating costs and tracking ROI, how do you determine the best demand gen investment strategies?
- Redefine Excellence Through Customer Experience From executing a customer experience (CX) vision and strategy, deploying the right resources for customer engagement, setting specific CX goals and measurements, and defining the processes and growth plays that drive retention, the study provides insights and metrics for manufacturers and distributors on leading practices for a successful CX program.
- Revenue Operations Survey Over 200 executives in sales and revenue operations were surveyed across Business Services, Financial Services, Manufacturing and Distribution, MedTech, Health and Wellness, Media and Technology to determine the leading practices of world-class revenue operations organizations.
- Sales Compensation Hot Topics Survey Over 350 sales compensation leaders across seven industries provided insights on key sales comp topics including costs, quota planning and attainment, profitability, AI’s impact on comp, global comp practices, marketing comp practices and client/deliver services comp practices.
Upcoming Manufacturing and Distribution Events
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EMEA: Six Trends Shaping Sales Compensation in 2026
Virtual RoundtableActionable insights for our EMEA community from the Alexander Group’s 2026 Sales Compensation Trends Survey
19 May 2026 | 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. GMT | Complimentary Virtual Event
As commercial leaders navigate volatility, AI advancements and growth opportunities, sales compensation stands out as the critical tool for transforming strategy into tangible results. Based on insights from sales compensation leaders across 11 industries, Alexander Group’s 2026 Sales Compensation Trends Survey reveals where programmes are evolving and where execution still breaks down.
What You’ll Learn
This complimentary virtual event will walk you through the six trends pushing commercial leaders to rethink sales compensation design:
- Optimism is high, but productivity is a concern.
- Hiring grows as AI reshapes GTM roles.
- Sales compensation costs are normalizing.
- Sales compensation is adapting to GTM and market shifts.
- Governance and efficiencies need some work.
- Quotas are the biggest pain point.
Why Attend
Want to turn these trends into clearer decisions and stronger execution? Join us to get actionable insights, innovative best practices and the latest trends that set leading organisations apart. We’ll equip you with the knowledge to elevate your programme and drive measurable impact.
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Tuesday, May 19, 2026
4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. GMT -
Virtual
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Sales Compensation Symposium: Virtual
Industry Focus: AllRevolutionize your approach at the #1 event for sales compensation professionals and all executives who care about sales comp. Designed specifically for senior executives, join industry peers and renowned experts to gain exclusive access to cutting-edge research, emerging trends, real-world case studies and proven best practices in governance, design and administration.
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Tuesday, August 11, 2026 –
Tuesday, August 11, 2026 -
Virtual
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Sales Compensation Symposium: Chicago
Industry Focus: AllRevolutionize your approach at the #1 event for sales compensation professionals and all executives who care about sales comp.
Designed specifically for executives in HR, Compensation, Sales and Revenue Operations that want to use sales comp more effectively.Industry Focus: All
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Thursday, August 27, 2026 –
Thursday, August 27, 2026 -
Chicago
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Executive Forum
St. Regis Hotel | Chicago, ILJoin senior sales, marketing, commercial and operations leaders to share stories of transformation, connect 1:1 virtually and take away actionable ideas.
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Wednesday, September 30, 2026 –
Thursday, October 1, 2026 -
St. Regis Hotel | Chicago, IL
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Sales Compensation Symposium
Reserve your spot at Alexander Group’s upcoming Sales Compensation Symposium. Join leading manufacturers and distributors as we discuss the latest strategies and best practices to support your sales reps as you look to set, measure and compensate success.
Practice Leadership
Research & Benchmarks
Get access to the latest go-to-market research and benchmarks to leverage growth drivers for valuation improvement