In my last blog, I shared both the gaps and talent opportunities uncovered in the 2018 Sales Talent Study. It is clear, based on the feedback of over 300 sales leaders, that sales organizations have a sales talent problem (many problems in fact). The question, then, is what to do about it.
The biggest step is to retake control of the talent strategy. Of course, sales will rely on HR for applicant tracking, LMS purchases and more. But, sales leaders need to own the talent strategy. Too often we find sales organizations don’t have a formal talent strategy. Instead, they have a loosely related set of talent practices driven by other departments. There are generic competency models disconnected from a sales context, general interview guides, overarching non-specific training curricula, etc. And while some of these tools can be helpful, many become check-the-box exercises.
Sales leaders build and execute a range of strategies.