Technology Sales Recruiter’s Mantra:
Always be Recruiting Sales Professionals
Although interviewing sales talent when you don’t have an immediate need should not be used as a fishing expedition; in order to attract, hire and land top performers, you should always be recruiting. The average employment tenure for technology sales professionals falls between twelve to twenty-four months. This is quite a brisk pace! Of course, many top sales reps are with their employers much longer than the average, but this still means the team you have today will look significantly different in just twelve months. Recruiting a revenue generator can be equated to building a strong sales pipeline; you never really know what’s going to happen, so the safest strategy is to recruit long before you’re under the gun for top talent. Besides, on any sales team, there is always room for one or two more rainmakers.
Recruiting is all about timing. Keeping your sales rep pipeline full will result in building a higher caliber sales force. If you’re always in the market, you become more opportunistic and will be well positioned to cherry pick some of the best sales talent available. When you’re accustomed to interviewing potential sales pros on an invariable basis, you will be more likely to recognize star candidates, generate stronger referrals and shorten the hiring cycle. Of course, this type of effort takes unwavering commitment, but the investment will pay off when you have the right people in place. The best salespeople will work with a higher level of independence, require fewer company resources and ultimately produce more, faster.
Constantly recruiting top sales talent will keep you up to date on the marketplace. This will allow you to gather firsthand information on hiring trends, market conditions and benchmark current compensation plans. Armed with fresh data, you will be well equipped as your employer looks to adjust performance expectations, change quotas and restructure territories. This type of market insight will allow you to put together highly competitive offers for new sales hires that are supported by up to date market intelligence.
Many sales managers overestimate their ability to hire top guns. When you relentlessly build a sales rep pipeline, you will sharpen your recruiting skills. After thousands of interviews, you may even classify yourself as a pro. (Then again, most real pros know they always have something more to learn.) Continuously building your sales applicant pool will enable you to better assess candidate motivation, decision making skills and cultural fit. When your sales recruiting skills are sharp, you will make better hiring decisions. Over the years with experience as your best teacher, you will learn what questions to ask and become adept at assessing attitude, sales skills, drive and work ethic.
Recruiting sales superstars should seldom take a back seat to other sales management activities. Having the right sales professionals in place will take care of problems that not having the right salespeople in place creates. Top executive leadership understands the value of consistently recruiting sales reps and ensures their success by having the strongest teams in place both now and in the future.
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