According to the most recent Workforce Recruiting newsletter (sorry no link available), 1,100 employers were asked what the main reason was for them not being able to hire their top candidates over the past two years. Their responses were as follows: 35.9% – Said they went elsewhere for higher perceived pay. 15.5% – Said they went elsewhere for better perceived career development opportunities. 8.0% – Said they went elsewhere for better perceived work/life advantages. 7.1% – Said they went elsewhere for higher perceived long-term incentive/equity compensation. 1.5% – Said they went elsewhere for better perceived benefits. 31.9% – Said they were able to hire the majority of their top candidates.… Read More
Continue ReadingCompensation Consternation
I know, lame title, but I couldn’t resist. ManageSmarter.com offers up this article – Compensation Complexity Hinders Sales – regarding current compensation plans. Here are some numbers they quote within the article (my editing): Only 41% of sales leaders were satisfied with their current compensation plans (down from 59% two years prior), and only 46% believed their plans were promoting the correct behaviors for sales success. Nearly half (46%) of sales force leaders believe their sales compensation programs have become more complex since 2006. I always found the compensation plans to be more “complex” when I wasn’t at quota. Successful selling definitely alleviates many problems. But there is this: The… Read More
Continue ReadingA Fundamental Lack Of Communication
The more companies we work with, the more we see communication breakdowns being the root of most problems. Our work with our clients spans more than just recruiting. We assist them in onramping their new salesperson. This function places us in the unique position of working with both the salesperson and the sales manager. One of the more dysfunctional situations we encounter is a communication breakdown between the manager and salesperson. One manager complained that the salesperson wasn’t doing what he asked, but he never confronted the salesperson. Another time we had a salesperson who would not submit his weekly call report. Ever. Yes, he was let go (even we… Read More
Continue ReadingYou Get What You Pay Salespeople For
We have really come to enjoy Dave Stein’s posts. They are timely and cut straight to the heart of the issue. Today’s post is no exception. Working strictly on the sales side of organizations, one of the areas we look at while profiling their sale is compensation. Most importantly, we look to see if the compensation structure rewards the behaviors the company expects of the salesperson. More times than not it won’t and from one of Dave’s comments, he sees the same issues: I am bringing this up because compensation is another dysfunctional area within many companies. During the past quarter, I’ve been engaged with several clients where “errors of commission” are preventing… Read More
Continue ReadingMileage Reimbursement Increasing
In case you missed it, the IRS is raising the mileage reimbursement rate from the current 50.5 cents to 58.5 cents starting July 1, 2008. “Rising gas prices are having a major impact on individual Americans,” said IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman. “Given the increase in prices, the IRS is adjusting the standard mileage rates to better reflect the real cost of operating an automobile.” Keep this new rate in mind if you have any candidate offers going out soon. You will want to adjust the mileage reimbursement as this is a very hot topic among outside sales candidates today…along with telecommuting.
Continue ReadingCreative Employer Gas Programs
This article from abcnews.com discusses different corporate plans to help employees deal with the rapidly increasing gas price. Of all the creative approaches I have read of late, I think this one takes the cake (my bold): The career search Web site Jobing.com’s program really helps employees’ wallets. Those who meet certain requirements (such as length of time at the company, a good driving record and completion of a safe driving course) can get their car completely wrapped with the company’s logo. The reward: 100% of the employee’s gas is paid for along with a monthly $500 stipend. The company has an approved list of cars that employees can choose… Read More
Continue ReadingDefining Excellence
Selling Power released an archived article titled Four Elements of Excellence. The short article provides a well-thought description so let’s cut right to the chase. Here are the four: 1.) Goal Setting 2.) Commitment 3.) Feedback 4.) Organizational Support I would say that is a good list. The one that jumps out is goal setting. This is something we see in the sales arena often, but not in a good way. Many sales managers believe an annual quota is all the goal setting a salesperson needs. But let’s jump back to the article: Without specific goals, you’ll never know whether you’ve achieved excellence because you’ve never defined it. Hence, the… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Commute Question
We are sales recruiters so we have been fairly immune to this question, but it is even appearing in our world. For salespeople, the question is some variation of “How often will I be expected to be in the office?” This question doesn’t mean they are planning on playing hooky; the candidate simply wants to start the discussion about working from home, their car, coffee shops, etc. The Career News newsletter (sorry, no link) offers up a quick article on this topic: When it comes to making a living, how many miles would you travel? According to many hiring agencies and recruiters, people job hunting are taking climbing gas prices… Read More
Continue ReadingBe Conservative On The Compensation
I read this line in a sales employment ad this past weekend: Actual Year 1 average earnings – $100,000 – $200,000 ++ REALISTIC A $100K spread? You know, this type of line is an immediate red flag for a jobseeker. It may be true, but most salespeople will be skeptical. They will put a multiplier of <1.0 on the number. The sad part of this ad is that it was posted by a sales recruiting company. The best bet in these ads is to be somewhat conservative on the compensation and keep a tight range on the potential.
Continue ReadingThe Best-Paying Job
Anesthesiologists. From Forbes.com’s America’s Best- And Worst-Paying Jobs: …the mean annual salary for America’s 31,030 anesthesiologists is $192,780, up 4.6% from a year earlier. Not surprisingly, the top 9 jobs are all in the medical field (surgeon, orthodontists, etc.). Oh yes, and the bottom end of the scale: The lowest paid of all? People who cook, prepare and serve in fast-food joints, followed by dishwashers, busboys and the folks who shampoo your hair. I am proud to say that I was a dishwasher in high school. Technically, we called it a “dishlicker” and we were at the lowest end of the totem pole. That is the type of job that… Read More
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