绩效是人力资源管理的重点，特别是对于销售人员而言，绩效是对他们个人能力进行评估的关键。影响绩效的因素很多，国内外很多研究表明，人格特质对绩效有预测作用。 在钢材产品外贸行业中，销售人员的个人绩效对公司的盈利能力影响很大，但是销售人员的个性特征对绩效的影响往往被忽视。本文选取大五人格特质理论中的三个维度，分别是尽责性，外向性和开放性，以来自多个钢材产品外贸企业的销售人员为研究对象，旨在研究钢材产品外贸企业的销售人员的人格特质和绩效的关系，从而能为钢材外贸企业销售人员的甄选提供参考。 首先，本文对三个方面的理论和文献进行梳理研究，即人格特质方面的理论，绩效方面的理论以及人格特质和绩效关系的理论和文献。在人格特质方面，我主要梳理了艾森克人格特质，卡特尔人格特质和大五人格特质的理论。在关于人格特质和绩效关系的文献方面，我重点梳理了大五人格特质和绩效的关系。通过对理论文献的归纳，确定了本文研究的理论基础。 然后，在第三章整体的研究假设及设计里，根据行业的特点和文献综述的研究结论，假设大五人格特质中的三个维度，也就是尽责性，外向性和开放性，对钢材产品外贸企业销售人员的业绩产生积极影响。选取来自多个地区的不同规模的钢材产品外贸企业的销售人员为研究对象，依托大五人格特质量表设计调查问卷，得到研究对象的大五人格特质的三个维度的得分情况和其绩效数据。 在第四章中，本文使用SPSS工具对数据做以下分析：数据的描述统计分析；量表的信度和效度分析；控制变量对绩效的单因素方差分析；各变量相关性分析；大五人格三个维度与绩效的回归分析。 通过数据分析最后得出结论，在大五人格特质三个维度中，只有尽责性对绩效有显著正向影响，外向性和开放性对绩效没有显著影响。另外钢材产品外贸企业销售人员的入职年限对其绩效有正向影响。结合钢材产品外贸企业的实际情况和行业特点，尽责性强的人工作条理性强，责任心强，追求个人成就感，和行业特点完全契合。这些结论和前人的研究成果中尽责性对大部分行业的工作绩效都有较强的预测性的结论是一致的，但是也推翻了行业内在销售人员招聘时比较看重应聘人员外向性的思想。 根据这些研究结论，本文在第六章针对钢材外贸企业在甄别销售人员人格特质方面的不足提出改进策略。主要包括运用大五人格量表测试应聘人员的人格特质；根据胜任特征编制调查问卷测评销售岗位应聘者的人格特质；运用评价中心技术里的无领导小组讨论测评销售岗位应聘人员的人格特质；通过行为化面试测评销售岗位应聘人员的人格特质。这些技术和以往单纯的面试比较，可以在更大程度上有效测评应聘者的人格特质，帮助钢材产品外贸企业在众多应聘者中甄选到适合销售岗位的人才。

Performance is the focus of human resource management, especially for sales staff, performance is the key point of its assessment. There are many factors influencing performance, and many studies worldwide have shown that personality traits have a predictive effect on performance. In the foreign trade industry of steel products, the performance of sales personnel has a great impact on the company's profitability. However, in this industry, the influence of personality traits on performance of sales personnel is often ignored. This article selects three dimensions in the theory of big five personality traits, namely, conscientiousness, extraversion and openness, with steel products sales staff from multiple foreign trade enterprises as the research object, aims to study the relationship between personality traits and performance of the sales personnel of the foreign trade enterprises which deal steel products, providing reference to the selection of the sales personnel in the foreign trade enterprise of steel products. First of all, this paper sorts out and studies three aspects of theories and literatures, namely,theories on personality traits, theories and literatures on performance, and theories and literatures on the relationship between personality traits and performance. In the aspect of personality traits, it mainly sorts out Eysenck's theory of personality traits, Cattel’s personality traits and big five personality traits. In terms of the literature on the relationship between personality traits and performance, this paper focuses on the relationship between the big five personality traits and performance. Then, in chapter 3, it is the overall research hypothesis and design. According to the characteristics of the industry and the research conclusions of the literature review, it is assumed that the three dimensions of the big five personality traits, namely conscientiousness, extroversion and openness, are positively correlated with the performance of sales personnel. By selecting salesmen of steel foreign trade enterprises with different sizes from multiple regions as research objects and designing questionnaires based on the big five personality traits scale, the scores of the three dimensions of the big five personality traits and performance data of the research objects were obtained. In the fourth chapter, SPSS tool is used to analyze the data. The main analysis is: data summary analysis; scale reliability and validity analysis; one-way variance analysis between the control variables and the performance; correlation analysis; regression analysis between the three dimensions of big five personality and performance. Through data analysis, it is concluded that only the conscientiousness of the big five personality traits has a significant positive impact on performance, extroversion and openness have no significant impact on performance, and the entry years of sales staff in foreign trade enterprises of steel products have a positive impact on their performance. Combined with the actual situation of foreign trade enterprises of steel products and industry characteristics, people with higher conscientiousness work in a rational way with a strong sense of responsibility and pursue personal achievement. These characters conform to the industry characteristics. These conclusions are consistent with previous research findings that conscientiousness highly predicts work performance in most industries, but they also overturn the idea that extroversion is highly valued in the recruitment of sales staff in the industry. According to the research conclusions, the sixth chapter puts forward solutions to the foreign trade industry of steel products considering their deficiency in the personality traits identification of sales personnel interviewees.It mainly includes using the big five personality scale to test the personality traits of the interviewees; using the questionnaire made according to the competency characteristics to assess the sales job candidates personality traits;Using leaderless group discussion in the evaluation center technology to evaluate the personality traits of candidates for sales positions; using behavioral interviews to assess the personality traits of candidates for sales positions. Compared to the simple interview, these techniques can test the personality traits of the candidates to the greater extent. It can help the enterprises to find the correct persons to matching the sales positions.