Called Recruiting sales stars, the guide offers eight tips for creating a data-driven selection process that is objective and not reliant on the ‘gut feel’ of hiring managers. As well as recruiting ‘right fit’ sales stars, organisations can benefit by increasing employee tenure, cutting recruitment costs and reducing the time-to-hire.
“Good sales people are the lifeblood of any business but finding and hiring sales stars is far from easy,” said Andreas Lohff, CEO of cut-e. “Some businesses want fast-talking extroverts but in others, more introverted and thoughtful sales people will prosper. It really depends on what you’re selling and the values of your organisation. The point here is that some candidates in your applicant pool will be much more suited to selling in your organisation than others. This guide will help you to identify and appoint sales executives who are likely to be successful in the role and a good fit for your company.”
According to the guide, employers should start by understanding what differentiates their top-performing sales people from their average performers. “Those who achieve the most sales in your organisation will have certain characteristics in common,” said Andreas Lohff. “If you can pinpoint these competencies, abilities and job-related behaviours, you can then use appropriate assessments to recruit others who have a similar profile. Also, when you know what to look for in your job candidates, you’ll know what to reward in your employees. Not only will this help you to manage and develop your sales stars, it will enable you to introduce incentives and bonuses that reward best practice behaviour.”
To attract the best candidates, organisations should build an attraction strategy that makes them stand out from the crowd. “It’s important to consistently communicate your organisation’s strengths and key brand messages on your careers site and in your advertisements, social media and promotions,” said Andreas Lohff. “You should also deliver a positive candidate experience to job applicants that communicates your values and fits your employer brand.”
A Realistic Job Preview can create the right expectations and help applicants to better understand the job. “When employers over-sell their jobs, new recruits join with false expectations,” said Andreas Lohff. “When they find that the role wasn’t what they thought it would be, they’ll either become bored and unproductive or they’ll leave. You can set the right expectations by being honest about what the role involves, from the outset. A Realistic Job Preview is an interactive, online experience which enables applicants to self-assess their own suitability and gain instant feedback before they apply.”
A consistent interviewing process will make it easier for hiring managers to spot candidates with sales potential. “Some assessments automatically generate an interview guide which helps sales directors and other hiring managers to probe for the relevant competencies,” said Andreas Lohff. “This is a further step that helps to predict how the interviewee is likely to perform in the role.”
The guide outlines how technology can optimise the selection process and cut the time-to-hire. “Integrating systems such as your Applicant Tracking System and HR Information System can create efficiencies,” said Andreas Lohff. “This will enable you to mine and utilise employee data in ways that weren’t possible before. It opens the door to a wealth of people analytics that can further improve your recruitment, increase sales and help you to avoid the disruption of hiring the wrong people.”
