Here is a common sales interview process that many SaaS businesses follow (and one many salespeople will recognise!)
Stage 1 – the hiring manager asks for a run-through of the candidate’s background, followed by some questions about their contacts, market knowledge and deals
Stage 2 – the hiring manager’s manager asks for a run-through of the candidate’s background, followed by some questions about their contacts, market knowledge and deals
Stage 3 – the hiring manager’s manager’s manager asks for a run-through of the candidate’s background, followed by some questions about their contacts, market knowledge and deals
Stage 4 onwards…. You get the picture
After this, a decision is often made on gut feeling. 12 months later, the salesperson may or may not still be in the role and may or may not have closed business. If they are, it could be more luck than judgment.
Given churn at some SaaS companies is 40%+ right now, there is a good chance that 12-18 months later the salesperson will need to be replaced. Either they were cut or they left because it wasn’t a good fit.
Hiring is frequently quoted as a key challenge for sales leaders but based on interview processes, it’s highly likely that decision-making is the problem. Gut feeling leaves way too much down to bias and other weak indicators.
At Indigo, we strongly believe in using a scorecard system to remove some of the gut feel from the process. Each interview stage should look closely at one of the key areas of a salesperson’s capability which includes process, prospecting, curiosity and relationship building and be measured against a 1-5 scale.
At the end, the data should show which candidate meets the threshold to be hired and which is the best suited from a group of candidates.
Are you using a scorecard?
If you are interested in receiving ours, then drop me an email – lee @ Indigo dash GTM dot com