Thursday, 3 April 2025
26.1 C
Singapore
29.2 C
Thailand
27 C
Indonesia
27.3 C
Philippines

Salesforce report highlights challenges for Singapore’s sales professionals

Salesforce's new report reveals the challenges faced by sales professionals in Singapore, including adapting to customer expectations and integrating AI technology.

Salesforce, a global leader in CRM, has released its latest “State of Sales” report, which provides insights from 5,500 sales professionals across 27 countries, including 100 from Singapore. The report details the balancing act that sales teams face between leveraging technological advancements and fostering trusted customer relationships in a competitive environment.

Struggle to meet changing customer expectations

The report points out that adapting to changing customer expectations is the foremost challenge for sales teams globally, a sentiment echoed by 66% of sales professionals in Singapore who find it increasingly difficult compared to last year. Moreover, sales professionals in Singapore spend only 29% of their working hours engaging with customers, which is significantly lower than desired.

The surge in AI adoption faces hurdles

Sales teams are increasingly adopting AI to boost productivity and personalise experiences. However, the report reveals significant challenges in fully realising AI’s potential. While 73% of sales teams in Singapore have either fully implemented or are experimenting with AI, issues such as trust in data, security, integration, and inadequate employee training, are notable hurdles. Only 17% of sales professionals in Singapore trust their data’s accuracy, affecting crucial aspects of sales like target setting, forecasting, and gathering competitive intelligence.

Improvements in employee retention amid tight labour market

On a global scale, sales staff retention has improved, with the average turnover reducing from 25% in 2022 to 18% over the last 12 months. In Singapore, the turnover rate is slightly higher at 20%, but only 8% of sales professionals are currently looking to switch jobs, indicating a stabilising labour market within the sales sector.

Sujith Abraham, Senior Vice President and General Manager at Salesforce ASEAN, stated, “Evolving customer expectations means that sales professionals must find more time to better understand and build deep relationships with customers. AI has the potential to enhance sales professionalsโ€™ productivity, giving them more time to deepen connections with customers.” He also highlighted the need for accurate data and trust to effectively implement AI, recommending a unified platform that provides reliable AI outputs to increase productivity.

Hot this week

Oracle Cloud launches new Compute E6 shapes powered by AMDโ€™s 5th Gen EPYC processors

Oracle Cloud boosts performance with new Compute E6 shapes powered by 5th Gen AMD EPYC processors, now available in key global regions.

Samsungโ€™s latest vacuum alerts you to calls and texts while you clean

Samsungโ€™s new Bespoke AI Jet Ultra vacuum can alert you to calls and texts while cleaning as the brand expands smart home screens across appliances.

Krafton strengthens presence in India with Nautilus Mobile acquisition

Krafton acquires a controlling stake in Indian gaming studio Nautilus Mobile for US$14M, strengthening its foothold in Indiaโ€™s growing gaming market.

Apple Intelligence now supports English (Singapore) with the latest update

Appleโ€™s latest update brings Apple Intelligence support for English (Singapore), making AI features more accessible without needing US English settings.

New AI features coming to Final Cut Pro

Apple updates Final Cut Pro with AI-powered tools, Image Playground, and new features for Mac, iPad, and iPhone, enhancing video editing workflows.

Qualcomm expands AI research with MovianAI acquisition

Qualcomm has acquired Vietnamese AI research firm MovianAI to boost its AI development in smartphones, PCs, and software-defined vehicles.

Roblox introduces new parental controls to enhance child safety

Roblox introduces new parental controls, allowing parents to block games, restrict friends, and monitor their childโ€™s activity for better safety.

Anthropic introduces Claude for Education, a new AI chatbot plan for universities

Anthropic launches Claude for Education, an AI chatbot plan for universities that offers advanced learning tools and administration support.

Exabeam introduces Nova, an agentic AI that boosts cybersecurity operations

Exabeam unveils Nova, a proactive AI agent that boosts security team productivity and reduces incident investigation time by over 50%.

Related Articles