ABSTRACT
Henri Fayol briefly mentions the sales function in IGM: The prosperity of an industrial concern often depends as much on the commercial as on the technical function. Commercial ability includes, together with acumen and decision, a thorough knowledge of the market and of the strength of competitors, long-term foresight. Coal was sold to outside customers at higher prices, allowing the mines to grow independently of the factories and increasing profits substantially. Following on from this experience at Commentry, Henri Fayol reinforced sales structures when he was named at the head of the company, assigning salesmen to each site to complete the existing sales department in Paris that dealt with large accounts. Even though the sales function is not considered an important part of Henri Fayol's theory, he did devote much effort to it. He first built a global sales structure, dividing France up into regions with a salesman assigned to each region reporting either to headquarters/one of the company's sites.
