Skip to content

Handling Counter Offers when Sales Recruiting

Handling Counter Offers

Having to deal with counter offers is one of the most difficult challenges facing successful companies looking to grow and attract great talent.

Great employees are hard to find, highly sought after and almost always gainfully employed. No employer wants to lose people like this without a fight, so when an employer learns that one of the their best employees is intending to resign, in all probability there is going to be a strong effort to prevent them from going.

In our business, which is based entirely on finding elite level sales people, counter offers arise regularly. Over the years, however, we have developed useful ways of mitigating their impact on our ability to recruit the people our customers need to hire. Some of these tactics can be used in isolation, or combined to increase the chances of landing the desired candidate:

Be an Employer of Choice

The best defense against counter offers is to offer things that no other employer can offer. Market leaders explicitly understand that becoming known as a great place to work and build a career significantly lessens the impact that a counter offer has on a highly desirable candidate. Any employer can offer more compensation, but a company that is known as an employer of choice can offer not only a great financial opportunity, but also a great career opportunity – which is always very difficult for other employers to match.

Stay Close to the Candidate

When someone decides to interview for a new position, they are likely seeking something they are not receiving from their current employer. The recruiting employer has the advantage of discussing these matters with the prospective hire and offering a career opportunity that caters to the candidate’s current objectives, needs, and mindset. When a mutually agreeable offer is made and the candidate informs their current employer that they will be resigning, the current employer may well be caught off guard and not be able to offer all the things that the competing employer is offering. This makes it imperative to not only fully understand the candidate’s real career objectives and motivations for making a change, but also to stay in very close contact throughout the recruiting process so as to be aware of any issues or mood changes as they arise.

Trial Resignation

During advanced stages of engaging a target candidate, have a discussion about the likelihood that they will receive a counter offer from their current employer. Ask the candidate whether they expect a counter, how they will feel about this and how they will respond. Consider conducting a role play where you present a counter offer to the candidate to assess the degree to which they have thought through their response, and how emotionally committed they are to leaving their current employer. At worst, this will help identify any addressed obstacles that may stand in the way of hiring this person away from their current job.

I recall the negotiations with one particular highly coveted candidate. We met the candidate’s financial requirements, and although money is always a factor in making career moves, the candidate had expressed that their primary motivation for making the change was to take advantage of the career opportunity that was being offered. They claimed that no amount of money would make them pass up this opportunity. To see where we were really at, I role played a resignation conversation between the candidate and their current employer, with me assuming the part of the latter. It went something like this:

Candidate: I would like to inform you that I am resigning.

Me/Current Employer: I am sorry to hear that. Is your decision final?

Candidate: …Yes

Me/Current Employer: Can you tell me why are leaving?

Candidate: I feel it is time for me to move on.

Me/Current Employer: Is there anything I can do to make you change your mind?

Candidate: I am sorry, not really.

Me/Current Employer: If I raise your base salary by $20k and add a new 10% bonus, would you be open to reconsidering?

Candidate: Uh…wow…well…uh…yes.

Boom! I knew right there we had not yet fully secured the candidate’s commitment to make a move and more work was required to understand the candidate’s real motivations.

Get Compensation Right

While there is a school of thought that money is not the most important aspect in attracting great talent, we see time and time again that even small differences in compensation have an enormous impact on a candidate’s desire to change employers.

Yet a surprising number of companies will spend a lot of time finding and courting the ideal candidate, discussing a financial offer and then making a formal offer which includes compensation that is lower than the candidate is currently making. Hiring employers that make these kinds of offers either overvalue the career opportunity that they are offering or assume that a candidate will want to negotiate. Big mistake. In many such cases, the candidate, having been insulted by the recruiting employer, will go back back to their current employer, let them know they are contemplating resignation, and ask for a raise in exchange for staying. Many employers will comply and the candidate is off the market.

even small differences in compensation have an enormous impact on a candidate’s desire to change employers.”

An approach with a better chance of success involves knowing what a targeted candidate wants, and making a great first offer that meets or even exceeds their expectations. This takes compensation off the table as a potential issue in the offer negotiation and allows the discussion to focus on other aspects of the unique career opportunity that is being offered. It also doesn’t hurt to have some budget flexibility in order to sweeten the compensation offer if required to close the right candidate.

Out Counter the Counter

At some point later in the process of courting a particular candidate,  have a discussion with them about the likelihood that they will get counter offer from their current employer. Be upfront and inform the candidate that you would like a chance to speak after the counter is received in case there is chance to make a better offer. While an employer generally wants to avoid a bidding war for talent, there is no escaping the reality that by targeting the best talent in the industry, you are already in a bidding war.

De-risk

Anyone that leaves an employment position to join another company is assuming risk. This is particularly true with high achieving people who have an unblemished track record of success. Recruiting employers often underestimate this risk and the power of the status quo. Even if a great career opportunity is presented to a potential hire, they may be inclined to pass on the opportunity and accept a counter offer in order to stay with their current employer since they have a reasonable likelihood of continuing their success.  This reality makes it incumbent on the recruiting employer to thoroughly map out how the candidate will be successful and how every detail has been taken care of including contingencies for unexpected events.

To your success!

Photo Credit: JD Hancock via Compfight cc

relpost-thumb-wrapper

Related posts

How to Hire Salespeople Outside Your Industry

Millennials are Killing the Business Development Role (in a Good Way)

5 Sales Team Building Activities That Reduce Turnover Rates

close relpost-thumb-wrapper

Connect:

Eliot Burdett

CEO at Peak Sales Recruiting
Before Peak, Eliot spent more than 20 years building and leading companies, where he took the lead in recruiting and managing high performance sales teams. He co-founded Ventrada Systems (mobile applications) and GlobalX (e-commerce software). He was also Vice President of Sales for PointShot Wireless.

Eliot received his B. Comm. from Carleton University and has been honored as a Top 40 Under 40 Award winner.

He co-authored Sales Recruiting 2.0, How to Find Top Performing Sales People, Fast and provides regular insights on sales team management and hiring on the Peak Sales Recruiting Blog.

Connect:

Latest posts by Eliot Burdett (see all)

Didn’t Get the Sales Job? Here Are 10 Reasons Why

optimized-istock_000031844570_small-1260x840In today’s hyper-competitive sales hiring landscape, the interview process can quickly become a daunting and drawn out process. Candidates are required to complete multiple interviews, behavioral assessments, and  psychometric testing. While it’s frustrating when you don’t get the sales job, understanding why you didn’t is your path to future success. Key Takeaways? Know your numbers, come prepared, and communicate with your references.

Here are the top ten reasons why you didn’t get the sales job, and what you can do about it:

1. You didn’t know your numbers

In sales, numbers reign supreme. Simply put, it’s rarely possible to ace an interview without knowing the specifics of your performance metrics. Top sellers know their performance metrics, so be specific in your knowledge. Before attending your next interview, ensure you are able to answer the following questions:

  •         What was your quota?
  •         How much of your quota was new sales versus repeat business?
  •         What was the average deal size?
  •         How much of your quota was made up of up-sells?
  •         How long was your average sales cycle?
  •         How many leads were given to you versus hunted?
  •         What percentage of your targets did you achieve in the last year

2. You failed to come prepared

We live in a job market where each open corporate position is met with 250 resumes on average. Hiring managers are too pressed for time to allow for second chances if you fail to come prepared. It becomes clear to an interviewer when a candidate doesn’t know the product, market, industry, or challenges facing an organization. Often, they will be quick to cease communication with a candidate who has failed to commit at the most basic level of spending time to know the company.

The best sales candidates research the history, structure, and competitors of a given company. They go deeper by understanding the corporate strategy, key markets, ideal customer base, and corporate growth targets.

Come prepared with facts, statistics, or your own insights on how the company can surpass their sales goals and you will demonstrate your commitment to the role.

3. You weren’t the right cultural fit

While skills and experience are the first things to be analyzed in an interview process, it’s also important that the organization deems you a good fit for the company culturally. Generally, employers can judge whether or not a salesperson will be a cultural fit by asking you about your personal values and communication style, your understanding of the company’s values, and how you approach conflict, coaching, and feedback.

It can be hard to determine whether or not a candidate will be a good fit with a potential organization solely through the interview process, but employers need to ultimately determine if a candidate will integrate well with the current employees. While it’s frustrating to lose out on a sales job due to lack of cultural fit, studies have shown that 89% of hiring failures are due to cultural fit.

Read more about how to determine if you will be a good cultural fit here.

4. You didn’t use your resume as a selling tool

Your resume should be tailored to the specific skills, experience, and selling environment of each and every job you apply for. Because employers are only interested in hiring A players, you do not have the luxury of coming across as an “almost perfect” fit. You need to display from the first point of contact why you are an exact match for the position available, how your selling history matches this, and how your sales performance makes you a “can’t miss” candidate.

Read here for the best tips on how to construct a standout resume employers can’t say no to.

5.   Your cover letter was not targeted for the position

Much like a resume needs to be tailored for each sales role you apply for, your cover letter needs to add depth and texture to the basic information of your resume. Use your cover letter to tell a compelling story about your work experience. Instead of simply describing how you are a “motivated, driven, or ambitious individual,” give a succinct example about a time when you displayed these characteristics.

A cover letter is used as a way to evaluate a candidates ability to communicate. The best letters address the employer’s requirements in the position they are hiring for. Highlight key sales accomplishments, awards/accolades, sales methodology training, and industry experience.

6.   Another candidate was more qualified

Unfortunately, this is the reality of any job candidacy. Ask the hiring manager for the specific reasons why another candidate was considered a more qualified candidate. It will ultimately aid your job search going forward and provide you insight into what skills and experiences you need to build upon.

Some of the most common reasons another candidate attains a sales job candidacy are because they have:

  • More experience selling in the required verticals
  • Built out a larger book of business
  • A longer proven track record of success
  • More experience in a hunting role/developing new business
  • Sold into the C-Suite

7. You lacked professionalism when speaking about past employers

Owning responsibility for your performance is a quality top salespeople fully embrace.  While it is possible that your departure from a previous company was under less than ideal circumstances, this should not factor into how you speak about a previous employer in an interview.

If the reason for separation between you and your last employer was due to personal differences or conflict, ensure you speak only to professional differences in the interview. Refrain from speaking badly about a former boss. Maintain a respectful demeanor and keep it professional.

Keep emotions out of any conversations regarding former employers, and always guide the conversation back to what you learned from the experience.

8. You failed to differentiate your value

As we have explained, top performing salespeople are different. The key to value differentiation in the interview process is to display your value early, and display it often. Above and beyond knowing your numbers and demonstrating a successful track record, demonstrate your ability to effectively communicate and build rapport. This is a competency employers need to see in their sales force. From the first point of contact, exhibiting your people skills and ability to establish relationships will gain any employer’s attention.

9. You didn’t leverage your network properly

It’s common knowledge that networking often leads to a job interview. In fact, hiring expert Lou Adler conducted a study which found that well over half of sales roles are filled through networking efforts. Candidates are successful at using networks to learn about positions, but overlook attaining information that will provide an edge in the interview process.

Think through what you would like to know about the culture of the sales team: the scope and expectations of the job, sales methodologies used, unique aspects of the interview process, or any specific requirements the sales team has.

Privately reach out to your professional networks, such as LinkedIn, and you will find the information you need. Be specific rather than general in your questions. You are getting information, not asking how to get the job.

10. Your references didn’t check out

According to a CareerBuilder survey, 62% of employers said that when contacting a reference, the reference didn’t have favorable things to say about the candidate. This is significant because prior to an offer of employment, reference checks are often the last step in the interview process. 

Ensure you have spoken to each reference in advance. Instead of hoping they will provide positive information on your behalf, ask them if they would recommend you to a potential employer. This is a clear way to determine if they will provide a positive reference. Inform your references that they should expect a call from your prospective employer. Remind them of any past accomplishments you had with them. Prepare them to speak to how you performed in your role with them.

Learn from your experience and advance your career

Rejection at some point of your hiring experience is to be expected given the competitive landscape of the sales workforce. While some aspects of job attainment are out of your control, understanding why you didn’t get the sales job will allow you to avoid making the same mistakes in the future. Pay attention to the details of your resume and cover letter, be proactive in your communication with references, and know your numbers.

Looking for more insight on your next sales interview? Read this and ace it.

relpost-thumb-wrapper

Related posts

Don’t Make This Common Hiring Mistake

Salary Negotiation: What You’re Losing When You Sit Back and Let Your Employer Win

Outside Salespeople: Our Quick-Start Guide to Hiring

close relpost-thumb-wrapper

Eliot Burdett

Latest posts by Eliot Burdett (see all)

Chicago’s Sales Hiring Landscape

Chicago Sales Hiring

Even in the midst of some serious fiscal problems in Chicago – the city is facing a budget crisis and so is the state – the outlook for job growth in Chicago is positive. Chicago is welcoming new Fortune 500 businesses as they bring their headquarters to the city. There is a boom in the technology sector and in health care. Unemployment is down, and wages maintain a healthy bump over the national average. While some sectors – particularly manufacturing – are experiencing economic challenges, there is a great deal of growth for jobs in general, which is good news for sales professionals and employers who want to locate themselves in a growth region with plenty of opportunity.

“Unlike New York, and its connection to the financial sector or Los Angeles with the entertainment sector, Chicago’s economy is built on its diversity. That allows us to be a world leader in many different areas all at once.” – Rahm Emanuel, Mayor of Chicago

The big picture in Chicago

This past May, Crain’s Chicago Business, the business journal of record in the city, reported in their article  ‘Chicago Economic Growth Slowed in First Quarter‘, that “Chicago, like the rest of the country, hit some economic bumps in the first quarter but is still likely to be expanding its economy a year from now.” The article also noted that Chicago now ranks 18th of 20 large cities – up from 19th last quarter – in odds that its economy will be growing in a year. This prediction is echoed by the latest Chicago business analysis from the Regional Economic Applications Laboratory (REAL) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign which noted, “given Illinois’ economic performance of late, recovery to the prior peak (adjusted for changes in labor force participation and population growth) within five years would seem feasible.”

More recently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Midwest Region office reported in its Chicago Area Economic Summary, updated September 1, 2015, that “unemployment is down from 7.3 percent in 2014 to 5.9 percent in 2015 in the Chicago area, and trending down for the Greater Chicago Unemployment Rate 2015Chicago area.”

A potential driver lowering the unemployment rate could be due to the fact that Chicago has a well-educated population that employers can draw from when recruiting. The University of Chicago, The University of Illinois, and Northwestern University serve as three of the city’s higher education anchors, along with institutions like DePaul, Loyola, the Illinois Institute of Technology and a host of mid-sized colleges and junior colleges.

Chicago is also a popular destination for recent graduates from all over the Midwest – Ohio University and the University of Michigan both report that Chicago is a primary destination for large numbers of alumni. It’s a great place for employers to find candidates with MBAs, with the Kellogg School of Management and the Booth School of Business offering executive MBA programs as well as internationally recognized executive leadership and training courses on an ongoing basis. Northwestern’s executive leadership programs, for example, offers several of study that zone in on specific skill sets for sales leaders such as how to accelerate sales force performance, how to lead high impact teams, and how to leverage customer insights to drive sales.

What is propelling the growth?

A mix of Fortune 500 companies choosing to locate their headquarters in the city combined with a tech and healthcare boom is spurring growth. The Metro Economic Outlook: Chicago report published by the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) in 2015 notes, “among the locally-headquartered members of the Fortune 500 list are aerospace interest Boeing, technology company Motorola, fast food restaurant giant McDonald’s, and agricultural processor Archer Daniels Midland, which moved to Chicago in 2014.” Other major names like Kraft Foods Group, The Allstate Corporation, and Baxter are also headquartered in Chicago. For a full list, visit World Business Chicago and download their curated list of Chicago-based companies on the Fortune list.

Rick Mattoon, Senior Economist and Economic Advisor for the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago notes in his report, The U.S., Illinois, and Metro Chicago Economic Outlook for 2015, that Chicago is attracting more big companies. “Since 2011, 27 companies have chosen to locate headquarters in Chicago. Thirty-one Fortune 500 firms in the metropolitan statistical area (MSA) and eight in Chicago.” Google is also making waves by building new offices in the city’s West Loop neighborhood, and the business boom is attracting more real estate developers. “JLL (formerly Jones Lang LaSalle) ranked Chicago 8th in the world for commercial real estate investment in 2014 (9.1 billion),” Mattoon notes.

The SHRM report observes that technology jobs, in particular, are increasing in Chicago. “The local tech sector is anchored by Internet marketing company Groupon, which has more than 2,000 people working at its Chicago headquarters,” notes the report, adding, “San Francisco-based online review website Yelp is expanding locally throughout the remainder of 2015 and will bring 300 jobs to the city.”

Chicago 1871 TechSources, including SHRM, credit Chicago’s strong commitment to technology as a harbinger of growth in the community. The city sponsors a technology incubator called 1871 that’s located in Chicago’s legendary – and gigantic – Merchandise Mart building. The incubator is now credited with being “the home to almost 400 startup companies, and 40 companies have graduated from 1871 to create 500 local jobs.”

In addition to technology, the Federal Reserve Report notes that “the Chicago (city) economy has expanded by an estimated 12,445 private-sector jobs since September 2013, mostly attributed to professional and business services, transportation and warehousing, and education and health services sectors.”

As the city builds on its reputation for innovation, investors are taking notice and earmarking funds for Chicago-based companies. According to the Federal Reserve report, “venture capital investment in the metro area increased to $210.2 million during the third quarter of 2014, a 42.2% improvement over the same time period last year.”

Some complain that there aren’t enough angel investors and venture capital funders looking at Chicago, but the city is attracting attention.

“The missing link has always been venture capital, a problem that in the past not only forced companies but individuals to chase capital to the East and West Coasts. We have reversed that direction and today, money is chasing companies here to the Third Coast.” – Rahm Emanuel, Mayor of Chicago

The ChicagoInno blog keeps tabs on the startup community in the Greater Chicago area, and reports on events such as The Chicago Venture Summit. Anchored by venture capitalist and Chicagoan J.B. Prtizker, this event is meant to draw the attention of investors everywhere to showcase what’s happening in Chicago. And more recently, the Venture Capital Post predicted that Chicago is in the lead to become the next Silicon Valley. “Chicago is considered to be a haven for VC funding,” notes the publication. “The average salary in Chicago technology sector is over 65 percent higher than other industry verticals. The real estate sector is also huge and affordable for the industry as the price is increasing over 10 percent annually. All these positive factors put together make the Affordability Index of 182.3 for Chicago city on ULI report.”

Opportunities for employers targeting sales professionals

The kind of news being reported about Chicago by economists impacts employers looking to grow their sales force. The city is experiencing growth in high-earning-potential sectors such as technology and healthcare, with a mix of enterprise companies and innovative startups, which is driving demand and increasing the competition over rare, top performing salespeople, which represent only 10-15% of the entire sales population.

“(A bad hire) to me is what’s most risky.” If you even get a few people that are wrong for any number of reasons, be it they are just not great people, they’re political, they’re bureaucratic, they’re not good at their job, yet they advance. It cascades dow very quickly.” – Al Goldstein, CEO of AVANT

REAL reports that “Chicago’s employment rate in May 2015 was 103.21 of its pre-recession level,” and adds, “the 12-month forecast shows that Illinois is likely to experience an employment growth between 26,600 and 44,200. The greatest increase is likely to occur in professional and business services (23,100 more jobs) while the largest decline will happen for manufacturing (5,800 less jobs).” Peak Sales Recruiting CSO, Brent Thomson, notes that demand in the region has skyrocketed over the past 2 years, particularly in the technology and professional service verticals.

“The biggest challenge Chicago tech should tackle is finding ways to drive large, scaled and sustainable revenue streams. And this is no easy task. If I were to make a recommendation to all tech entrepreneurs for 2015 it would be to start consuming books on selling and marketing.” – Shawn Riegsecker, CEO & founder of Centro

Economic Forecast Chicago SalesNaysayers will caution that the fiscal problems at the city and state level threaten long-term growth. The State of Illinois Economic Forecast, January 2015 published by State of Illinois Commission on Government Forecasting & Accountability, Moody’s Analytics, Economic and Consumer Credit Analytics noted in its summary that “Illinois’ economy has improved over the last year, but progress has been slow and the state has underperformed the region and nation in key gauges such as jobs, income, and output.” The report adds, however, that over the “longer term, Illinois has a lot of what businesses need to thrive — talent, access to customers and capital, transportation — but painful fiscal reforms are needed before it can fully capitalize on these strengths.”

Employers in the manufacturing sector should approach expanding its Chicago sales force with caution. Each of the major reporting bureaus noted some real problems in the manufacturing sector. The State of Illinois Economic Forecast, notes “a dramatic weakening of sales concentrated in the resources segment, and mining in particular, has led to significant downsizing that has spilled over into other parts of these economies.”

The impact on sales salaries

Companies looking at Chicago should note that the upturn in the economy is having an effect on wages. “The mean wage for sales and related jobs is 14 percent higher in Chicago than the national average,” notes the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Midwest Division. Over the past 3 years, we have seen the median base salary for senior technology sales representatives, those with 5+ years experience selling SaaS, Software, and/or Hardware, rise 8%, from $75,800.00 in 2012 to $82,000.00 in 2015. Similarly, the base salary for territory managers in the software vertical has risen 9%, from $125,000 in 2012 to $139,000 in 2015. Compensation plans have remained steady with a 50/50 base commission split, however, technology start-ups in the Greater Chicago Area have introduced more lucrative draws – up approximately 10% from the past two years – in an attempt to reduce the impact that long sales cycles have on first year earning potential.

High-growth companies looking to hire top performers in the Chicago market should therefore be prepared to find ways to economize on the higher-priced labor. Introducing new technology that can reduce rep travel requirements or administrative functions, for example, can mitigate the impact on rising wages over the long term. Firms can also pass on the cost increases to their customers by raising the product/service price. This outcome, however, is more likely in industries where demand for the product or service is relatively insensitive to price increases.

Chicago’s a smart choice for employers

Good wages and lots of opportunity are important, but top performers like to lead the charge for a company from a perch in one of the world’s leading metropolitan areas. If you’re considering opening an satellite office or a new headquarters, consider that Chicago is big enough to offer the sales challenge that top performers demand while delivering a lifestyle that’s family-friendly. It’s also centrally located so that sales people with significant travel requirements can navigate distance and time zones with more ease than those on one or the other coasts. A growing job base, a good economic outlook, and all the trappings of big city life with a dose of Midwestern charm makes Chicago a top choice for employers looking to expand their sales force.

If your organization requires Chicago’s top sales and sales management professionals, contact Peak’s Chicago recruiters today.

relpost-thumb-wrapper

Related posts

Employee Referral Programs: Is Your Next Sales Rep Just One Connection Away?

Sales Salaries 2019 [Infographic]

Millennials and the B2B Sales Industry [Study]

close relpost-thumb-wrapper

Ryan Thornton

Latest posts by Ryan Thornton (see all)

Common Denominators of Top Sales Organizations

If you had the opportunity to survey a wide range of top sales organizations and the top performers that support their winning sales teams, you’d find some steady trends. Top organizations are organized, disciplined, and results oriented. They approach business in a structured fashion and develop and support processes that help employees maintain high standards. Top employees, in turn, excel at what they do, and thrive in an environment that recognizes their talents while holding them accountable for success.

Two recent surveys provide deep insight into the characteristics of top performing sales organizations. Steve W. Martin provides an overview of his recent study on high-performing sales organizations in the Harvard Business Review, and two colleagues at CSO Insights, Jim Dickie and Barry Trailer, review their research findings in a white paper titled The Anatomy of a World-Class Sales Organization 2015. Each paper has interesting and original insights, but there is common ground: [bctt tweet=”Leading sales organizations have a sound structure, strong processes, and strict accountability measures for their salespeople.”

Top companies maintain a strong structure

Martin’s study was a 42-part survey with 786 sales professional from various levels of achievement within their organizations and from various industries. He found that 50% of study participants from high-performing sales organizations, those where annual revenues increased significantly year-over-year, responded they had sales processes that were closely monitored, strictly enforced or automated, compared to just 28% from underperforming sales organizations.

Dickie and Trailer’s research focused on data pulled from 1,000 participating companies. The study, like Martin’s, found that structure was critical to building and maintaining a world-class sales organization. Once top talent is identified and hired, the author, like us, stresses the importance of providing sales reps with training and the right sales tools in order to help these top performers optimize their efficiency.

Both studies also recognized – in slightly different ways – how important it is for departments outside of sales to participate in helping the sales team achieve success, particularly when it comes to adapting to market fluctuations, or helping to train managers on how to better adapt to changing times. Here are a few ways HR and the sales department can work more closely.

Process-driven organizations achieve more market share

Optimizing sales processes by maintaining a structured approach for engaging and working with clients helps companies outsell their competitors, note Dickie and Trailer. The CSO research took a deep dive into process, showing four levels of the sales process. Level 1 is a random process, Level 2 is an informal process that’s loosely defined but not monitored. Level 3 is a formal process that is reviewed and measured, and Level 4 is a dynamic process that goes through cycles of feedback and modification. As companies moved up through the levels of process, Dickie and Trailer found, their performance improved.

Matching sales process with the various types of relationships salespeople have with clients, (approved vendor, preferred supplier, solutions consultant, strategic contributor, and trusted partner) the CSO research team created a matrix that shows how process drives achievement in sales:

When a process is in place, is followed by everyone, and leadership is able to adjust the processes as needed to account for market fluctuations or other factors inside or outside of the organization, salespeople can focus on selling. Why? Because the sales team understands what’s expected of them, work more efficiently and accomplish more. Similarly, Martin’s study found that 48 percent of the participants from underperforming sales organizations indicated they had non-existent or informal structured sales processes compared to only 29% from high performing sales organizations.

Accountability leads to higher performance

Martin found that high-performing sales organizations hold their team members to a higher level of accountability. “High-performing sales organizations are not afraid to aggressively raise year-over-year annual quotas,” notes Martin, adding that 75 percent of high-performing sales organizations raised 2014 annual quotas more than 10 percent over the previous year.

High expectations and quotas should also reflect in high rewards. Dickie and Trailer note that successful salespeople at top performing firms should have compensation programs that are more enhanced, and Martin, like us, advocates a strong bonus and commission structure.

Accountability is arguably the most powerful tool for getting reps to perform and Martin notes that [bctt tweet=”high-performing sales organizations are typically quicker to terminate underperforming salespeople”] – 18 percent of high-performing sales organizations indicated that salespeople will be terminated for poor performance after one quarter. This contrasted dramatically with average companies – only 2% reported they would terminate underperforming employees after one quarter.

Overall, these researchers found new ways to verify assumptions that many sales leaders may have been making all along. “The results from this study,” notes Martin, “quantify that the best sales organizations have strong leaders who exercise control, monitor team performance, and establish internal processes that all team members must abide by.”

Staying at the top requires a mix of talent, structure, process, and people that’s very difficult to balance correctly. The researchers suggest companies work hard to make the most of the tools available to them – including a wide range of sales pipeline and CRM software which can greatly support and enhance performance and growth. “It is not easy. It is not fast. It is not cheap,” write Dickie and Trainer, noting with a bit of a warning that, “It is not optional.”

Two recent surveys provide deep insight into the characteristics of top performing sales organizations. Steve W. Martin provides an overview of his recent study on high-performing sales organizations in the Harvard Business Review, and two colleagues at CSO Insights, Jim Dickie and Barry Trailer, review their research findings in a white paper titled The Anatomy of a World-Class Sales Organization 2015. Each paper has interesting and original insights, but there is common ground: [bctt tweet=”Leading sales organizations have a sound structure, strong processes, and strict accountability measures for their salespeople.”]

Top companies maintain a strong structure

Martin’s study was a 42-part survey with 786 sales professional from various levels of achievement within their organizations and from various industries. He found that 50% of study participants from high-performing sales organizations, those where annual revenues increased significantly year-over-year, responded they had sales processes that were closely monitored, strictly enforced or automated, compared to just 28% from underperforming sales organizations.

Dickie and Trailer’s research focused on data pulled from 1,000 participating companies. The study, like Martin’s, found that structure was critical to building and maintaining a world-class sales organization. Once top talent is identified and hired, the author, like us, stresses the importance of providing sales reps with training and the right sales tools in order to help these top performers optimize their efficiency.

Both studies also recognized – in slightly different ways – how important it is for departments outside of sales to participate in helping the sales team achieve success, particularly when it comes to adapting to market fluctuations, or helping to train managers on how to better adapt to changing times. Here are a few ways HR and the sales department can work more closely.

Process-driven organizations achieve more market share

Optimizing sales processes by maintaining a structured approach for engaging and working with clients helps companies outsell their competitors, note Dickie and Trailer. The CSO research took a deep dive into process, showing four levels of the sales process. Level 1 is a random process, Level 2 is an informal process that’s loosely defined but not monitored. Level 3 is a formal process that is reviewed and measured, and Level 4 is a dynamic process that goes through cycles of feedback and modification. As companies moved up through the levels of process, Dickie and Trailer found, their performance improved.

Matching sales process with the various types of relationships salespeople have with clients, (approved vendor, preferred supplier, solutions consultant, strategic contributor, and trusted partner) the CSO research team created a matrix that shows how process drives achievement in sales:

” alt=”Relationship Sales Process” width=”452″ height=”251″ sizes=”(max-width: 452px) 100vw, 452px” data-src=”https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Sales-Relationship-Process.jpg” data-srcset=”https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Sales-Relationship-Process.jpg 452w, https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/1_Sales-Relationship-Process-300×167.jpg 300w” />

Source: The Anatomy of a World-Class Sales Organization – 2015, CSO Insights.

When a process is in place, is followed by everyone, and leadership is able to adjust the processes as needed to account for market fluctuations or other factors inside or outside of the organization, salespeople can focus on selling. Why? Because the sales team understands what’s expected of them, work more efficiently and accomplish more. Similarly, Martin’s study found that 48 percent of the participants from underperforming sales organizations indicated they had non-existent or informal structured sales processes compared to only 29% from high performing sales organizations.

Accountability leads to higher performance

Martin found that high-performing sales organizations hold their team members to a higher level of accountability. “High-performing sales organizations are not afraid to aggressively raise year-over-year annual quotas,” notes Martin, adding that 75 percent of high-performing sales organizations raised 2014 annual quotas more than 10 percent over the previous year.

High expectations and quotas should also reflect in high rewards. Dickie and Trailer note that successful salespeople at top performing firms should have compensation programs that are more enhanced, and Martin, like us, advocates a strong bonus and commission structure.

Accountability is arguably the most powerful tool for getting reps to perform and Martin notes that [bctt tweet=”high-performing sales organizations are typically quicker to terminate underperforming salespeople”] – 18 percent of high-performing sales organizations indicated that salespeople will be terminated for poor performance after one quarter. This contrasted dramatically with average companies – only 2% reported they would terminate underperforming employees after one quarter.

Overall, these researchers found new ways to verify assumptions that many sales leaders may have been making all along. “The results from this study,” notes Martin, “quantify that the best sales organizations have strong leaders who exercise control, monitor team performance, and establish internal processes that all team members must abide by.”

Staying at the top requires a mix of talent, structure, process, and people that’s very difficult to balance correctly. The researchers suggest companies work hard to make the most of the tools available to them – including a wide range of sales pipeline and CRM software which can greatly support and enhance performance and growth. “It is not easy. It is not fast. It is not cheap,” write Dickie and Trainer, noting with a bit of a warning that, “It is not optional.”

relpost-thumb-wrapper

Related posts

Top 7 Characteristics Essential to Sales Success [Infographic]
Boosting Sales Team Morale When No One is Buying
21 Reasons Why Your Best Sales Reps Are Leaving [Infographic]

close relpost-thumb-wrapper

” alt=”” width=”80″ height=”80″ data-src=”https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s80ampdmmamprg.png” data-srcset=”https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s160ampdmmamprg.png 2x” />
Connect:

Eliot Burdett

CEO at Peak Sales Recruiting
Before Peak, Eliot spent more than 20 years building and leading companies, where he took the lead in recruiting and managing high performance sales teams. He co-founded Ventrada Systems (mobile applications) and GlobalX (e-commerce software). He was also Vice President of Sales for PointShot Wireless.Eliot received his B. Comm. from Carleton University and has been honored as a Top 40 Under 40 Award winner.

He co-authored Sales Recruiting 2.0, How to Find Top Performing Sales People, Fast and provides regular insights on sales team management and hiring on the Peak Sales Recruiting Blog.

” alt=”” width=”80″ height=”80″ data-src=”https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s80ampdmmamprg.png” data-srcset=”https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s160ampdmmamprg.png 2x” />
Connect:

Latest posts by Eliot Burdett (see all)

What’s In a Name? Job Titles and Your Sales Career

optimized-6460819_lIn a world where labels reign supreme, how important is your job title? We explain the surprising and sometimes unexpected effects job title can have on your work performance, job satisfaction, and career trajectory.

When it comes to job titles and their impact on salespeople, there are two general schools of thought Sales VP’s, Sales Managers, and HR leaders tend to embrace. One suggests there are risks to inflating or distorting one’s job title. For example, if you are a Customer Guru it can be difficult to determine if your experience lies in handling customer issues or in initiating sales. Conversely, others see creative and imaginative job titles as simple yet powerful ways to increase employee productivity and creativity. This is known as reflective job titling and has been proven to alleviate job burnout and results in employees feeling more connected to and in control of their work life.

The divide on job titling is substantial: for every article on how creative job titles can increase employee engagement, increase retention, and psychologically motivate employees, there are just as many that argue job title inflation is a senseless and impractical practice. Some experts suggest creative or exaggerated job titles are a meaningful and cost free way to reward employees, leading to a higher performance level. However, just as many qualified dissenters believe that simplicity and consistency are best when it comes to employee job titles.

Here, we investigate the question of job title significance as it pertains to the sales world, where job titles can be particularly arbitrary and subjective. Account Managers, Sales Professionals, Business Development Specialists, Client Growth Consultants, and Telemarketers are all effectively salespeople, yet their titles signify a vast array of roles and responsibilities. Whether you recognize it or not, your job title impacts how you view your role in sales.

Responsibilities

When it comes to the responsibilities that your job title denotes, size and scale of your company are key indicators of the accountabilities of your role. You may serve as a Director of Sales at a company of thirty people, but at a Fortune 500 company, your sales role might best be described as a Regional Sales Manager. If you’re in the tech industry, well known for it’s inventive and outside-the-box operating principles, you may find yourself in a Guru Sales Hacker or Growth Expert role. Descriptive and imaginative job titles have been proven to significantly transform employee attitudes and perceptions about their job after retitling. This can lead to greater emotional job satisfaction and company engagement. Conversely, retitling can create unease because the responsibilities of your position might not translate well to other industries, or not be recognized in the same way that more traditional job titles are.

Laszlo Bock, head of People Operations at Google, explains in his book Work Rules! that he was hesitant to assume his current job title because he felt it failed to accurately portray his human resources expertise. Now, however, he appreciates the way the title signifies his connections to the people that make Google run. Ultimately, your job title will be specific to your industry and company, but you also want it to accurately portray your responsibilities, job functions, and the value you deliver to your organization.

Promotion Opportunities

When thinking about promotion opportunities, both within and outside of the company you currently work for, it’s important to have a clear idea of what metrics your current or future employer will use to measure your adequacy for the role. Think through how you can leverage your current job title as a way to strongly position yourself during an interview or performance review. For example, how has your work as an Account Associate set you up to be a great Account Manager? What are you currently doing as an Associate that will serve you as a Manager? The more directly you can draw links between job titles, the more authoritative you will be in your candidacy for the more senior role.

While job titles may appear to be only one small facet of your role in an organization, job title effects who applies for a role and influences who is attracted to the job. In fact, companies use job titles as a recruitment strategy, assuming that candidates who aren’t a cultural fit for their organization will self select out of the job opening. Someone who isn’t interested in being a Sales Guru, who views that job title as too frivolous or jokey, probably won’t fit into the other aspects that comprise the corporate culture. This is something you should consider when researching organizations as a potential employee.

companies use job titles as a recruitment strategy, assuming that candidates who aren’t a cultural fit for their organization will self select out of the job opening

Performance Measurement

The markings of uncommonly good sales organizations are that they are organized, disciplined, and results oriented, with high levels of employee accountability—all of which include well defined rubrics of performance measurement. According to the Peter Principle, however, eventually employees will reach a position where they lack specific competencies. While they will likely not receive further promotions, they will operate in a position where they are inadequate to the demands of the job.

Your job title is what ultimately defines your work accountabilities

Naturally, there is a direct relationship between the Peter Principle and job title because your job title is what ultimately defines your work accountabilities. This makes it even more important to be clear about job title when entering an interview or performance review.

Job Satisfaction

There are strong relationships between organizational commitment and job satisfaction. Organizational commitment can be understood as an individual’s desire to remain part of the same company, even in the face of new job opportunities. It also represents how closely you personally align with the company’s culture and vision.

Evangelia Katsikea et al. published a study explaining that a company’s ability to influence the attitudes and satisfaction levels of its employees is critical to an organization’s success. It further explains that this is particularly true for the sales division of an organization because sales serves as the primary way in which to generate revenue. This is important to job titling because it means that employers will generally be open to how you as an employee want to title your role. In fact, we have seen at Peak that employers are very flexible when it comes to job titles. Hiring Managers often ask us for advice in terms of titling positions because they understand that they can be, again, depending on size, somewhat arbitrary to an organization but also highly important to an employee.

The study also found that the more autonomy, variety, and feedback you receive from your job, the more likely you are to experience job satisfaction. In their research on export sales managers (the primary subjects of their study), job autonomy, variety, and feedback are positively correlated to job satisfaction: a key indicator of employee commitment to a company. One factor in job satisfaction rests on your attitude and feeling toward your job title. The more connected you feel to your title, whether as Account Executive or Sales Guru Extraordinaire, the more likely you are to be engaged in your role.

Irrespective of your level of seniority or industry, your job title influences your perception of yourself, your stress levels in the workplace, and your company to a significant degree.

So How Important Are Job Titles in Sales?

There are those who believe in the psychological benefits of creative and inflated job titles, and others who see value in levelling the playing field and creating an environment of employees driven by factors other than hierarchy.

As an employee, job titles are an integral part of how you understand and differentiate the workforce. They are powerful social symbols and have a surprisingly high effect on emotional stress levels. Whether or not you deem your job title as particularly important or worthy of thought,  they are an essential building block of a company’s culture and will ultimately effect how you view your role.

When evaluating how important job title is to you, consider:

  • Your job title should accurately reflect the responsibilities you hold and display the value you add to an organization
  • Job titles influence who applies for open positions: there are links to cultural fit and job title
  • The best sales organizations have clear performance rubrics that directly tie to your job title
  • There are strong relationships between job satisfaction and how accurately you feel your job title reflects your role

To advancing your sales career!

relpost-thumb-wrapper

Related posts

10 Reasons Why a Sales Recruiter Will Advance Your Career

Three Things You are Doing That Prove You Deserve a Sales Promotion

The Career You Never Thought of: B2B Sales and Millennials

close relpost-thumb-wrapper

Eliot Burdett

Latest posts by Eliot Burdett (see all)

60 Sales Team Names: A Comprehensive List

While it’s easy to dismiss sales team names as a nonessential element of team membership, the fact remains that a relevant and unified sales team name creates alignment and helps foster a sense of unity within a group dynamic. Ultimately, the sense of belonging that comes from being in a group is a powerful component of success, and attaching a name that instills a sense of unity is an important element that sales leaders can leverage. In light of this, we’ve assembled a comprehensive list of over 50 sales team name ideas you can use within your sales department.

In fact, Peak’s Chief Sales Officer and Managing Partner Brent Thompson knows first hand the value that can come from a cohesive sales team name. In the early days of his career, Brent was employed at Fast Lane Technologies. He was a member of the sales team the Hounds in the Pound: read on to explore the comprehensive list of the best sales team names we have seen at Peak since, and to learn how the name the Hounds in the Pound came to be.

60 Sales Team Names:

A-Team
Ask to Answers
Aggressive Achievers
Business as Usual

Business as Usual
Business Bulldogs
B2B Bandits
BD Bulldozers
BD Dominators
Captains of Commerce
Cold Call Captains
C-Suite Sellers
Commissioners of Cold Calling
Dynamite Dealers
Earning Eagles
Eliminators
Elite Group
Empty Coffee Cups
Fast Talkers
Fast & Furious
Fear This
Fans of the Boss
Hawk Insights
Hounds in the Pound
Hot Shots
Hungry Hunters
Hunting Hounds
It’s Business Time
Ker-Pow!
Keep Calm & Sell On
Leaders of the Hunt
Money Makers
Miracle Workers
Over Achievers
Product Pushers
Power Sales
Power Grabbers
Prospect Persuaders
Prospecting Powerhouses
Peak Performers
Quality Control
Revenue Revelers
Risky Business
Sales R Us
Sales Express
Sales Xpress
Spin Sellers
Sons of Strategy
Sale on a Sail
Super Sellers
Solution Sellers
Sultans of Sales
Team Prosperity
The Target Markets
The Sellouts
The Value Propositions
Territory Tyrants
We Are Dynamite
Wheeler Dealers
Qualifying Leaders
Quota Crushers

As for the story behind the Hounds in the Pound, the company Brent worked for was a software start-up that was expanding fast, and the organization was simply outgrowing the tenth floor office space it occupied. The founders were in the midst of expanding and carving out their team and, simply put, the sales team went from an airy tenth floor open concept to no windows in a dingy basement in the span of an afternoon.

What Brent and his fellow sales reps discovered was that they didn’t require a fancy office—or really, an office at all—to be successful and enjoy their work environment. They had t-shirts made up for their team, set up a hockey net, aptly named themselves The Hounds in the Pound, and excelled as the number one team in their organization.

When their office space finally expanded, the basement dwellers didn’t want to leave. There was a strong sense of alignment and a cohesive team identity that they wanted to protect. “It was the best team I’ve ever been on because we all cared and we were all in it together,” he explains. The accomplishments of the Hounds in the Pound remains his favorite team to this day.

Out of our top 10 sales team names, which is your favorite?

A Team
B2B Bandits
Cold Call Captains
Empty Coffee Cups
Hounds in the Pound
Hot Shots
Keep Calm & Sell On
Money Makers
Sons of Strategy
The Sellouts
Other
Please Specify:

Sales team names can be one of the foundations of a great sales organization. What sales team names have you comes across? Leave them in the comment section below! 

relpost-thumb-wrapper

Related posts

Common Denominators of Top Sales Organizations
3 Steps to Boost Team Morale Today
The Top 25 Reasons Why Great Salespeople Are Leaving Your Company

close relpost-thumb-wrapper

Eliot Burdett

Latest posts by Eliot Burdett (see all)

5 Keys to Writing a Winning Sales Resume [Infographic]

You are a top performing salesperson, so it is in your DNA to sell. And, best of all, you know how to sell yourself. However, before you can get the opportunity to sell a future employer on the reasons why their company needs you to achieve their aggressive growth goals, you need to attract them through a winning sales resume.

According to Inc., every corporate job opening will receive 250 resumes, however, only 4-6 of those resumes will receive an interview opportunity. Therefore, it is essential to develop a resume that stands out from the crowd and establishes you as a top performing salesperson.

That is why we at Peak have compiled the 5 keys to writing a winning sales resume that will you your dream job:

Want to save this infographic? Fill out the form below to download a PDF version:

relpost-thumb-wrapper

Related posts

How the Best Sales Reps Spend Their Free Time [Video]

10 Reasons Why a Sales Recruiter Will Advance Your Career

20 Tips to Transform Your Follow-Up Sales Email After No Response

close relpost-thumb-wrapper

Eliot Burdett

Latest posts by Eliot Burdett (see all)

The 5 Things Sales Candidates Want to Know About You

When customers approach us to find great salespeople, the focus, as it should be, is on the candidates we present. Key questions about each candidate’s past sales performance, their selling methodology, book of contacts, experience selling within the industry, traits, and likelihood of success within our client’s unique selling environment must be investigated and answered before a candidate could even qualify to know who our client is.

Given the fact that Peak only approaches passive candidates who are actively and gainfully employed, these candidates are often not willing to go through our rigorous sales assessment process without asking our recruiters some important questions about the employer.

Since successful sales recruiting is about win-win outcomes for both our customers and the candidates they hire, world class employers know the importance of being able to properly answer the following 5 key questions when hunting for new talent.

Here are the 5 things sales candidates want to know about you:

1. What sets your company apart from the rest?

Top sales professionals don’t want to work for just any company. In the war over sales talent, it is critical for employers to establish some significant differentiators from not only the competition, but against the stereotypical 9-5 grind that many salespeople face on a daily basis. Peak advises clients to utilize approaches including: highlighting their on-boarding program to demonstrate the significant investment your company will be making in the new hire to set them up for success; highlighting their view of maintaining a real work-life balance, including investing in their professional interests (ie. paying for 3rd party training, attending conferences, etc); and demonstrating a commitment to hiring world class people and avoiding inferior salespeople.

2. What opportunity is there to move up the corporate ladder?

A key characteristic of top performing salespeople is that they possess a level of drive and ambition that is much higher than that of their peers. Hence the reason why it makes perfect sense for them to inquire about their opportunities such as a move into a management role from a rep, or into the VP or director spot if already in a management position.  Being able to articulate, using examples from your organization, the advancement opportunities within the company enhances an employer’s ability to attract top sales talent.

3. How is the compensation package structured, how much more can I make, and how often are commissions paid?

While offering a compensation package that is at the top end of the market is always key to attracting top sales talent, a big, and sometimes overlooked aspect relates to the base vs commission structure. Is there a cap? Is there a draw? Are there accelerators that kick in at a certain level? How are these paid – quarterly, at the end of the fiscal year in a lump sum, or can the candidate choose? Top salespeople expect to be compensated well and know that the best employers have well planned comp packages that enable both the organization and the candidate to be financially successful.

Need assistance putting together an effective compensation package for your new hire? Check out these 6 tips

4. Are there any accounts handed over to maintain upon accepting an offer?

Sure the candidates you meet will be hungry to go out and land new accounts.  Some also appreciate working a few existing clients to get used to their new product/service/solution. This also gives them an opportunity to experience, first hand, the processes, objections and challenges potential new clients would encounter once they sign off on a deal. Put simply, great salespeople are well-rounded and want to understand and experience first-hand how existing clients view their company.

5. What is the financial standing of the company?

While salespeople are typically more comfortable with exposure to risk than non-sales types, making a move from a stable employment situation and income represents a huge risk. In a seller’s market (the top salesperson being the seller facing excess demand for their services), the onus to prove financial security is on the employer. Just saying revenues are ‘solid’ isn’t good enough for ‘A’ level sales talent; they want to know specifics. If you are not a marquee brand, you must be able to demonstrate consistent growth, or have strong financial backing.

Failure to have compelling answers to these five questions compromises sales recruiting efforts. On the other hand, comprehensive answers to these questions will pay huge dividends in the level of talent an employer can attract and more importantly, retain.

When customers approach us to find great salespeople, the focus, as it should be, is on the candidates we present. Key questions about each candidate’s past sales performance, their selling methodology, book of contacts, experience selling within the industry, traits, and likelihood of success within our client’s unique selling environment must be investigated and answered before a candidate could even qualify to know who our client is.

Given the fact that Peak only approaches passive candidates who are actively and gainfully employed, these candidates are often not willing to go through our rigorous sales assessment process without asking our recruiters some important questions about the employer.

Since successful sales recruiting is about win-win outcomes for both our customers and the candidates they hire, world class employers know the importance of being able to properly answer the following 5 key questions when hunting for new talent.

Here are the 5 things sales candidates want to know about you:

1. What sets your company apart from the rest?

Top sales professionals don’t want to work for just any company. In the war over sales talent, it is critical for employers to establish some significant differentiators from not only the competition, but against the stereotypical 9-5 grind that many salespeople face on a daily basis. Peak advises clients to utilize approaches including: highlighting their on-boarding program to demonstrate the significant investment your company will be making in the new hire to set them up for success; highlighting their view of maintaining a real work-life balance, including investing in their professional interests (ie. paying for 3rd party training, attending conferences, etc); and demonstrating a commitment to hiring world class people and avoiding inferior salespeople.

2. What opportunity is there to move up the corporate ladder?

A key characteristic of top performing salespeople is that they possess a level of drive and ambition that is much higher than that of their peers. Hence the reason why it makes perfect sense for them to inquire about their opportunities such as a move into a management role from a rep, or into the VP or director spot if already in a management position.  Being able to articulate, using examples from your organization, the advancement opportunities within the company enhances an employer’s ability to attract top sales talent.

3. How is the compensation package structured, how much more can I make, and how often are commissions paid?

While offering a compensation package that is at the top end of the market is always key to attracting top sales talent, a big, and sometimes overlooked aspect relates to the base vs commission structure. Is there a cap? Is there a draw? Are there accelerators that kick in at a certain level? How are these paid – quarterly, at the end of the fiscal year in a lump sum, or can the candidate choose? Top salespeople expect to be compensated well and know that the best employers have well planned comp packages that enable both the organization and the candidate to be financially successful.

Need assistance putting together an effective compensation package for your new hire? Check out these 6 tips

4. Are there any accounts handed over to maintain upon accepting an offer?

Sure the candidates you meet will be hungry to go out and land new accounts.  Some also appreciate working a few existing clients to get used to their new product/service/solution. This also gives them an opportunity to experience, first hand, the processes, objections and challenges potential new clients would encounter once they sign off on a deal. Put simply, great salespeople are well-rounded and want to understand and experience first-hand how existing clients view their company.

5. What is the financial standing of the company?

While salespeople are typically more comfortable with exposure to risk than non-sales types, making a move from a stable employment situation and income represents a huge risk. In a seller’s market (the top salesperson being the seller facing excess demand for their services), the onus to prove financial security is on the employer. Just saying revenues are ‘solid’ isn’t good enough for ‘A’ level sales talent; they want to know specifics. If you are not a marquee brand, you must be able to demonstrate consistent growth, or have strong financial backing.

Failure to have compelling answers to these five questions compromises sales recruiting efforts. On the other hand, comprehensive answers to these questions will pay huge dividends in the level of talent an employer can attract and more importantly, retain.

Related posts

Sales Force Sizing in New Markets: The Ultimate Guide
Firm Keytree Taps Senior Sales Leader for North America Expansion
What Every Great VP Sales Wants in a Job

” alt=”” width=”80″ height=”80″ src=”https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s80ampdmmamprg.png” srcset=”https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s160ampdmmamprg.png 2x” />
Connect:

Eliot Burdett

CEO at Peak Sales Recruiting
Before Peak, Eliot spent more than 20 years building and leading companies, where he took the lead in recruiting and managing high performance sales teams. He co-founded Ventrada Systems (mobile applications) and GlobalX (e-commerce software). He was also Vice President of Sales for PointShot Wireless.Eliot received his B. Comm. from Carleton University and has been honored as a Top 40 Under 40 Award winner.

He co-authored Sales Recruiting 2.0, How to Find Top Performing Sales People, Fast and provides regular insights on sales team management and hiring on the Peak Sales Recruiting Blog.

” alt=”” width=”80″ height=”80″ src=”https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s80ampdmmamprg.png” srcset=”https://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s160ampdmmamprg.png 2x” />
Connect:

Latest posts by Eliot Burdett (see all)

How to Get Promoted to Sales Manager: 20 Tips from the Experts

Optimized-iStock_71438907_MEDIUM

As a sales rep, you may aspire to move into a management position. And, this career goal comes as no surprise – data from Payscale.com indicates that the promotion to sales manager averages an OTE increase by nearly two times that of what a sales rep earns.

However, working your way up through the ranks is no a simple task. “Getting promoted to sales manager is particularly challenging, especially for top performers,” says Samantha Carr, Account Executive at Handshake Corp. Why? Firstly, companies don’t want to give up their top performer and secondly, the majority of the time sales reps make bad managers. In fact, more than 75% of reps promoted to sales manager will not last 2 years in the role. 

That is why we have combined the tips from the industry’s leading sales experts, authors, trainers, and executives on what you can do to get that promotion to a leadership position.

Here are 20 tips from Sales Experts on how to get promoted to Sales Manager:

 

1. Develop your leaderships abilities and resume

Mike-WeinbergMike Weinberg

Principal of The New Sales Coach and Author of Sales Management. Simplified. and New Sales. Simplified.

“Leadership skills are significantly more important than sales ability to succeed in a sales management role. If you’re looking to make yourself more attractive as a potential candidate for a sales leadership role, spend more time developing your leadership abilities and resume than your sales acumen. Take on a tough project at work. Join a board of a nonprofit or ministry. Come up with solution to a vexing problem at your company. The harsh truth is that there is very little similar about an individual producer sales role and a sales management role. It seems counterintuitive, but getting better at your existing job isn’t preparing you to get promoted.”

 

2. Understand the skills, traits, and behaviors required for success

Dave-SteinDave Stein

Principal of Dave Stein Inc. and Author of Beyond the Sales Process: 12 Proven Strategies for a Customer-Driven World

“In order to get promoted to a management position, a sales rep must first understand the skills, traits, and behaviors required for success. Sales managers must have skills in hiring, territory assignment, conflict resolution, forecasting, career development, and, among others, working with managers from other functions. A sales rep who wants to get promoted should come up to speed in these areas through reading, attending webinars, participating in programs, and availing themselves of coaching and mentoring opportunities inside and outside their companies.”

 

3. Establish yourself as a lifelong learner

Mark-CoxMark Cox

Managing Partner at In the Funnel – Sales Consulting

“If a sales rep wants a promotion to the management team, they will need to establish themselves as a lifelong learner. Leaders are intellectually curious. Read a book (or 5) on sales. Apply new approaches to what you do. Leverage your knowledge of your industry AND the industries that you sell to increase your effectiveness. Share what you have learned with the team. Only those that have the ability to learn and adapt will make the leap successfully.”

 

4. Start thinking and acting like a sales manager

Jill-KonrathJill Konrath

Speaker and Author of SNAP Selling, Selling to Big Companies and Agile Selling

“To get promoted to a sales manager, start thinking and acting like a sales manager. If a colleague is struggling, how can you help? If you have plateaued reps, how will you re-ignite them? Read about sales leadership and take action — before you get the job.”

 

5. Go above and beyond what is expected

Mark-BirchMark Birch

Founder of Enterprise Sales Meetup

“Sales reps need to go above and beyond what is expected to get into management. That means being willing to actively share sales tactics, set up lunch and learn sessions or a sales book club, volunteer to coach and mentor newer reps, etc.  When you demonstrate a willingness to coach and an investment in the success of your peers, you demonstrate your ability to manage and lead a team.”

 

6. Demonstrate your ability to coach and scale effectively

Gary-SmythGary Smyth

Founder and CEO of Sales Elite, LLC

“Getting promoted to Sales Manager means more than just hitting and exceeding your number. Shadow your current manager or management team and identify tasks that you can assume as an informal Team Leader/Manager, these tasks should help demonstrate your ability to coach and scale effectively. Take the opportunity to lead a team meeting or help reinforce a key sales area by leading a team huddle or call shadowing session. Start assuming the key attributes of a successful Sales Manager now to separate yourself from peers and make that next step in your career as seamless as possible.”

 

7. Be a leader within your organization

Brent-ThomsonBrent Thomson

CSO of Peak Sales Recruiting and Author of Sales Recruiting 2.0 – How to Find Top Performing Salespeople, Fast

“Getting a promotion is not easy. If you want to put yourself in the best position for becoming a sales manager, you need to be a leader within your organization. It’s all about the little things – knowing your metrics, having a structured approach to your day, leveraging your CRM, teaching others, hitting your numbers, forecasting accurately, and being a great corporate citizen.”

 

8. Develop a unique level of knowledge

Kelly-RiggsKelly Riggs

Founder of Business LockerRoom

“One of the ways that salespeople get noticed and considered for sales management positions is to develop a level of knowledge that is uncommon in their peers. Typically, this becomes apparent because they provide more value to their clients than their counterparts — new or varied applications for a product or service, more insight into the industry they serve, or a more significant understanding of the customer’s business. This will often lead other salespeople to seek them out and ask for help. If they demonstrate an inclination to help out and to coach other salespeople, that’s often a leading indicator of a potentially successful sales manager.”

 

9. Demonstrate the ability to execute the sales process

Tibor-ShantoTibor Shanto

Principal at Renbor Sales Solutions Inc.

“To be promoted to Sales Manager, a rep needs to demonstrate the ability to execute the sales process; as managers they will need to leverage the process in a number of ways to ensure execution and success. If they demonstrate an understanding of the process, and are examples of how to make it work for the rep and their buyers, they will be seen as someone who can lead others to do the same.”

 

10. Exhibit leadership behavior

Steven-RosenSteven Rosen

Founder of Star Results

“The key to getting promoted to a sales manager is not sales results. What I have seen is two types of salespeople, one who exhibits leadership behavior and the other who exhibits rep behavior. Leadership behavior is about finding solutions, it’s about showing your colleagues the way when they are stuck, and it’s about keeping an open mind and being open to change. On the other hand, rep behavior is about whining, only seeing problems and saying things like “we can’t do that” or “we have tried it and it doesn’t work”. Yes, good sales is a positive but we all know the best sales reps don’t always make the best managers. If you want to get promoted to a leadership role than you need to behave like a leader!”

 

11. Improve your ability to motivate

Oscar-MaciaOscar Macia

CEO and Co-Founder of ForceManager

“Salespeople who want to take that next step in their career need to focus on improving their leadership skills and ability to motivate. This can be done through self-education, reading books, sales management courses, etc. However, there is nothing better than learning on the sales floor – weighing up the challenges within the real-life setting of the business and seeing how they can be solved, effectively preparing them for their new role.”

 

12. Never stop learning

Dan-PerryDan Perry

Principal at SBI Sales Benchmark Index

“The key is continuous education. Salespeople who get promoted never stop learning. We call it new capability acquisition. We are fanatics about it at SBI and judge ourselves on what we are learning. Promotable people never stop ‘gaining new capabilities’.”

 

13. Get out of your comfort zone

Nick-van-der-KolkNick van der Kolk

Head of Enterprise Benelux & Nordics at Hubspot

“If you want to get promoted to Sales Manager, go above and beyond in your current role. Get out of your comfort zone and proactively ask to help your boss with more important projects, help your colleagues who currently hold the role you want, and introduce new technology to your boss that improves the sales force’s effectiveness and efficiency.”

 

14. Take on new responsibilities

Sam-CapraSam Capra

Founder of SalesTechStack

“Demonstrate you are cut out to be a manager by taking on new responsibilities. Volunteer to organize sales training, lead team meetings, take on an open sales territory, etc. In addition to the business of actual selling, demonstrate you can also handle the admin side of the business.”

 

15. Prove yourself as a leader on your team

Christopher-CronerDr. Christopher Croner

Principal of SalesDrive

“Sales reps should not get promoted on numbers alone. In order to get promoted into a leadership position, a sales rep must prove themselves as a leader within their sales team. Reps can do so by continuously resolving conflict, demonstrating confidence, and regularly suggesting new, creative promotions or incentives.”

 

16. Prepare for both asking for a promotion and interviewing for the position

Thomas-PhelpsThomas Phelps

Sales Career Expert at About.com

“Make sure you have your ducks in a row. If you are ready and your desired position is available, make sure you spend plenty of time preparing for both asking for a promotion and interviewing for the position. You’ve done way too much work getting yourself in a position to confidently ask for a promotion to waste your opportunity by going into a meeting with your supervisor ill prepared.”

 

17. Demonstrate your communication skills with co-workers and customers

Vivek-Thomas
Vivek Thomas

President of Maximizer Software Inc.

“Managers with the power to promote look for people who communicate well with co-workers and, more importantly, with customers. Patient, polite, determined, and confident are adjectives that describe a solid communicator who understands the keys to getting promoted to management – someone who demonstrates these qualities on a daily basis during customer interactions and business transactions.”

 

18. Bring new solutions to the team
Steven-BensonSteven Benson

Founder and CEO of Badger Maps Inc. and former Regional Sales Manager at Google

“Be the person who brings new solutions to the team. A key thing that sales leaders do is take responsibility for the results of others. Even at Google, the best way I’ve seen this done is by introducing new technology that will improve team performance. A sales rep that champions new technology is proving they care about, and can be responsible for, the results of the team. That’s the most important criteria for a manager – driving performance and owning results.”

 

19. Be a top producer

university-of-san-fran
University of San Francisco

“Regardless of your readiness to assume sales management responsibilities, the reality is that sought-after sales manager positions generally go to top producers. To be considered for a sales management role, you have to exhibit a consistent ability to meet and exceed sales quotas. You’ll also need to demonstrate a solid work ethic, as sales managers are expected to serve as an example and inspiration to their teams.”

 

20. Become a tour guide for new salespeople

Jeff-WestJeff West

President and Founder of The Sales Tour Guide

“If you’re a salesperson wishing to earn that promotion into management, I recommend you become a tour guide for new salespeople. Jump in and help with the on-boarding of new salespeople. Make sales calls with them and encourage their success. The best entries on your resume for any promotion into sales leadership are the names of those whom your mentorship has played a part in their success.”

 

Put these 20 tips to use and visit the Peak Sales Career Blog for the latest actionable insights on how to advance your sales career.

relpost-thumb-wrapper

Related posts

35 Cold Calling Statistics to Help Shape Your 2024 B2B Sales Strategy

Six Seconds to Hired: How to Maximize Your Sales Resume to Get the Job

Finding The Right VP of Sales for Your Organization.

close relpost-thumb-wrapper

Eliot Burdett

Latest posts by Eliot Burdett (see all)

Faster, Better, Sales Onboarding

Onboard Salespeople FastSales onboarding continues to get a lot of attention, as more organizations seek new ways to ramp up reps faster and reach higher levels of productivity for new hires.

Most onboarding strategies I read about are good, but I rarely see anything that’s truly differentiating, or that will significantly move the needle. I’ve developed a method that’s been used in multiple companies and has produced great results. (See slide 3 for examples.)

The secret is combining these 7 things and doing them well:

Define the Competencies for Sales Success

A systems approach can help average performers produce at above-average levels, but no amount of training will help someone succeed if they don’t have the mindset, competencies, skills and behaviors needed for sales success at your company. These are the foundation for everything else a salesperson does so spend the time to get this right. This fuels hiring and training, and can be done at the same time as a Top-Producer Analysis (which is one way to identify the competencies you want to hire and replicate.)

Hire Right

This is always the first step of effective sales onboarding.

Your competency analysis and Top-Producer Analysis can tell you a lot about who to hire. I recommend a combination of validated psychometric assessments, behavioral interviewing, simulations, past success validation, plus background and reference checks. The experts at Peak Sales Recruiting can share much more about this and support you through the process.

Use Top-Producer Practices as the Content for Training

When you study top producers, identify those who have been primarily responsible for their success (meaning, they didn’t just inherit a great territory or have extraordinary assistance in landing one massive account) and find the replicable and differentiating behaviors that separate them from middle and bottom producers.

Compare the mindsets, knowledge, skills, competencies and best practices of top-producers to those in the middle bucket, and then create a list of what middle producers should continue, start and stop, to help them get better results. Then, work this content into your sales onboarding, as described below.

Set Performance Milestones

Set performance expectations for your new hires.

But in either case, think this through, benchmark past results as a starting point, set the milestones, and measure and report progress toward goals for all new hires.

Focus on Need-to-Know by Milestone

First, you need to have the difficult, prioritization conversations and determine what reps really NEED to know to hit each of your milestones.

Then, you need to use a technique known to instructional designers as Chunk, Sequence and Layer: Chunk like topics and content together, sequence them in a logical order based on business process and workflow (how the rep will actually do their job), and once they learn one thing, and you can validate the learning through assessment/tests, discussion or skill validation, layer something else on top of it.

Keep this going until the rep has learned everything they need to know and do to achieve the first milestone. Then track their progress toward the first milestone, while you start to ramp them toward milestone 2. Rinse and repeat, working your way through however many performance milestones you’ve set.

Execute with Discipline

The success of any sales training initiative, including onboarding, will be determined by how well you execute. I recommend what I call an Effective Learning System.

Content

Start with content that will get results in the real world. Base your training content on top-producer practices whenever possible.sales onboarding plan

Design

If you start with the right content, you still need to design your training well so people learn and have plenty of time for skill practice, feedback and applying that feedback. I prefer using a blended curriculum where you can flip the classroom training to be exercises, activities and role plays, with plenty of feedback and redoing.

Manager Engagement

If you’re training sales reps, their managers need to buy in to what’s being taught and need to be trained on it, too. That way, they can reinforce what is taught. They must be trained how to coach their sales reps to mastery.

Transfer and Coaching to Mastery

For transfer and coaching to mastery, you can create assessments to use over time, or use a learning reinforcement tool like Qstream. Through this type of tool, you can create forms and job aids and other performance support. Sales managers can inspect what they expect, as well as coach the reps over time. Don’t expect the training to stick without some purposeful plans for reinforcement and using the skills on the job.

Measures

What gets measured gets done. It always helps to have metrics and measures in place to gauge how well it’s working and whether your sales reps are doing what was taught, and if it’s getting better results for them.

Performance Management

This is a larger, separate effort, but all of this should be wrapped into your sales reps’ performance plans (as well as your managers’), to reinforce and drive the behaviors you want to see.

Integration | Alignment | Change Management

If you expect behavior change, you need alignment around the expectations of what trainees should be doing and should treat the entire initiative like a change management project. Organizational behavior rarely changes without a well-designed and well-implemented plan.

Combine this concept of an effective learning system with the logic above when creating an effective Sales Onboarding program, and you will get results like you never thought possible.

relpost-thumb-wrapper

Related posts

11 Sales Team Structures: Types and How To Choose

7 Tips on How to Train Your Sales Team for Success — And Measure Your Results

Create Your Hiring Strategy: Answer These 5 Questions Before You Make a Hiring Move

close relpost-thumb-wrapper

Eliot Burdett

Latest posts by Eliot Burdett (see all)