A Simple Interview Rule

If you (hiring manager) are talking, you’re not interviewing.  I know, simple in concept, but for some it is difficult in practice.  I sat through an interview recently that involved a sales manager who spoke for 75-85% of the time!  The candidate was simply caught in his wake for the entire interview. My take on the interview was that we learned next to nothing about the candidate and his fit to the position.  He may have been strong – we’ll never know.  What we did learn is the frantic, scattered approach of the sales manager makes for an interview that did not go deep on any topic. The fault here… Read More

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Always Be Interviewing Salespeople

From Inc.com’s Sold! blog (my highlighting): The number one mistake in building and maintaining an effective sales team is a flawed hiring process. While there are many elements to consider, my first concern has always been to interview constantly. Always look for exceptional people in and out of your industry. Here are some of my other suggestions for hiring: • Pass on experience and look for people who show some element of emotional intelligence and personal magnetism. • Interview each person at least three times before you send them to another team member. • Prepare questions that take the applicant past normal responses. Get them to solve a sample problem,… Read More

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