The sales team are without doubt one of the most important teams in the startup. Therefore, when hiring the members of this team you need to find the best recruits and not settle for 2nd best.
Whether you are an experienced recruiter, or this is your first time, chances are you could benefit from reviewing your hiring process. Hiring the wrong person for your sales team could be a costly mistake.
Here is what I believe you must do when hiring your sales team.
1) Define your Ideal
Start by working out exactly who it is you are looking for. What is their experience? Who else have they worked for, what skills or attributes are you looking for in a sales rep? You won’t find the right person if you don’t even know who you are looking for.
2) Objectively Measure your Candidates
Design a matrix that allows you to objectively score your candidates across the different areas you are looking for. This allows you to quantify the suitability of your candidates consistently. While you don’t have to select the highest scoring candidate you can at least compare their score to your gut feel or impressions.
3) Ask Consistent Questions
Define a list of questions that you want to ask each of your candidates. This helps to create a consistent interview for each of your candidates. You don’t have to stick exclusively to these questions but allow them to guide the interview.
4) Define the Process
How will you interview your candidates? Will you start with a phone call screen before a face-to-face interview? How structured will the interview be, will you ask them, for example, to “sell you this pen” as a demonstration.
5) Be Cautious with Recruiters.
Don’t rule out a recruiter, but tread cautiously. Using recruiters or 3rd parties can be hit and miss and when it is a miss it can be costly. But if you don’t have the time yourself or feel like you need the support then a recruiter can be an option.
TAKEAWAY: Your sales team needs the right sales reps. So, taking the time to recruit the people is an investment worth making. Following these tips will help you in getting the best candidates working for you.
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