“To have one hire and that person be exactly what we were looking for... that’s very successful.”
Arnav SharmaSales Director, ServiceMaster Glasgow
Why it matters
Hiring the right sales people is critical to the growth and success of every business. Getting it wrong wastes your time, effort, money and can mean you lose opportunities.
Part of my business is to help business owners to get that key hire right first time. I use Objective Management Group’s (OMG’s) methodology which is efficient and easy to use with a proven track record.
Here are my top ten recommendations if you’re looking to hire a new sales person.
1. Let me help
OMG’s Sales Candidate Assessment tool separates the wheat from the chaff, uncovering those candidates that are a “double” match for both your own role criteria, and OMG’s objective criteria. You can trial the product by clicking here or call me to discuss its benefits and let me guide you through the process.
I can also advise you on what role might be most aligned to your business’s needs, on tailoring the requirements, and on interviewing recommended candidates.
2. Different flavours of “great”
Try to avoid hiring replicas of you or “mini-mes”. You may be (one version of) great, but your business already has a “you”! Hiring more won’t help the growth and diversity of your team.
With the right coaching you can support new hires to follow your company’s processes, and teach them to do things in a way that works for everyone. But do let them bring their own solutions, and their own personalities, to the table. Your clients are varied: Create a varied sales team too.
3. Deliberate, then define
Carefully consider what you are looking for. Then define it.
Not just “5 years in xxx industry…selling to CEOs”. Think about skills, behaviours, and mindsets. What does success in that role look like? What skills does a perfect candidate need to have in order to achieve it?
Do you have gaps in your current team, and, if so, where and why? Have you got things wrong in the past? What was the cost to your business (click here for a calculator tool to help explore these issues)? Can you learn from these mistakes when you’re assessing candidates this time around?
4. Search smartly
Hunt for candidates, as you’d market your products or services; by going where your “ideal candidate” is most likely to be. Recruiters, specialist websites such as Indeed or Totaljobs, LinkedIn, networking or word of mouth are all viable options, used alone, or in conjunction.
5. Sell it!
Make sure your job description “sells” the role. An unachievable wish-list will put candidates off. Whereas a sales document, extolling the benefits of working for your company and showcasing the opportunities inherent in the role is more likely to attract exactly the person you want.
Words count. We advised one client to tweak their job description and they consequently saw a 400% increase in candidates, 300% more of whom fitted the desired brief.
6. Select only the best
It goes without saying, but it can be tricky to do this based on CVs alone. Sales-specific assessments, like OMG’s, can help you to identify the top performers so that you can interview only those you’re confident might fit the bill. Click here to some of the stats from OMG.
7. Prepare for the interview
Yes, you! This is your chance to find out more about someone you might be working with. Define clear competencies you want to now assess more closely. Devise questions that will draw out the best depth and insight from the candidate. Use a template score care, where possible, so that you keep things as objective as you can.
Be creative. Bring in scenarios that will reveal the strengths and development areas of your candidates (e.g. role plays or customer pitch).
8. Onboard brilliantly
Selecting the right person is only stage one. How you relay the news of the appointment (to the winning and other shortlisted candidates), and how you onboard your selected hire, not only reflects on you and your company, but is crucial to ensuring they set off on the right footing.
What does your onboarding cover? Health & safety, company stats and facts, past pitch approaches and capability overviews might be needed, but -alone – they’ll be pretty uninspiring. Of more interest and use might be:
- your company’s approach to sales (process / methods / tools / enablement);
- development planning for individuals – with onward training and coaching; and
- clearly defined expectations – KPIs and behaviours.
9. Coach and support
Continue to support your new hire as they learn the ropes and settle into role. Make sure someone is there for them to trouble-shoot with and to bounce ideas and new approaches off. You clearly thought they were worth the investment. Help ensure they, and you, get a good return.
10. Please see 1.
Truly, I’m here to help you at every step. Please get in touch for an obligation-free call or trial. In the meantime, click here for some more tips directly from OMG. Good luck!