The sales department of an industrial products wholesale company is facing increasing pressure to perform. Sales are flat and salespeople are operating remotely, only required to check in the office once a week. A couple of new sales representatives joined the seasoned team since the move to remote operations two years ago. Some customers have recently complained of missed or late appointments, as well as a lack of consistent follow-up. Weekly team meetings are generally well attended, but with little discussion and engagement.

The vice-president of sales has just hired a sales manager to oversee the salespeople and drive performance. A young marketing professional, she came highly recommended despite a lack of direct sales and supervisory experience. The VP is about to announce the new hire and excited to welcome her into the team. One of the supervisor's first priorities are the annual performance reviews to be completed before the end of the year.

Based on models and types of behavior we learned about, our discussion of perceptions and any other content you find relevant, please describe the company's issues and reasons behind them. What solutions would you recommend to the VP to understand and handle the situation?