There are practical strategies and hiring tips you can implement to accelerate talent integration into your teams—even in a candidate-short market.
Sales recruiting and hiring are daunting tasks filled with risks and challenges.
A poor sales hire can cost your company $250,000 or more. (Think of what you could do with those funds!) When you see a number this big, it’s easy to realize how talent strategy can negatively impact revenue.
A great sales hire, however, can help your company earn much more than this year over year.
Of course you want to hire right the first time, but what steps should you take to get there?
We have some ideas … and that’s why we invited you to listen in on a conversation with Andy Goodman of Goodman Consulting Associates, a national search firm that specializes in placing the right talent in the right places.
On July 10, 2024, in a webinar titled Hire or Fail: Navigating the 2024 Sales Talent Minefield, we discussed the unique challenges of hiring sales talent and practical strategies you can implement to accelerate talent integration into your teams.
Hiring in 2024: Why It’s Different
Sales is a mission-critical part of your company’s success. Hiring the right salespeople means:
Improving productivity and revenue
Improving satisfaction among current employees, reducing turnover
Saving valuable time and resources
Reducing lengthy and costly hiring processes
For many tech companies, we know that bookings are down and sales pipelines are dry. Hiring people who can help you not only boost your sales but also conduct accurate forecasting will drive future performance.
In 2024, however, we're in a candidate-short market. This means you have lots of hiring competition. Meanwhile, jobseekers—including those in sales—are becoming more discerning. They know the odds are in their favor, and they’re looking for just the right fit when it comes to a company’s values, culture, and commitment.
Core competencies for sales professionals have also changed. The tactics and strategies that worked a decade ago are no longer as effective. This means you’re looking for someone who has the right skill set—or the ability to learn and apply new skills.
Understanding how to effectively attract, assess, and onboard suitable sales candidates in today’s never-before-seen environment is crucial.
There’s always a war on talent, no matter what drives it. But you can still be prepared.
Hiring Tips to Improve Sales Hiring Results
Hiring is fraught with dysfunction. (If it was a smooth and easy process, we wouldn’t be talking about it!) Finding the hiring the right talent is a science that must be taken seriously. If you want consistently superior results, then you need to follow the systematic approach we shared during the webinar.
We also revealed three actions you can take to improve sales hiring results.
1. Improve processes and communication
The most valuable advice we can give when it comes to hiring is to communicate and move quickly. If you don’t get the right candidates in place in a timely manner, you also run the risk of losing them.
There are certain steps and communications that should take place at different milestones throughout the hiring process: application reviews, candidate evaluations, candidate interviews, etc.
During the webinar on July 10, we explained what these actions are—and exactly when they should take place.
2. Properly use and apply sales aptitude tests
Résumés only take you so far. Instead, consider using tools designed to evaluate a candidate’s potential for success.
For example, sales aptitude tests can be an effective way to identify and assess candidates for sales in specialized roles, such as technology, AV, IT, and security. By measuring cognitive ability, traits, and interests, they give you the data you need to determine whether your candidates align with the qualifications your open positions require.
Some platforms, such as Revenueify’s sales aptitude tests, can help you compare your potential candidates to some of the best sellers in the world.
Behavior assessments, such as Revenueify’s DiSC Sales Profiles, can help you discover how a salesperson communicates—and how they prefer to be communicated with. You’ll uncover their unique strengths and limitations, which is key to the hiring process.
On July 10, we explained how to use these tools and what to do with the data they uncover.
3. Create drastic change in your revenue team
Bringing on the right talent can help you improve the performance of your entire revenue team.
During the webinar, we also discussed your revenue team’s ability to drive goals and hit targets—and how to know what’s preventing you from becoming a revenue-generating machine.
By pinpointing issues within your revenue team, you can course-correct to improve ROI and decrease sales team turnover.
Upcoming Webinar: Sales Talent Hiring Tips
Ready to hear all our action steps and tips to improve sales recruiting and hiring? Listen to Hire or Fail: Navigating the 2024 Sales Talent Minefield at any time on demand!
And don’t miss our other upcoming events:
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