How To Fix Employee Conflicts

Derrick MoeNo Comments

If you have been in leadership for any length of time, you have had to deal with employee conflicts amongst your team.  Some of the issues are trivial, others substantial, but what do you do to fix these problems?  The source of most conflict in the workplace flows from one specific area – Motivations. We assess motivations as part of our tools in helping companies hire and evaluate talent.  Motivations are an interesting aspect of our psyches.  They are deeply seated and have the power to drive behaviors, decision-making, and more.  The difficulty of motivations is that they are difficult to determine from simply interacting with someone.  Maybe if you… Read More

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Oddities That Make Strong Salespeople-Noncompliance

Derrick MoeNo Comments

I’ve been assessing salespeople since 2001 which, as you can imagine, has provided some unique experiences.  These experiences have revealed some odd factors that seem to be supportive of sales success. The oddity is that there seems to be a yin and a yang to abilities…a give and a take.  Here are just a few: Fearlessness vs. Compliance This oddity might be the most common.  There is a component to successful selling that involves a fearlessness to adroitly ask difficult questions to qualify prospects.  Many (most) people are uncomfortable asking these questions. For instance, it is “impolite to discuss money” is one of our social mores.  However, you will not… Read More

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3 Tips To Hire Salespeople

Derrick Moe

From the Harvard Business Review Tip of the Day email: Most companies spend more on hiring in sales than they do in any other part of the organization. With an average annual turnover rate of 25 to 30%, and direct replacement costs ranging from $75,000 to $300,000, there’s a big opportunity for improvement. Here are a few places to start (emphasis mine): Focus on behaviors. A primary cause of turnover is poor job fit. Consider ramping up assessment tools, simulations, and interviewing techniques to help identify the right people. Or, try temporary positions to assess people on the job before offering a full-time position. Be clear about the relevant “experience”… Read More

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Hiring Better

Derrick Moe4 Comments

Well, I am back from an extended summer vacation.  Ok, it wasn’t a vacation, we have been swamped which is a good thing.  Our activities have all been tied around hiring which seems to be bubbling up slightly in highly-selected areas. One thing I have noticed percolating this summer is the use of assessments.  This has been our business since 2004, but it is truly taking off now which seems counterintuitive to me.  However, I heard an interesting Wall Street Journal interview this morning where the reporter stated that companies hiring today have to make the right hire.  Each position is crucial as most companies are running with lower numbers… Read More

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Of Objectivity

Derrick Moe2 Comments

I preach this point from the mountaintop as often as possible so I’ll continue here – sales is the single most difficult position to hire in any company.  The reason is simple, accurately predicting sales success by discerning candidate capabilities is…well, often a crapshoot.  This fact is why it is imperative to use assessments to gain an understanding of what the candidate has “under their hood.” A prime example is emotional control.  Successful salespeople have this trait.  It is a broad term so let me put a finer point on it: This is the ability of a salesperson to maintain rational and objective actions when experiencing strong internal emotions. This… Read More

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Social Skills vs. Sales Skills

Derrick MoeNo Comments

If you’re talking you’re not selling.  That is an old axiom I learned early in my sales career and it is always true.  Talking does not equal selling. Unfortunately, people not experienced in sales hiring often have the opposite view.  Their stereotypical belief is that the best salespeople are the ones who are perceived to be the best talkers.  This misguided view often leads to bad hires. Here is where the mistake occurs – hiring managers assume that social skills are equivalent to sales skills.  Ok, maybe that is too strong, but the assumption is that the social skills are the key to successful selling.  Social skills are a component… Read More

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Fundamental Attribution Error

Derrick MoeNo Comments

Warning – psychology babble coming your way from Fast Company.  I encounter this effect often with clients: That judgment is what’s called, in psychology, the Fundamental Attribution Error. Meaning that we tend to attribute people’s behavior to their core character rather than to their situation. So when somebody cuts you off in traffic, you think, “What a jerk!” You don’t think, “I wonder situation he’s in that’s causing him to drive so crazy.” Even though in those times when YOU have driven crazily, it was almost certainly because of the situation you were in—you were late for a job interview or a date. May I make a suggestion?  The use… Read More

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Big Personalities In Selling

Derrick Moe2 Comments

We’re an assessment company so you can imagine how adamant I am about assessing candidates (not just for sales positions either).  However, in sales it is crucial to use assessments to cut through the sales candidates’ well-developed social skills.  Unfortunately, many assessment tools focus on personality only which is not a reliable or repeatable predictor of sales success. My experience has been that most people focus on big personalities when it comes to selling.  If the person is a good talker, tells funny stories, lights up the room, etc., then they must be a good salesperson.  The bigger the personality, the more they will sell.  Ok, I grant you that… Read More

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The True-Life Assessment

Derrick MoeNo Comments

I was out all yesterday helping the medical clinic where my wife works move into a new facility.  I am a wannebe geek so I moved their small computer network for them and installed a new computer for the owner.  The interesting item I observed was the work ethic of the people involved. I like to say that some times you just don’t need an assessment.  I think moving may be one of those times.  To be blunt, moving blows no matter how you look at it.  It is disruptive, tiring, laborious and messy. However, one thing you can clearly observe is the work ethic of a person.  At one… Read More

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When To Test

Derrick MoeNo Comments

Selling Power’s Hiring Newsletter takes a look at assessments used in the hiring process.  This is a topic near and dear to our hearts in that we assess sales candidates with online tests.  One paragraph jumped out (emphasis mine): According to Whittle, the average test runs around $200, but there were some tests that tacked on extra costs for interpretation up to $600 to $900 extra. Her company usually conducts the tests after at least two behavioral interviews to save time and costs. However, Whittle reminds us – the cost of testing is nothing compared to the cost of a bad hire. “We conduct the tests to validate what we’ve… Read More

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