Being from Chicago, where venturing outside during 7 out of every 12 months can give you hypothermia, it was a welcome relief this week to be in New Orleans for the Fortune Small Business Conference, where the weather has been fantastic.  The focus was on sales and marketing, and several of the speakers honed in on issues relating to the hiring and selection of salespeople. 

Naturally, I was all ears.

Chet Holmes, who was a sales executive for Charlie Munger at storied company Berkshire Hathaway, kicked off the conference with a presentation based on his book, “The Ultimate Sales Machine.”  Chet had some great insights when it comes to hiring and managing a sales team (I’ve added my “applied to hiring…” ideas in italics):

• Sales success is about repetition.  Focused repetition.  That means not having your sales force doing 4000 different things 4000 different ways.  Instead, have them focus on a small number of things that get results, and do those things over and over again.  During an interview, you can assess the focus of a sales candidate by diving into the “how” of their selling process.  A focused approach will be evident.
• When it comes to selling, market data is way more motivational than product data.  When it comes to hiring, look for salespeople who demonstrate market facts when explaining what it is that they sell.  If you’re watching a candidate sell features and benefits, instead of presenting market-based facts, then you’re not seeing the best possible hire.
• Top salespeople spend at least one hour a week dedicated to advancing one incremental improvements.  It could be something as simple as reading a book or article, or role playing a sales situation with a colleague.  Ask your sales candidates to name one thing they did last week or two to improve their selling skills.  The answer will be telling.
• A great quote on sales management: “The only thing that a top manager has to bring to a meeting is his or her judgement.”  When hiring a sales manager, determine if the candidate achieved their results by maximizing the potential of their team members, or by jumping in and trying to do everything themselves.
• The top 4% of sales professionals outsell the rest of the pack by a ration of 56:1.  That’s incredible.  Further data that shows you that it’s worth it to wait for the right hire!

It was straightforward, practical insight that all of us can learn from.  Chet’s message reinforced my belief that top salespeople are tough to find, but a great recruitment and selection process can make the job a whole lot easier.