An innovative program for strategic and operational sales managers
From September 2024, emlyon business school will be deploying a brand-new program, the like of which does not exist on the current market – a Master of Science that will train future sales professionals capable of achieving corporate growth in a responsible manner for companies active on a global scale. Marie-Christine Collière, Director of the new MSc in Global Sales Excellence, explains the important gap that this innovative program will fill.
What were the main motivations behind launching this new program?
Marie-Christine Collière : When we began designing this Master of Science program, it was in direct response to evolutions we had identified within global sales operations and the role of the global sales professional. Sales techniques have modernized significantly in recent times, meaning that companies require professionals equipped to deal with such operations with the requisite strategic skills and know-how. Consequently, they need to upgrade their existing sales teams. The new emlyon MSc in Global Sales Excellence will help prepare the kind of recruitment profiles they are looking for. New technologies and the global nature of business today have contributed directly to this development but to date very few institutions offer a program reflecting and responding to this change.
What aspects of the sales profession will be covered by this program?
"The curriculum will begin with a summer school devised to bring everybody up to speed, regardless of previous education. Emphasis will then be placed upon innovation and new technologies, equipping future graduates of the program with the new selling methods needed to reach local and global clients, as well as the new organizations’ processes, methods and tools. Disruptive digital tools will also be given due attention, as future global sales professionals will require them on a daily basis to transform business operations – students will explore leading sales solutions such as Salesforce, HubSpot, Gartner... CSR is an issue taken very seriously and will be duly covered by the program."
"All of the above will be clearly structured into learning blocks, tackling areas such as project management, sales engagement, sales enablement, leadership, key account management and sales operations, all with an international, intercultural context. The program's cross-disciplinary approach will enable participants to explore various facets of the sales profession, offering a broad array of opportunities for their future careers. Students will also have the opportunity to travel abroad for an international seminar and a period abroad to discover international sales markets."
What profiles are targeted by this learning opportunity and what positions can they aspire to?
"Applicants will need to have 3-4 years of previous studies, holding a bachelor’s degree and a certain degree of sales experience. The program will be delivered full-time over 18 months entirely in English, so linguistic expertise is a pre-requirement. Successful completion of the training opens doors to positions such as Sales Excellence Manager, Head of Sales Enablement, Head of Sales Engagement, International Sales Director, Sales Engineer, Key Account Manager, and Sales Consultant."
"In creating these job prospects, we’re responding to a growing need for strategic and operational sales managers in a changing business landscape, so students of the program can think ahead to a profession that is only just emerging but is crucial to so many companies. Major French and international corporations, SMEs and start-ups need such profiles in order to develop their business and boost their revenues on local markets and abroad, so we will be meeting a corporate need by helping craft such high-potential professionals."
How does this MSc fit into the current business landscape?
"Companies that are developing commercial activities abroad need to master three key areas – data science, customer expectations, and evolving business models. We are training future professionals, who upon graduation, will arrive in an ever-changing landscape. To predict further change they will need to have a complete grasp of the role of data, possess the technical know-how and strategic mindset to shape a company’s sales activities in relation to market needs, and be able to successfully integrate customer-centric organizations."
"Companies are currently having difficulty identifying and recruiting professionals with this blend of technical and strategic know-how capable of rolling out sales operations on a local and global scale. Our role in this is to equip ambitious students with the skills listed above to fill this gap in the recruitment market."
What differentiates this program on the market?
"First and foremost, few such programs are currently available on the market. However, what is especially innovative about this Master of Science is that it corresponds to a new, emerging position – that of Sales Transformation Architect. We’ll be the first to train future professionals skilled in three main areas – engaging, enabling, and operating sales activities on a global scale. It’s a relatively new ball game within the business world so we have carefully designed the curriculum to satisfy a particular recruitment need but also in view of how the sales profession will continue to evolve."
"In short, the program addresses a current structural change in global sales operations whilst also projecting to the future of the profession. These are complex times for companies developing their commercial activities on a global scale but very exciting times for us at emlyon to be able to respond directly to this shift in the market and the increasing need for such professionals."
