Analysis of the Role of a Controller in Sales Planning and Control at PT. United Tractors

To meet the needs of the community, companies utilize the market as a means to sell their products, thereby obtaining profits, which is a common goal of companies. To achieve this goal, companies must compete fiercely to win customers from similar companies. The management of the company is obliged to manage all operational activities of the company, coordinate and allocate limited resources efficiently and economically. The planning function carried out by PT. United Tractors Tbk has been good, as seen from the master sales plan that involves other departments within the company. In addition, in the development of the master plan, the division responsible for sales planning also considers specific factors, and the plan is reviewed by the Board of Directors. Thus, the sales planning developed has a reasonably high level of reliability. In terms of sales terms, PT. United Tractors Tbk has made the right decision by selling its products on a cash basis. The company's after-sales support is also good. Similarly, the determination of product prices is satisfactory, as the company considers the customers' ability and the prevailing prices in the heavy equipment market. The control function carried out by PT. United Tractors Tbk has been good, where sales implementation is consistently reviewed every sales quarter. Additionally, the sales function of PT United Tractors Tbk has shifted from a mere sales function to providing solutions. This sales function is beneficial in establishing long-term cooperative relationships with customers.


Introduction
Currently, Indonesia is experiencing an uncertain economic situation. This is due to the prevailing crisis and various problems faced by Indonesia, especially in the field of economy. As a result of this uncertain economic situation, many financial institutions are being liquidated, and companies are closing their operations due to continuous losses. To meet the needs of the people, companies utilize the market as a means to sell their products, so they can achieve profits, which is a general goal for most companies. To achieve this goal, companies must compete fiercely to attract consumers from similar companies. The management of a company is responsible for monitoring all operational activities, coordinating and allocating limited resources economically, effectively, and efficiently.
In doing so, a controller can assist the management, particularly in planning and control. Planning and control play a crucial role in the success of a company in achieving its objectives. Planning must be done to ensure that the operational activities of the company are directed towards easily achieving the goals, while control is important to ensure that the company's operations are carried out according to the established plan. In industrial and trading companies, various operational activities must be planned and controlled to enable the company to survive in competition, particularly regarding planning and control of sales as it relates to increasing the company's revenue and sustaining the company's existence.
Sales planning can be described as the activity of creating a sales budget, determining the sales methods to increase demand from the public, establishing the necessary requirements for sales, and the company's pricing policy to compete with similar products.
On the other hand, sales control can be defined as a study and analysis of sales activities, comparing the plan with the actual results, and deciding on the appropriate actions to achieve the desired sales volume at reasonable costs to generate profits. Generally, sales planning and control in a company are carried out by a controller. The controller establishes the plan based on information obtained from previous year's sales activities.
In relation to this, the information obtained needs to be interpreted for easy understanding. The collected and reported information will then be used as one of the bases for decision-making in the company's future activities according to the established goals. Thus, the controller can plan the next sales activities based on the information obtained. Subsequently, the controller controls the sales to ensure they stay within the limits set in the planning. This clearly demonstrates the extensive and influential role of a controller in the operational activities of a company. The author chose to conduct research at PT. United Tractors Tbk because the company was willing to guide the author in conducting research within their organization.
With the background issues presented, the problem can be formulated as follows: (1) Does the controller play an important and beneficial role in the company, specifically in the planning and control of sales at PT. United Tractors Tbk?, and (2) What policies does the company adopt in dealing with the differences between sales plans and actual sales results?

Literature Review Sales Planning
Every company or business entity always engages in sales activities, which are one of the characteristics of the company's activities. No business entity is exempt from sales activities. Sales is a fundamental and essential activity in achieving business success or company goals.
In its implementation, sales must have a target, which is the sales value to be achieved within a certain period for a product, and sales activities are based on orders received from customers. Therefore, companies must be able to influence consumers to buy their products. The definition of sales is: "The science and art of influencing individuals carried out by salespeople to persuade others to buy the goods or services offered." (Basu Swasta, 1993: 8).
In practice, sales must be planned in order to achieve the desired targets. In this case, the role of management is crucial in coordinating all the relevant parts in the sales process. In planning, managers design several steps to be taken in an effort to move the organization towards its objectives. Planning is a continuous process of determining the events and activities needed to achieve the predetermined goals. In other words, it involves establishing and maintaining an integrated operational plan aligned with the company's short-term and longterm goals, analyzing, revising, communicating to all levels of management, and using suitable systems and procedures.

Sales Budget Planning
Planning is very important and necessary to coordinate and direct sales activities. With planning, a company may take the right steps to avoid losses or maintain its survival. Since planning is the basis for the functioning of control functions, the plan must be carefully considered to avoid undesirable outcomes.
Planning is the foundation for the management process to be responsive to external threats and opportunities. It sets the goals that can be achieved using the available resources. Planning is the basis for the functioning of control functions because without planning, there is no basis for performing control functions. (Usry and Matz, 1997: 3). Planning is a continuous process of determining the events and activities needed to achieve the established goals. (Wilson and Campbell, 1995: 6).
Based on the above understanding, planning involves determining the quantity of goods to be produced, the amount of raw materials in stock, machine and labor working hours, raw materials to be used, production costs, and so on, in order to carry out the company's activities and achieve its goals. Thus, it can be said that the implementation of activities in a company starts with sales planning, as stated below: "Sales forecast is the basis for the entire budget. Accurate estimates or forecasts of production schedules and the costs that need to be incurred depend on detailed and accurate sales forecasts in terms of monetary value and units." (Horngren, 1993: 200).
The first step to be taken before sales planning is to forecast future sales. Sales forecasts will serve as the basis for sales planning, taking into account the available resources and sales strategies to achieve the company's goals. In the current uncertain economic situation, sales forecasting is becoming increasingly important due to the increasing competition in the era of free trade and the complexity of sales issues.
Sales forecasting is an estimate of sales for a future period, expressed in either monetary value or units. Sales forecasting is the responsibility of the sales department, but the preparation of sales forecasts is not solely the responsibility of the sales department head but is also assisted by other departments such as the accounting department.
Sales forecasting with high reliability can be achieved by considering various economic data such as national income, national production, population, money supply, price levels, exports and imports, and government policies regarding finance and trade. There are several methods for making sales forecasts, including: a. Forecasting sales based on executives' income.
b. Forecasting method using multiple sales representatives. c. Conducting research

Research Method
The data that has been successfully collected will be analyzed using qualitative methods as follows. Evaluating the effective purchasing of merchandise accounting systems at PT. United Tractors Tbk. Evaluating effective internal control at PT. United Tractors Tbk. with the following steps: Separating functions and responsibilities within the organization strictly. Good and useful systems of authority and bookkeeping procedures to exercise adequate control over property, debts, revenues and expenses.
What is needed here is "which data collection technique is the most accurate, so that the data is actually obtained valid and reliable with all data collection techniques (observation, interviews) it is stated if it cannot be carried out " (Riduwan, 2006:69). Data collection technique is a method for collecting all information related to the title and research theme through data type, data source, and Method of collecting data.

Result and Discussion
Sales is a fundamental activity in achieving a company's goals. Therefore, planning is necessary to ensure that the sales targets or desired sales values are achieved. The sales budget planning in PT United Tractors Tbk is expressed in terms of the Master Plan and its realization, the Actual Sales. The Marketing and Sales Division is responsible for creating the Master Plan, with assistance from other departments within the company. According to the author's analysis, the Marketing and Sales Division uses three methods to create the sales plan: a. Based on executive opinions In the Master Plan formulation, the Marketing and Sales Division also considers the proposed sales plans from the Administration and Finance Division and the company's branches. This helps the Marketing and Sales Division plan the sales in each branch. b. Based on the opinions of sales staff By using this method, the Master Plan prepared by the Marketing and Sales Division can be implemented and easily achieved because the sales staff are directly involved in the sales activities and are familiar with the potential sales locations, conditions, and challenges faced in their sales operations. c. By conducting surveys of the company's customers Through surveys, the company can identify which business areas contribute significant or potential revenue for sales improvement. In addition to using these three methods, the Master Plan prepared by the Marketing and Sales Division also considers factors that may affect the sales implementation, ensuring a high level of reliability. This is evidenced by the author's analysis: a. In the Master Plan formulation, the Marketing and Sales Division also considers historical data, such as the Actual Sales achieved by the company in the previous year, as well as the economic and market conditions and the company's stock. b. As mentioned above, the Marketing and Sales Division also considers proposals from its branches. In the Master Plan, the Marketing and Sales Division determines the quantity of products to be sold and the target locations. The sales targets refer to the branches and representative offices that will experience an increase or decrease in PT United Tractors Tbk's products. By involving all organizational units in the Master Plan formulation, including the Administration and Finance Division, data from branches and representative offices, and the sales staff, it ensures a well-planned process. Historical sales data, company policies, the company's inventory capacity considering potential sales growth in the future, serve as inputs from within the company for the Master Plan formulation. External inputs, such as market competition information, macroeconomic factors, and the company's position in the industry, where PT United Tractors Tbk is a pioneer and the largest distributor in Indonesia, contribute to its strong position in the manufacturing industry it operates in.
Thus, it can be seen that PT United Tractors Tbk has carried out the Master Plan formulation quite effectively. The formulation starts from lower-level managers to higher-level managers, with assessment and approval by the Board of Directors, the top management of the company.
The Master Plan formulated by PT United Tractors Tbk is presented in both quantity and monetary units, with sales planned per department and per product. Material Handling & Industrial Machinery: involved in the industrial machinery sector. The controller's role in PT United Tractors Tbk in the Master Plan formulation is combined with the The blending of marketing efforts will be more successful if what has been programmed is well communicated. Communicating the company's programs to the consumer public can be done through four variables, namely: a. Advertising: The non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods, and services paid for by a specific sponsor. b. Personal selling: Oral presentation in a conversation with one or more potential buyers aimed at generating sales. c. Publicity: Non-personal demand stimulation for a product, service, or idea using commercial news in mass media, with sponsors not directly charged. d. Sales promotion: Marketing activities other than personal selling, advertising, and publicity that encourage consumer purchases and retailer effectiveness. Decisions about the promotion mix will include message delivery, message reception from the media used, response and feedback, as well as interference. Therefore, before determining the promotion mix, it is necessary to identify the target audience, determine promotion objectives, design messages, set promotion targets, and select the media to be used. Furthermore, the implementation of promotion must be coordinated, consistent, timely, and evaluated. Certainly, the marketing strategy formulated by a company should consider its role or position in the business world, whether it is a market leader, challenger, follower, or niche player. Because the company's condition in the business world will affect the challenges it faces. For example, the challenges faced by a market leader company are protecting the market it dominates, expanding the market, and developing market share. Of course, due to the differences in problems or challenges faced, the strategies will also differ.
If a company decides to enter the international market, a systematic approach to the decision of participation needs to be developed. This is because the international market entails different risks compared to the domestic market, such as lack of experience, different customs, different laws, and so on.
Therefore, the first step to take is to understand the international trade system, laws, politics, economic environment, and the cultural market being targeted. Then, determine the desired sales volume for the international market, the target country, and the market within that country. The next step is to determine how to enter the target market.
Entering the international market can be done in various ways, such as exporting, joint ventures, and direct investment. The choice of method depends on the assessment of which option is most feasible, taking into account the economic conditions of the target country. The final step is to establish an effective organization to support the marketing strategy of entering the international market.
The formulated marketing strategy will be tested in implementation to determine its accuracy. This will be reflected in the sales level, the market share captured, and the costs incurred.
To support the successful implementation of the formulated marketing strategy, the readiness of the company organization and its implementation are needed. In this regard, a clear, efficient, and satisfying organizational framework needs to be established. Furthermore, the personnel of the organization must be carefully selected to obtain truly qualified, skilled, and capable individuals.
The marketing strategy that is formulated cannot be guaranteed to become a reality. Because there is an element of uncertainty in implementation, the formulated strategy must always be controlled. Marketing control is done by comparing the realization with the planned marketing. Deviations, whether exceeding or falling short of the target, need attention.
Therefore, marketing control is intended solely to determine the progress of implementation, the obstacles encountered, and the supporting factors needed for smooth marketing activities. In addition, any deviations and their causes can be quickly identified to take corrective actions.

Conclusion
Based on the research and analysis presented in the previous chapters, it can be concluded that the functions performed by the Marketing and Sales Division and the Administration Financial Division at PT. United Tractors Tbk, the application of Controllership functions can be seen. The following are the conclusions drawn from the research and analysis at PT. United Tractors Tbk: 1. The planning function carried out by PT. United Tractors Tbk has been good, as seen from the master sales plan involving other departments within the company. 2. The sales methods used by PT. United Tractors Tbk have been good, as evidenced by the steady increase in revenue from the sales of heavy equipment even during an economic crisis. This is due to the extensive sales coverage, including major cities in Indonesia, with numerous branches and representative offices owned by the company. 3. PT. United Tractors Tbk has made the right decision to sell its products for cash. The company's After Sales Support (after-sales service) is also good. 4. The control function carried out by PT. United Tractors Tbk has been effective. Sales performance is constantly monitored on a quarterly basis.
5. The recording and reporting of sales implemented by PT. United Tractors Tbk have been satisfactory. Each division is responsible for recording and reporting tasks, allowing mutual supervision in case of any irregularities. 6. Sales analysis has been conducted by PT. United Tractors Tbk for a long time. Quarterly analysis allows for the identification and resolution of deviations and their causes, preventing the recurrence of similar deviations in future periods. 7. The company's policies, according to the author, are good. In addition to advancing the company, PT. United Tractors Tbk also considers the well-being of its employees and customers, apart from the company's own issues.