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Recruit_Your_Way_to_the_Top
| Recruit Your Way to the Top!
Essentially, a sales managers primary job is to recruit, train
and motivate their sales force. Of these three vitally important
responsibilities, recruiting is the least understood and by far
the most challenging. When you recruit the right person you will
find that they are eager to train and self motivated. On the
other hand, if you hire someone that is not suited for the
position, you will experience low morale, high turnover and find
yourself constantly in the training mode. While there is no
perfect system that can guarantee you will hire the right person
every time, there are fundamental guidelines you must follow if
you expect to recruit your way to the top!
Are you a buyer or a seller? It is critical for you to be
selective during the interviewing process and not just hire a
warm body to fill the position. What you are looking for is a
hard working, self-motivated, team player. The vast majority of
sales managers make the mistake of overselling the position,
rather than interviewing for it. Their tendency is to lower
their standards by painting the position in the most favorable
light. By approaching the interviewing process with a buyers
mentality, you are more likely to maintain your perspective and
hire a long-term top producer. Consider throwing a few
roadblocks and challenges in front of prospective hires, such as
multiple interviews, to check their resolve and validate their
interest. Buyers tell it like it is by emphasizing hard work and
long hours. They advise potential hires that in the first year
they can expect to work half days - but they get to choose which
12 hours they like best!
You will never see a bad resume. Buyers always check references
and make sure they test for temperament suitability. Sales
managers that lack the benefit of temperament understanding are
inclined to shoot from the hip and place too much emphasize on
their gut feeling during the interview. You would be fooling
yourself not to anticipate that your prospective hire has been
coached and is well prepared for a standard office interview. I
suggest that one of your interviews be conducted in a social
environment. When I was a sales manager, I would invite both my
potential hire and their spouse out to dinner or to a sporting
event. When you go to a ball game and crack peanuts for nine
innings or play 18 holes of golf with someone, you gain a deeper
insight into their character. When you are interviewing a person
for a commission-based position, you need to check for spousal
support and address their concerns as well.
The following are some of my favorite questions to ask during
the interview:
1. Do you have written goals you want to accomplish and if so,
tell me about them?
2. How did you earn your first paycheck and how old were you?
3. What are your hobbies?
4. Have you ever played on a sports team?
5. Have you ever failed at something and if so, what did you
learn from the experience?
6. What would you say are three of your best qualities?
7. What would you say is your worst quality?
8. What is your greatest regret and triumph in life?
About the author:
John Boe, based in Monterey, CA, is recognized as one of the
nations top sales trainers and motivational speakers. He helps
companies recruit, train and motivate quality people. John is a
leading authority on body language and temperament styles. To
view his online Video Demo or to have John Boe speak at your
next event, visit http://www.johnboe.com or call (831) 375-3668.
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