As the unfortunate recipient of some heinously impossible sales quotas in my day, I am most intrigued by this week’s trait as it pertains to Sales Managers (and a few from my past that I would enjoy assessing on this topic).

Realistic Goal Setting For Others
The ability to set goals for others that can be achieved using available resources and operating within a projected timeframe. This trait includes the ability to utilize previous measurable performance in the establishing of goals and/or quotas.

A sales manager with strength in this capacity is adept at understanding the potential of another individual, weighting the requirements of a job against their abilities and setting realistic/attainable goals for them to pursue.

A weakness in this area indicates a sales manager who may not have enough confidence to set goals at the proper level. They may not have the drive to encourage others to achieve established goals. They may not be able to clearly see what is happening to be able to form an accurate view of the situation.

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This week’s trait is one that measures a salesperson’s ability to remain detached from an emotionally-charged situation.  Sales requires a cool, level-headed approach even in instances where emotions are high.  We highly value salespeople who can keep their personal self detached from their work self.

Internal Self Control
This is the ability to maintain a steady and controlled level of internal emotion in a stressful or emotionally charged situation. Although it directly affects self-composure in a difficult situation, this capacity is more an examination of a person€™s tendency to allow the external environment€™s level of stress to affect their internal levels. If Internal Self Control deals with an ability to keep outside emotions out, Emotional Control deals with keeping internal emotions in.

A salesperson with strength in this capacity will be better able to keep his or her internal level of emotion (stress, excitement, fear, etc.) unaffected by external influence. A good example would be an emergency room physician. They must continually prevent the strong emotions of those whom they treat from interfering with their thought process. They must be able to separate themselves from the outside emotions involved and logically deal with the situation at hand.

A salesperson with weakness in this area may have difficulty accomplishing this separation.  Instead of isolating outside emotions as those of others, they over empathize and allow themselves to become emotionally charged in the same manner. They do not separate themselves well and may instead become caught up in the excitement, fear, sorrow, etc.

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This week we look at a trait that provides a measurement that is difficult for any interviewer to ascertain on their own.

Job Ethic
The capacity to fulfill the professional responsibilities with a strong sense of moral duty and obligation they have been given.

A salesperson with strength in this trait will have a positive self-direction, a realistic understanding of their role and a positive goal/direction focus.

A weakness in this area indicates a weakness in one of the above abilities which may lead the salesperson to have trouble applying his or her abilities to a given task.

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We continue this week with another mission-critical sales manager trait.  This measurement reveals a manager’s ability to take responsibility without using excuses for a lack of team peformance.

Accountability For Others
The capacity of a sales manager to take responsibility for the consequences of the actions of those under their management. This trait encompasses taking responsibility for the decisions and actions of subordinates and not shifting focus on blame or poor performance back onto them, or somewhere else. This trait derived from an internal responsibility and accountability to one€™s self as a manager. This internal willingness is to accept responsibility associated with being in a position of management. It involves understanding that it is the task of the manager to accurately evaluate and understand the abilities of his/her employees
and to set realistic goals and expectations based on the resources and capabilities available.

A sales manager with strength in this trait will not try to make excuses for a bad decision, which resulted in poor performance by an employee. Instead, they will make every effort to try and identify the cause of both the poor performance and any mistakes they made in assigning the task. Their focus will be more on correcting the problem to ensure future success as opposed to protecting themselves.

As in personal accountability, a weakness in this area can indicate a sales manager who is more concerned with appearance and image than with results and success. They will seek to place blame for a bad decision on any factor which does not lie solely with them. Taking the blame would detract from their abilities in the public image. Although achieving goals and success can be important to this person, their self-image is often fragile and protecting it is much more important.

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This week we focus on a critical sales management trait. We often encounter sales managers who attempt to sell first, manage later. This approach may pay short-term dividends, but the long-term effect is an underdeveloped sales team. We always look at this measurement when hiring sales managers.

Developing Others
The ability to understand the needs, interests, strengths and weaknesses of others and utilize this information for developing others. This trait is derived primarily from a person€™s concern, their ability to evaluate others, and their ability to identify with others. It is affected by a person€™s focus on structure and order. The person with a strong focus on structure will tend to better understand the importance of building an organizational system. If the person also has positive empathetic skills, they will see the development of others as the way to build
the organization through people.

A sales manager with strength in this trait will be able to: accurately identify the strengths and weaknesses of an individual, evaluate them against the requirements of a job or goal and then design a program which will effectively elevate that person€™s skills to the needed level to achieve success.

A sales manager with weakness in this trait may have poor empathetic abilities and may not be able to determine who needs development. They simply may not consider it important. Also, a manager with weakness in this area may not take a proactive approach to management. They fail to perceive the importance in planning ahead to develop contingent talent. Instead, they may tend to be reactive and deal only with the immediate, or that which presents itself now.

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Longer sales cycles require salespeople and sales managers with abilities that match that time horizon. This week’s trait is important for any sales position that is asked to navigate an extended sale.

Long Range Planning
This is the ability to identify long-range goals and design realistic plans to attain them. It is the ability to see the big picture and then determine the direction to take and resources to use to attain future goals.

A salesperson with strength in this capacity is able to effectively €œsee into the future,€ forecast needs and comprehend how certain situations or procedures will meet those needs.

A weakness in this area might be due to a salesperson€™s being too €œpresent€ oriented. They spend more time on solving current problems and attaining immediate results than they do on eyeing future problems or needs.

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This week we focus on a thorn in many sales manager’s sides but this trait is one where strength may not actually be beneficial to success in sales.

Respect For Policies
The ability of a salesperson to see and appreciate the value of conducting business affairs according to the defined intent of company policies and standards.

A salesperson with strength in this trait generally understands the philosophies of the corporate structure and will strive to conduct business according to those standards. They will honor the concept of doing things according to the rules and regulations of the company.

A weakness in this area indicates a salesperson who does not have a clear picture or concept of the function of rules and regulations. They may feel that a company policy is only to be utilized when they are practical and functional. The policy can be broken whenever it hinders the effective and practical execution of their job. This does not mean that they actively seek to violate company policy for the sake of breaking rules. Instead, they may honestly feel that the policies are only guidelines to be used in the execution of their responsibilities (not laws always to be obeyed).

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This week we look at a trait that provides much insight into existing salespeople. There are other factors to consider in assessing a salesperson’s present state, but this trait provides a tangible red flag. Existing salespeople who score low in this trait are a definite flight risk for the employer.

Enjoyment Of The Job
The feeling that one€™s job is both fulfilling and rewarding and that it has a positive and useful benefit.

A salesperson with high scores in this capacity will tend to view their job as more than simply a means to earn an income. They view it as a valuable endeavor that proves beneficial to others as well as him or her self.

A salesperson with low scores in this area could have difficulty enjoying their job due to internal prejudices or other factors outside of their control. It is possible to €œlove€ the job yet still score low in this capacity. This is due to being deeply frustrated by some aspect of that job that keeps them from doing the job as they would prefer. The cause could be a lack of time or resources, inadequate skills, insufficient self-confidence, etc.

If this capacity is low, it is important to take a close look at the position and person to determine which scenario is involved (i.e., internal or external). Only then can movement be made towards correcting the problem.

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This week we focus on a trait that is strongly needed in a team-based sale.  The salesperson needs to be the lead on a team-based sale, but they have to have the ability to let the other team members do their part.  If the salesperson struggles in this area, they will be less efficient and more dictatorial in their interaction.  A bad mix in today’s market.

Surrendering Control
The ability of a salesperson to surrender control of a given situation, or outcome, to another person or group of people. The ability to be comfortable in a situation where a significant portion of the responsibility for achieving a goal lies in the hands of others.

A salesperson with strength in this trait will be comfortable trusting other team members with the success of a mutual objective.

A salesperson with weakness in this area will have difficulty turning responsibility over. They want control when the results of a task will impact them directly.

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Quality of standards is an important aspect of successful selling.  A salesperson who does not ensure quality has a tendency to appear inaccurate, or to the extreme - sloppy.  Since salespeople are initially the face of the company, this quality disconnect can present a poor view of the company’s quality as a whole.

Quality Orientation
This trait is a measure of a salesperson€™s affinity for seeing details, grading them against a preset standard (internal or external) and identifying flaws. This is directly related to a person€™s preference for paying attention to detail. Whereas attention to detail is more a measure of how capable a person is to appropriately see detail, this capacity also measures their proclivity for such accuracy as well. Instead of simple ability, it answers the question €œHow much of a desire do they have to ensure quality?€

A salesperson with strength in this trait will have an underlying desire to constantly evaluate things at a subconscious level; to be comparing them to predefined set of standards.

A weakness in this area does not indicate the lack of ability to see details, but rather a lack of motivation to use their innate ability to see details and ensure a high quality of work. They either do not understand the standards, which have been set, or they are not capable of using their own judgment to set such standards for themselves.

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