Comments on: Can Top Sales Performers Be Duplicated? (Sam vs. Jen) http://salesopssolutions.com/2009/10/26/duplicating-top-performers/ The Art of Motivation. The Science of Enablement. Wed, 02 Jun 2010 13:04:07 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: SalesMgr http://salesopssolutions.com/2009/10/26/duplicating-top-performers/comment-page-1/#comment-159 SalesMgr Wed, 31 Mar 2010 21:42:29 +0000 http://salesopssolutions.com/?p=292#comment-159 Jen: how do you identify 'talent' in your recruitment process? Can you ensure you only recruit talent? Jen: how do you identify ‘talent’ in your recruitment process? Can you ensure you only recruit talent?

]]> By: ccopple http://salesopssolutions.com/2009/10/26/duplicating-top-performers/comment-page-1/#comment-11 ccopple Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:14:59 +0000 http://salesopssolutions.com/?p=292#comment-11 I actually saw a presentation at the Miller Heiman Client Summit in Princeton that touched on a similar topic. Tom Disantis from the <a href="http://www.salesexecutivecouncil.com" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Sales Executive Council</a> discussed “Replicating the New High Performer,” and he had some interesting data to share. The Sales Executive Council found that today’s top performers fall under what Tom called the “Challenger” type personality. While that term may sound a bit harsh, the general definition of this person is someone who teaches his/her customers something new about their business and isn’t afraid to challenge the customer. These people do not lead with product, but have a great understanding of the business problems their customers face and can bring that knowledge to the table to help a customer think differently about his/her business. I thought this seemed logical, but it did challenge the notion that the sales rep who necessary works the most hours or is the most disciplined is always a top performer. Essentially, it’s your smart/consultative reps who are really the ones out there winning. While much of an “A” player’s performance is a matter of talent, I have seen some of our clients enable reps to move to a more consultative approach through training, messaging, and support/Sales Enablement that brings the conversation up a level and helps reps learn how to tie their products to higher level business needs. Will every rep get this approach and be able to execute it? No, but having the infrastructure in place to help them get there will surely lend a hand to at least a few of your “B” players out there. I actually saw a presentation at the Miller Heiman Client Summit in Princeton that touched on a similar topic. Tom Disantis from the Sales Executive Council discussed “Replicating the New High Performer,” and he had some interesting data to share. The Sales Executive Council found that today’s top performers fall under what Tom called the “Challenger” type personality. While that term may sound a bit harsh, the general definition of this person is someone who teaches his/her customers something new about their business and isn’t afraid to challenge the customer.

These people do not lead with product, but have a great understanding of the business problems their customers face and can bring that knowledge to the table to help a customer think differently about his/her business. I thought this seemed logical, but it did challenge the notion that the sales rep who necessary works the most hours or is the most disciplined is always a top performer. Essentially, it’s your smart/consultative reps who are really the ones out there winning.

While much of an “A” player’s performance is a matter of talent, I have seen some of our clients enable reps to move to a more consultative approach through training, messaging, and support/Sales Enablement that brings the conversation up a level and helps reps learn how to tie their products to higher level business needs. Will every rep get this approach and be able to execute it? No, but having the infrastructure in place to help them get there will surely lend a hand to at least a few of your “B” players out there.

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