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Sellers need emotional intelligence, must listen to what buyers say, be very smart, and check the information.”
critical insights, necessary to remain efficient, informed, and competitive,” Harker says. Leaders must network digitally – online and in social media.
A PLACE FOR MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE Not all is novelty, however. Harker believes experience in management trenches remains a powerful edge for sales leaders, with the best sales lead- ers remaining genuine. “The most effective sales style is an amplification of what is already authentic and natu- ral to the individual,” Harker argues. Indeed, virtual tools let reps and lead- ers work effectively even if they might not be comfortable face to face. Attitude is still key. “The core qualities every sales leader needs to possess are a passion for what they do and clear understanding of how it leads to their ultimate goal,” Harker says. Too many leaders do not understand why they do what they do. “Purpose is a foundational attribute of influence. Money, fame, and power are not sustainable motivations for performance.” Tech experts also think a combina- tion of people and digital skills re- mains essential. Chad Burmeister, vice president of sales at ConnectAndSell, stresses three critical qualities. Sales leaders must understand the technol- ogies at the top of the funnel, must hire reps with the right skills, and must have sufficient people skills to keep talented reps onboard. Once leads become prospects in the pipeline, says Burmeister, most managers know how to track and manage them. But these leaders are weaker on the upstream steps that find leads and turn them into pipeline prospects.
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UNDERSTANDING TECHNOL- OGY TOOLS Technology should measure and compare conversion rates at every top-of-funnel step, including dials per day, conversations per dials, emails per conversation, meetings per con- versation, callbacks, sales, and refer- rals. These crucial steps are often not tracked well because leaders don’t know how.
“If sales leaders do not understand technology, they will not know what is possible,” Burmeister stresses. “Understanding technology is a requirement.” Marketing automation is one such crucial technology. Search engine marketing is another. Tools for lead generation and quick, efficient follow-up calls are also necessary. Apart from technology vendors, those who understand these tools best are often inside sales leaders, because they specialize in pre-funnel steps. Some firms look to hire inside managers precisely for this reason. Burmeister estimates that – if
properly equipped, trained, and managed – an inside sales team can average 1,000 calls per day per rep, with one conversation per 20 dials, in response to Web inquiries. This outbound-on-demand selling is a very efficient way of making first contacts, and sales leaders need to understand the potential of this “advanced sales acceleration.”
HIRING PRACTICES
Understanding technology is of little help, though, if the wrong people are hired to use it. Good reps must have exactly the right combination of desire, commitment, attitude, and ability. Many otherwise good reps cannot sell value, Burmeister argues, because they buy on price and cannot
break low-price habits when they sell. Only a small portion of applicants will be right for sales jobs, and the por- tion gets smaller as sales get bigger and more complex. Yet many sales leaders still use a Darwinian approach to hiring – cast- ing a wide net and allowing attrition or failure to weed out bad hires. Bur- meister says that is much too expen- sive, as bad hires cost him about two years’ salary in lost sales and other expense. Less expensive is a thorough hiring approach, including a formal personality assessment. Burmeister uses Objective Management Group for this purpose.
Sales leaders must then have people skills to retain these talented salespeople. “They walk through fire for you, but they have valuable skill sets and LinkedIn profiles, so it’s easy for them to move,” Burmeister notes. “You must recognize them, listen to them, and have their backs.” What do top sales leaders themselves think? Tony Capucille is vice president of sales at Heart- land Payment Systems, where he manages a sales force just shy of 1,200 people. Capucille strongly emphasizes people management in selection of his sales leaders. “I think there has been way too much emphasis on the next genera- tion of IT tools. Sales is basically people management.”
Heartland looks for several quali- ties in its leaders. First is, “natu- ral leadership and the desire to develop their people,” Capucille stresses. “They should want to put the right person in the right posi- tion with the right expectations and then follow up by managing them.” Capucille also wants leaders who align with Heartland’s core values and who care about other people. He wants managers who “think big, build trust, and project Heartland’s culture.” Finally, Capucille looks for leaders who will develop their own replacements.
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