Why Top Salespeople Make Lousy Managers – And How You Can Stop The Cycle

 

Your top sales performer is crushing it, destroying quarterly goals and even surpassing monthly stretch objectives to help secure a banner revenue year for your organization. Business is booming, your operations are expanding, and it’s officially time to hire a new manager. Your first choice should be your lead contributor, right?

 

Not so fast.

 

Yes, instinctively you may feel compelled to reward your best seller with a management position. On various levels, we’ve all been conditioned to expect promotion based primarily on performance alone. However, many business owners realize far too late that they’ve overlooked one vital consideration throughout the hiring process when moving an account executive up in the company: Just because someone is an effective salesperson, does not mean they can effectively lead sales people. In short, proven selling performance, as stellar as it may be, isn’t nearly enough to drive sustainable managerial success.

 

Prematurely Promoting Your Top Seller Can Have A Negative Impact On Your Company

 

This costly miscalculation can have significant consequences on two levels. First, an ill-fitting transition from individual contributor to team lead can quickly change the entire group dynamic, negatively impacting other top team performers. Additionally, moving your lead salesperson into a new position effectively takes your best resource out of the game entirely, leaving your organization susceptible to profit risk and loss while the rest of your department struggles to adjust.

 

Create A Path For Success When Moving Salespeople Into Management

 

Does this mean you should never move high-performing salespeople into management positions? No. However, as a business owner or executive, it’s essential to do your part to ensure that you create a culture that drives success with every upward movement in your company. Here are four ways to ensure you are doing your part to help your former seller effectively transition into management.

 

Revamp Your Hiring Process

Not to state the obvious, but having the right person manage your sales team starts with hiring the right person to manage your sales team; it’s critical to know what to look for when screening prospective candidates for your position. Go beyond who’s hitting monthly quotas and gross margin profits to find someone that completely understands every phase of the sales cycle. Thorough knowledge and insight on each sales cycle component will prove an invaluable skill when coaching team members for future success. You’ll also want to zero in on some of the intangible skills needed from someone to truly make an impact in this position. Ability to lead, have difficult conversations, adapt to change, motivate team efforts, and develop others are just a few of the many traits required to manage a group effectively.

 

One of the best ways to see if someone is management material during the hiring process is to role-play in performance coaching sessions. Everyone wants to be in management based on what they think the title entails. However, once exposed to other elements of the job, many quickly realize that this position isn’t for them. Once you identify what your successful candidate looks like, you may find that you have other internal employees far better suited for the position than the person who is currently exceeding monthly plans and goals.

 

Let Your New Leader Lead (aka Don’t Make Your Manager Sell)

Many business owners offer directors a hybrid position where they get to lead the team yet still maintain their current client portfolio. While it’s tempting to keep your top performer in the field selling for your business, having to simultaneously straddle two positions often results in failure with both responsibilities. Yes, there will always be a time of transition when you hire from within your organization. However, make the transfer of accounts as fast and seamless as possible so your new lead can focus on higher-level initiatives that will develop more staff members and grow your business.

 

Offer Tools And Resources

Many new sales managers are thrown into their position with any supporting resources. Standardized reports, live-data, and various analytics can prove an invaluable tool for recently promoted staff members that need to switch gears from chasing and closing deals to growing and developing a team. Best of all, having access to relevant, automated information as needed eliminates wasting precious time trying to manually gauge critical factors such as current leads, team performance, and pending deals.

 

Leverage Professional Coaching

Professional sales coaching can make a major impact when preparing your team leads, managers, and directors for success. An experienced, objective consultant can quickly identify existing strengths and potential vulnerabilities to create a customized approach that increases positive results, minimizes performance gaps, and outlines specific, measurable objectives. Most importantly, an innovative consultant will partner with your new supervisor to implement a performance improvement program that develops individual contributors as well as fosters goal attainment across the department as a whole.

 

Contact ABCX Consulting

 

ABCX Consulting partners with business owners across multiple industries to develop innovative coaching solutions that redefine your internal selling culture for long-term results and success. Ready to get started? Contact ABCX Consulting today!