The Importance of a solid Foundation in Tech Sales Training

I started my tech career, as a business developer (also referred to as: Inside Sales Rep, Sales development Rep) around 4 years ago back in the UK. I have come a long way since that first call and that first meeting set in 2012; looking back I have no idea where that courage came from to call a CTO, ‘pretend’ to be a subject matter expert AND ask for a meeting! The audacity! Today I am responsible for creating Sales Enablement programs for Nimble Storage and I have come to see a direct correlation between a solid foundation within tech tele sales, and being thrust into a new world that could be daunting, scary and quite overwhelming. Over the past year I have tweaked the program many times, continuously taking into account what my SDRs need, be it pace, content, guest lecturers, what to teach in my local offices in Australia, London, or Durham or what exposure is necessary when my trainees fly into our headquarters here in San Jose. There are many components that make up a successful training program, here are my top three. 

Buddy program

It is imperative that every new trainee has a buddy for the first 3 weeks - 2 months of onboarding. Ensure that the assigned buddy understands his responsibilities and has a great attitude and teaching spirit. Schedule a meeting with the buddies beforehand and discuss topics like:

?     Contact and meet with the new employee on Day 1 ?

?     Establish a rapport with the new employee ?

?     Have lunch with the new employee at least once a month ?

?     Act as an informational resource on policies and procedures ?

?     Help socialize the new employee to Nimble’s guidelines, norms and culture ?

?     Answer general/routine questions ?

?     Make introductions ?

?     Ensure an open communication between the new employee and the buddy, respecting ?confidentiality ?

Delivering the material   

When I did my TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) degree back in England a phenomenon was presented to me that changed the way I taught forever. There are five different types of learners (who knew!): Visual, auditory, spatial, reading, and kinesthetic learners. As mentioned earlier, breaking into the tech world, especially an entry level role such as the SDR role, can be quite overwhelming. Make sure that you have fun with your classes, introduce games, quizzes, exercises where people have to interact. Fully stepping away from a typical classroom based training is impossible but nonetheless, strive to include different methodologies and training becomes fun, engaging and most importantly you are connecting with all types of learners!

Deliverables

It is always important to make sure that both parties understand their responsibility during the training weeks. As tech trainers, we have to deliver a solid program, with great support and provide a safe and structured environment. The same goes for the trainee. They have to understand what is expected from them and this needs to be made aware from the first day. We created a week 1, week 2 and week 3 deliverable. Followed by a 3, 6 and 9-month plan. There are many benefits to an outline line such as this, personally, for me, it all drills down to one word: accountability, I promise to hold my end of the bargain and so do you! it’s an invisible handshake that allows you, in the early stages, to determine who will have that drive, tenacity and winner’s attitude that is needed to become a success sales person, and who will not.

I love what I do and here at Nimble Storage, I have seen a massive difference from before we had this very comprehensive training schedule, and the quality and ramp-up speed of my trainees, to today. It is so very important for trainees to feel contained, safe and having a sense of vulnerability for them to be able to be successful in both telephone and communication skills as well as building that much needed tech knowledge that will accelerate their success. Today’s SDRs are tomorrow's AE, Account managers, District Managers and Channel managers. Trust me, they will never forget their first intro into tech, their first teacher, make it memorable, make it digestible, make it fun, make it last!