Revenue growth depends on your ability to hire top performers for your sales department, which makes your sales hiring process one of the key ways that your sales and HR departments can generate revenue for your organization. Because sales people are high visibility revenue generators, it is easier to calculate and understand the impacts that your sales hiring process has on revenue compared to hiring for other departments. Recognizing that your sales hiring process is indispensable to generating revenue for the long term is the first step towards creating a well-defined strategy for a successful sales team and future revenue growth.
It almost goes without saying that a top performer will be better able to generate revenue than an average performer, but occasionally an organization will lose sight of long term revenue in the name of cutting the bottom line costs per hire. However, the revenue results that a top performer delivers can be seen almost immediately once he or she begins making sales. Always consider the impacts of settling for a less expensive, average performing hire against a more expensive, top performing hire on your revenues, and implement the following strategies in your sales hiring process:
An organization loses opportunities to generate revenue each day that a sales position remains vacant. After all, a vacant sales position is one less person who is generating leads and following up with prospects to make the sales that create revenue in the first place. Your sales hiring process is essential to reducing vacancy days when sales positions are opened or added to your sales department. Make sure that your sales hiring process is generating revenue by reducing vacancy through:
Retention has a high impact on your organization’s ability to generate revenue and save on costs. Consider the high level cost and revenue impacts that sales longevity has on your organization’s bottom line:
For an even more accurate picture of how your sales hiring process is performing within the first year of hire, you can also include your costs per hire in common calculations such as payroll to net sales. To improve retention, carefully screen sales candidates for longevity by looking at employment history and asking questions about future career goals to predict the likelihood that an individual will stay with you for at least two years. You may also wish to consider creating retention plans for each individual on your sales team so that sales leaders are encouraged to continue to generate revenue for you, and are not tempted to leave for the competition.
Rhys is a tenacious, top performing Senior Sales Recruiter with 15+ years of focused experience in the Digital Media, Mobile, Software, Technology and B2B verticals. He has a successful track record of headhunting top performing sales candidates for some of the most exciting brands in North America. He is a Certified Recruitment Specialist (CRS) and has expert experience in prospecting new business, client retention/renewals and managing top performing sales and recruitment teams. Rhys enjoys spending quality time with his wife, son, and daughters, BBQing on a hot summer day and tropical vacations.