Building a Cohesive Sales Team
Imagine a football team that has all the players with a different viewpoint on the offensive game plan going into the season . . . what is likely to occur in that scenario is a group of players each with his own game approach, likely generating inconsistent results.
Instead, imagine a team operating with a common game plan with a common set of plays. This process alignment drives predictable outcomes, which investors crave. Recruiting players for an existing set of processes is different from merely recruiting the most talented individuals.
I’m suggesting that much like a football team, a sales team needs to recruit salespeople that can adapt to the prevailing sales processes rather than a bunch of “wildcatting” rogue salespeople, however skilled they may be. As a sales leader, it is important that everyone is pursuing deals in a similar way. Individual style doesn’t need to be similar, but each rep’s process needs to be in accordance with the pre-existing sales process.
A simple way to determine alignment between a potential salesperson and the sales team is easily discerned during the interview process; for example, merely by asking the sales candidate to detail (first call to close) a net new logo deal won and one that was lost. The answers will reveal the candidate’s individual’s sales process, which will show how similar the candidate’s sales process is as compared to the existing sales process.
Why is this important? It’s important because salespeople tend to be pretty set in their own ways (an ironic observation is that salespeople, who ask companies to change every day, are typically resistant to change themselves), so it’s crucial to find salespeople whose sales process is relatively similar to the existing sales process. Skilled salespeople are glad to refine their sales process, but are generally unwilling to make radical changes.
Because a sales leader can’t oversee every step in every sales cycle, it is critical that the sales leader can be confident that the sales process will be followed at all times by every salesperson; therefore, wildcatting salespeople can’t be trusted to follow the process and produce consistent results.
Another key element in recruiting effective salespeople is their domain knowledge, which is particularly critical in vertical or specialized markets. Customers prefer to buy from people who they believe understands their business, which builds trust in the salesperson. Sales process is more easily taught than domain knowledge.
Finally, hiring for sales team chemistry is important and elusive. The salespeople’s backgrounds don’t need to be at all similar, but the “DNA” traits do need to be in alignment. Personally, I always looked for daily urgency, coachability, a desire to be great every day and a strong sense of empathy. These DNA traits, combined with sales process alignment, make a consistently strong sales team.
Ultimately, a sales team is only as good as the individuals that comprise it. The sales leader needs to understand this and empower the team by hiring right, providing an appropriate sales process and eliminating distractions and toxicity. This combination of aligned DNA traits, domain expertise and appropriate sales process is a recipe for success.
If you want help building a cohesive and effective sales team, please reach out to me at dave@moicpartners.com.
