When it comes to successfully managing a team, it’s crucial to recruit the right talent and ensure that their ability is used effectively, both within the team and as part of the organization. This statement holds especially true when referring to hiring for sales teams.
Sales is a stressful role, but a critical one to every business. Research shows that if companies place candidates in roles that don’t fit their personality, it often leads to lower engagement. Hiring the right candidates who possess strong sales effectiveness and core competencies that get results for the business is top priority.
But how can you tell whether a candidate will succeed before they begin? Personality assessments like Talogy’s Caliper Profile are an effective tool to understand future performance potential, providing a greater context than just an interview or resume alone.
Why use personality assessments?
When used in conjunction with resumes, personality assessments help provide HR managers with a means to transform the way sales talent is screened, assessed, and hired within individual sales roles and team needs.
Personality assessments allow HR managers to obtain objective insights into which candidates possess the personality traits that signify potential sales effectiveness, while also getting an idea for how a candidate will fit into their particular sales culture. About 22% of employers use personality assessments to assess candidates’ personality traits. Traits such as persuasiveness, detail orientation, and conscientiousness are commonly useful to possess in a sales career.
Key insights from personality assessments also help HR managers understand specific strengths and weaknesses in areas like:
- Closing strengths
- Marketing abilities
- Assessing how individuals will set the tone throughout the sales process
- Level of aggressiveness
- Rapport, sensitivity, and the ability to connect with prospects or clients
By leveraging the insights culled from personality assessments, HR managers can build strong, effective sales teams, reduce turnover, and increase engagement.
What are the key indicators of sales effectiveness?
How do you know if your candidates have what it takes to be an effective salesperson? Sales effectiveness isn’t something that you can identify immediately, but personality assessments help paint a picture of what an effective candidate might look like.
Look for these key traits during your hiring process:
Problem-solving
Tenacious sales candidates are creative thinkers and use their skills to be critical thinkers. They are always listening for opportunity, and they help prospects understand the impact that the product will have on the organization in ways that resonate.
Work Ethic
Look for candidates who go above and beyond what’s expected. Top sales candidates are enthusiastic self-starters who possess a strong commitment to completing the task no matter what. They push themselves to generate innovative ideas and accomplish individual and team objectives even when obstacles and stressors are present.
Preparation
Exceptional salespeople are meticulous planners. They know their product front to back, pay close attention to trends, anticipate objections and pushback, and have an understanding of their competitors. They have everything they need at the ready and are prepared for every challenge.
Active Listening
Seeking advice on how to improve is a crucial indicator of success in sales. Effective salespeople seek input from their coaches, prospects, and teammates on how they can improve their communication. A successful salesperson will use their teachings and skills to help their peers whenever opportunities present themselves. With valuable insight at hand, they can help their colleagues enhance and deepen their own sales knowledge.
Process-oriented
The right salesperson understands key elements in a sales cycle that lead to the final sale. Instead of focusing on the end result right away, they focus on each part of the process to ensure they aren’t missing any critical steps as they transition from one milestone to the next.
Track Their Progress
Effective salespeople measure their progress throughout the sales cycle to ensure they are receiving the best results they can. They see everything from process, activity, and results from metrics as valuable tools. By tracking progress, they know when to seek feedback and use the advice to adjust their course to achieve their goals.
Personality assessments can assist in selecting the right candidate for the job, but they also can help identify which type of sales role will be the best fit. When hiring for sales effectiveness, it’s not just about finding the right personality traits, but placing them in a position where they will work to their highest potential. This works on the team level, too. HR managers can use personality assessments to build out robust, high-performing teams with a diverse set of skills.
The Caliper Profile assessment identifies 21 traits among candidates and relates them to job performance. HR managers get an in-depth look into clear, concise, and scientifically validated data to gain on an individual’s strengths, limitations, motivations, and role potential. Contact our consultants to see how you can hire top candidates to build an effective sales team.
