The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

Ask a sales manager about the most important decisions they make, and you will probably hear about exceeding budget, growing market share, or achieving year-over-year growth. While those decisions are critically important aspects of the job, and they require a great deal of attention, none of them can be accomplished without an even more important decision being made first.   

The most important decision you will ever make as a manager is the decision of who to hire. If you don’t have great people working in the sales department, you can’t accomplish the rest. 

Think of the very best salesperson you have working for you. Not the highest biller or the person that has been there the longest. I want you to think about the best seller. Imagine if you had an entire sales department of people just like that. Would sales go up? Of course. 

If you want to accomplish more, there is something you can do about it. 

A bad hire can cost your organization more than just money—it can drain resources, damage morale, and hinder growth. 

Building a highly-talented sales team is one thing, but keeping them motivated and performing at their best is another.  

The most effective leaders understand that each individual they manage is unique. What motivates one team member may not always motivate another. With that in mind, here are five ways you can motivate the individuals on your team and boost performance.

What are your priorities for the year, and how are you going to set yourself up for success?

Here are 12 talent-related items to consider focusing on in the coming year. Bookmark this blog to reference it monthly, or take a few minutes right now to add these items to your calendar.

Every company has an online brand, whether it’s crafted intentionally or shaped by external perceptions.

If you're unsure of your company’s brand, do a quick Google search and look at the reviews. Websites like Glassdoor and other employment platforms can offer valuable insights into how your company is perceived.

Ask yourself: Does your company appear inviting to potential candidates?

If not, this could explain the lack of qualified applicants when you have job openings. In today’s uncertain job market, companies with a strong, well-defined employer brand are flooded with applications, while those with a mediocre or negative reputation struggle to attract talent.

Let’s cut straight to it: Talent is something you’re born with.

You can’t create, mold, or magically inject it into someone. You either have it or you don’t. As much as we love a good rags-to-riches story, the truth is, talent can’t be trained into someone—it’s hardwired. And if you’re trying to force a square peg into a round hole by “developing talent” in someone who simply doesn’t have it, you're setting yourself up for disappointment.

Think for a moment about a manager in your career who made you a better professional. 

What was it about them that helped you grow and uplevel? 

While they surely had some expertise to share, no doubt it was their ability and commitment to give you their attention and coaching.

Let’s cut to the chase—there’s no magic formula to building a successful sales team.

Unless, of course, you consider “hiring the right people” a kind of magic. The foundation of any high-performing sales structure starts with one thing: talent.

You can have the latest CRM, a killer product, and the best marketing team behind you, but you're spinning your wheels without the right people in the right roles.

Recruiting the right talent isn’t just important—it’s everything.

Recently, I have been spending a lot of time talking with managers about their underperforming salespeople.

I want to help leaders win, and having AEs who are not performing is a huge problem for most. This made me reflect on how leaders hire and where they spend their time. Unfortunately, many leaders spend a lot of their time with AEs who have a “talent” deficit.  

You can’t go back to the same dry well looking for water. No matter how much time and energy you put into the well, water will not suddenly appear.

Still, many leaders think they can change the person, and they keep putting time and training into them, hoping they will suddenly “get it”.

If you have ever coached a seller who struggled to adapt to changing situations and circumstances and just kept doing the same thing over and over because they’ve always done it that way, you likely understand the importance of hiring people with adaptability.

It can make or break a salesperson’s success.

An adaptable salesperson has the ability to adjust and thrive in various situations and environments, making them a valuable asset to any sales team.