The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

Development is one of the strongest predictors of employee engagement and one of the clearest signals of how much an organization invests in its people.

As expectations evolve, employees are seeking learning opportunities that feel personalized, energizing, and aligned with their long-term growth.

The latest Talent Magazine highlights several key facts and trends transforming development today. Below, we explore a handful of these shifts and offer actionable insights to help organizations strengthen learning experiences, boost retention, and build cultures where people thrive.

Selecting the right talent has never been more important or more complex. Candidates expect clarity, efficiency, culture alignment, and authentic human connection. That’s why our Talent Magazine highlights the most impactful facts and trends shaping today’s selection process.

Below is a breakdown of key insights, each with contextual guidance, to help leaders improve accuracy, fairness, and overall hiring outcomes.

Recruiting top talent has never been more complex (or more critical) as shifting employee expectations, advancing technology, and the demand for authenticity reshape how organizations hire.

The latest edition of The Center for Sales Strategy’s Talent Magazine highlights key facts and trends defining the future of recruitment, from the growing importance of learning and development and the power of employee referrals to balancing AI efficiency with a human touch and engaging candidates early.

The takeaway? Companies that invest in growth, authenticity, and connection will be the ones that stand out (and succeed) in today’s competitive talent landscape.

In this episode, we’re shining a spotlight on what it means to lead like a Talent Superhero and how prioritizing people fuels consistent performance. 

Joining Matt is Allison Delagrange, a 2X Talent Superhero and Senior Consultant at The Center for Sales Strategy. 

Allison shares incredible insights, including: 

• How to be a collaborative leader, not a condescending one (Hint, hint: Instead of criticizing weaknesses, empower through strengths) 
• How it pays to communicate with your existing team exactly WHY you are recruiting 
• And, finally, how recruiting raw talent means hiring for impact: both in what they’ll bring to the team AND how you’ll help them grow

In this episode, we’re uncovering what high-performing sales organizations do in the first 90 days to turn new hires into confident, capable contributors. 

Matt is joined by Alina McComas, VP/Senior Consultant at The Center for Sales Strategy, who expands on the strategies she outlined in her article for the 2025 Talent Magazine. Alina shares what new hires really need to succeed and what leaders can do to support them from day one.

Alina offers practical, actionable advice, including: 

• How too many sales leaders think their job is done once they’ve hired a talented seller 
• Why you should make adjustments to your onboarding plan based on the individual’s innate talents 
• And, finally, why you should set clear expectations for what success looks like in their role on day one.

In this episode, we’re exploring what smart sales leaders do before their top performers resign. 

And joining Matt is Beth Sunshine, SVP/Talent Services at The Center for Sales Strategy. 

Her contribution to the 2025 Talent Magazine highlights the importance of being ready long before turnover happens. And, here, she shares actionable ways to build that readiness into your talent strategy. 

Beth brings so much wisdom to the table, including: 

• Why it’s essential to protect the relationships with your people who leave, because “boomerang” employees are all too common 
• How, when it comes to referrals, vague requests get vague results  
• And, finally, why the only thing more expensive than making the wrong hire, is waiting too long to make the right one

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: 

• Why hiring for raw potential often yields better results than hiring for polish or experience alone 
• How to spot innate talent during the interview process using tools like structured assessments 
• And, finally, why, every time you interact with anyone, you should ask yourself: “Is this someone that I could I add to my Talent Bank?” 

Sales leaders are constantly asking: “Are we hiring the right people?” and “Are we coaching them to reach their full potential?” The answer to both begins with using the right sales talent assessment. In this post, we’ll explore how a validated, role-specific assessment can help you hire smarter, coach better, and build a high-performing sales team.

Both questions are essential to long-term success, and both can be answered more confidently with the help of a validated talent assessment.

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.