Marriott International Inc.'s 'Sales Force One': New Sales Force Strategy for Competitive Advantage

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"We designed an organization that provided integrated support teams to provide for specific business travel or group needs... These account executives who focused on our large accounts own the accounts and all revenue streams from those accounts, providing one primary point of contact." ¹

- David Marriott,² Senior Vice President, Global Sales, Marriot International, Inc., in 2008.

"Sales Force One is Marriott International's initiative to gain a competitive advantage in relationships with customers - along with owners and franchisees - allowing for a better alignment between all of Marriott International's stakeholders." ³

- Nina Vetter, Senior Analyst, HVS,⁴ in 2008.

Strategic Account Management: A Paradigm Shift

In November 2008, Amy McPherson, Executive Vice President, Global Sales and Marketing, Marriott International, Inc., claimed that in Washington DC, where Marriott had initiated the Sales Force One (SFO), a new sales structure, the company's performance had been better than that of its competitors in the hospitality market. SFO, an industry-first move taken by Marriott, a leading lodging development, management, and franchising company, was a step toward strategic account management through the creation of a centralized sales organization. As of early 2009, the responsibility for steering the SFO lay with Stephanie Coleman Linnartz, Senior Vice President of Global Sales, Marriott.

In 2007, as Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing Planning and Support, Linnartz had worked closely with David Marriott (David), then Senior Vice President of Global Sales, toward launching SFO and since June 2008, she had been entrusted with the responsibility of taking the initiative forward.

On December 3, 2007, the company decided to remove the majority of the meeting and convention sales personnel from individual Marriott properties and place them in sales offices in close vicinity to the customers. The company hoped to see a US$ 1 billion increase in revenue over the long term after full-fledged commissioning of the changed sales structure.

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1] Michael B. Baker, "Marriott Adopts Regional, Account-Based Sales Focus," www.btnonline.com, January 22, 2008.
2] In June 2008, David was appointed as the Regional Vice President of Market Management which included the task of managing hotel operations in properties in New York (including the Marriott Marquis in Times Square), Philadelphia, Baltimore, and some cities in New Jersey.
3] Nina Vetter, "Marriott's New Sales Force Strategy," Hospitality Net, www.4hoteliers.com, November 7, 2008.
4] HVS is a US-based global consulting and services organization catering to the hotel, restaurant, shared ownership, gaming, and leisure industries.

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