Have you grown tired of throwing mud against the wall until it sticks? How’s that kind of hiring process working out for you? Doesn’t the lost money make you anxious? Don’t you want to change? Of course, you do!
Most people think they don’t have the time to learn a best practice system for recruiting. They’re too busy! Instead, they want a quick fix to a complex problem – like an assessment and two or three cool questions. Of course, this will not work, but with their limited knowledge, that’s what they think they need. And, they want it fast!
For years, various, potential clients have tried to cherry pick one or two recruiting tools from us. Now, we tell them, “What you’re trying to do won’t work!” It’s not good science. You must learn how to recruit the best salespeople. You must learn a system, the tools, step-by-step processes and the skills to use them.
We’ve discovered most companies don’t know the traits they need for their positions. If there are several people in charge of recruiting, perhaps different sales leaders, it’s highly likely when we interview each of them that they will tell us different traits they’re looking for. What’s scientific about that? Nothing! It is unconscious incompetence relying solely on gut instinct. Scientific researchers know this will not work.
Now, think about this …
Do you use shortcuts in your accounting system? Do you need a quick-fix, two-step process with anyone able to sign checks? Does it matter if there’s an invoice process? What about good accounting rules? Is it important to apply them? Of course, and it’s the same with a best practice recruiting system. There’s a professional and proven method that works … really works!
Recruiting the best people for a sales position is difficult. When most people responsible for it on the same team cannot even agree on the exact traits they look for, it’s even more difficult. It’s actually potentially harmful to you, the company and its customers. Many people don’t know how to select for the three main areas that research tells us are predictable for sales competency. These are: conscientiousness, hard-wired personality traits and general mental ability. Certain amounts of these are necessary and vary for average to top sales performance in each industry.
In football, defensive ends cannot play quarterback. You don’t throw passes to offensive linemen – well, not on purpose and expect to win with consistency. And, if you put the wrong people on your team, they’ll kill your culture and your fans with poor choices and wrong behaviors. In the same way, certain personality types are not good for your customers or clients.
I know my oldest son Matthew would be the wrong fit for a sales position. He’s a nuclear engineer. You don’t want him to sell for you, but you do want him to take great care of the detailed plans of the cooling system in a nuclear reactor. Rest assured that he’s a safer bet than hiring a big picture public relations type to overlook the safety features protecting the country from an explosion. People are genetically wired to fit some roles better than others, and making a wrong hire can be disastrous for your sales culture.
“Like an archer who wounds at random, is he who hires a fool or any passer-by.” -Solomon
Let Us Help!
Don’t you want to increase your chances of finding someone who can sell at high levels? Don’t you want to learn to source from a pool of high quality candidates? Don’t you want to screen away those you should not spend valuable time with in the interview stage? You can by learning how to use validated assessments that tell you about a person’s general mental ability and personality before you see them.
So, stop trying partial fixes and spend the money and time learning to use a best practice recruiting system that’s customized to the sales role in your industry. Do this to enjoy the processes, tools, and skills that will give you a long-term solution for selecting people who can sell what you sell in the right way and at the levels you need. Then, you will receive peace of mind when hiring, reduce your frustrations with wrong hires and increase sales production.
We love to coach sales recruiters and leaders. We love to see the transformation that brings a new confidence and mentality into a sales culture from great recruiting practices. We enjoy seeing people achieve their goals. We’re ready to help with the right steps for getting better, and we know you have what it takes to learn how to hire people – people who can sell!