In this episode, we’re diving into how identifying and leveraging innate talent (rather than just experience) can help leaders build stronger, higher-performing sales teams.
And helping Matt unpack it all is Trey Morris, VP/Senior Consultant/Director of Training Innovation at The Center for Sales Strategy. Trey’s article in the 2025 Talent Magazine explores how smart hiring decisions can transform team performance, and, here, he brings those insights to life with practical strategies and real-world examples.
Trey shares so many eye-opening tips, like:
Trey starts by confronting a common hiring pitfall: confusing success with talent. Just because a salesperson excelled at a previous company doesn’t mean they’ll thrive somewhere else. Sometimes, success is circumstantial: dependent on the right accounts, timing, or market.
“Sales is an industry that often mistakes past performance for potential,” Trey explains. “But you can’t assume someone will succeed again just because they succeeded before.”
Instead, he encourages hiring managers to prioritize innate ability, those natural traits that predict success regardless of environment.
Rather than chasing polish or years of experience, Trey advocates for identifying people with strong natural sales talents and then investing in their development. This approach allows managers to mold new hires to fit their company’s values and processes without having to undo bad habits picked up elsewhere.
To do this effectively, Trey recommends using validated talent assessments, scientific tools that measure whether someone is wired for sales. These assessments reveal core traits like competitiveness, curiosity, work ethic, and communication style. When combined with coaching, they create a powerful foundation for performance.
When assessing candidates (especially those without a traditional sales background) Trey emphasizes looking beyond the resume. Some key signs of innate talent include:
A strong work ethic (e.g., multiple jobs, leadership roles, balancing academics and extracurriculars)
Grit and initiative
Comfort communicating and engaging with others
Curiosity and a desire to solve problems
Competitiveness, intelligence, and adaptability
Matt adds a few of his own favorite “tells” during the hiring process, such as how a candidate follows up after an interview, how they present themselves virtually, and whether they take ownership for their contributions or speak in generalities.
Trey points out that assessments shouldn’t feel robotic or impersonal. Instead, they should be framed as opportunities (for both the candidate and the hiring manager) to discover if the person’s talents align with the role.
For candidates without experience, assessments can reveal hidden potential and open the door to new career paths. For seasoned sales professionals, assessments can be positioned as a tool for coaching and development—something to help them perform at their best.
And, as Matt reminds us, these aren’t pass/fail tests. Everyone has talents. It’s just about finding the right fit between the person and the position.
Trey shares two powerful stories that reinforce his point. One, a cautionary tale: he once dismissed a quiet, unpolished candidate who was later hired by another station—and went on to become a top performer. That experience taught him to challenge his own biases and avoid discounting candidates who don’t fit the stereotypical “sales” mold.
On the flip side, he also tells the story of a stay-at-home mom with no formal sales experience who scored extremely high on the talent assessment. Despite some initial skepticism, she was hired—and has since become her organization’s top biller for six straight years.
The lesson? Talent doesn’t always look the way you expect. But when nurtured, it can lead to incredible performance.
Once someone is on the team, how do you know you’ve made a smart hire?
According to Trey, it’s all about engagement and activity. Great new hires are hungry. They dive into training, ask questions, build account lists, and start working their networks. They’re passionate and proactive, even if their close rates aren’t perfect right away.
“If there’s volume, effort, and excitement,” Trey says, “all that’s left is training and time.”
Trey closes the episode with a powerful mindset shift for any sales leader: look for talent everywhere. Whether you're talking to a waiter, a car salesperson, or someone at your gym, any interaction could be the start of your next great hire.
Building a “talent bank” (a pool of individuals you’ve identified as promising candidates) ensures you’re never starting from scratch when a role opens up. It’s a habit worth developing.
As Matt says, “The best feeling in the world is wanting to hire someone you believe in and not having room for them on your team. That’s when you know you’ve built a strong talent pipeline.”