Having the right sales manager to lead your sales team is the key to ensuring you meet your sales targets, keep your team motivated, and keep your customers happy. This reinforces the importance of making good hiring decisions each time you need to fill a position. Each hire is an opportunity to improve your sales team, especially when you are hiring a new sales manager. We’ve put together a collection of tips to help you make the right hiring decision.

5 Tips to Avoid Hiring the Wrong Sales Manager

Here are 5 great tips to help you keep you focused on the right area and avoid making these common hiring mistakes:

1. Focusing too much on sales, not enough on management:

A sales manager is a manager first, salesperson second. Too often, companies hire people who have an extensive sales background with minimal management experience. There is a huge difference between being a great salesperson, and understanding how to manage a sales team.

2. Promoting your best salesperson:

Perhaps one of the most common mistakes made by companies is promoting your best salesperson to sales manager. Often times, this does not work out, and it hurts your company in two ways – you have an ineffective manager; and you have just removed your top salesperson from the team.

3. Only hiring from internally:

While promoting from within is important, you still need to look externally to find the best candidate possible. Sometimes, you won’t have someone internally who is ready or has the experience and requirements to step into a sales management position.

4. Rushing the process:

Finding the right sales manager for your organization may take some time. While it’s important to have a quick and effective hiring process to find the right candidate, avoid hiring just to fill the position. This often leads to hiring a sales manager who is “good enough” and not necessarily the best fit.

5. Not working with a recruiter who specializes in sales:

Working with a recruiter can greatly help you in your search for a sales manager. However, working with a sales recruiter – someone specializing in hiring within the sales industry – is better suited to help you find the right person. They know where to look, who is available and will be able to match candidates to your needs more effectively.

More Blogs About Sales Management

Learn more about hiring sales managers and being a more effective sales manager by reading these blog posts by our sales recruiters:

7 Key Characteristics of a Successful Sales Manager

Five Keys to Successful Sales Leadership

10 Things Every Great Sales Manager Does

SalesForce Search is a sales recruiting company which specializes in the recruitment and placement of sales professionals. We recruit sales people in every sector of the economy including, software, manufacturing, financial services and medical devices. Find the right sales person for your organization, start your search here.