Rule 10: Create a transparent evaluation process

From the outside, the success of Silicon Valley looks like a miraculous byproduct of a collection of engineering geniuses. This is only partially true. While the products are brilliant, it is the healthy sales culture that creates the real success.

Unlike other business disciplines, sales combines principles, scientific analysis, and the intangible elements of customer interaction. Critical to the endeavor is the nebulous art of good storytelling. In speaking to other entrepreneurs, I discovered that the new generation of fast-growing Silicon Valley companies were not about the best products, but the best sales culture.

All major companies, from Oracle, to Salesforce, to Facebook, devised unique and sustainable direct sales cultures in their early days. Google was the big winner, generating millions, and then billions, through online, programmed inbound sales. So, while most new startups focus on building momentum with multiple rounds of fundraising, our goal for Loopd was to become self-funding as soon as possible.

Together with our new sales manager, our founders team talked about building a scalable, high-energy, high-performing sales organization.

As “Heroes” from Draper University, we were eager to uphold Tim Draper’s Startup Pledge about business culture:

I will treat people well . . . I will pursue fairness, openness, health and fun with all that I encounter. Mostly fun. I will keep my word.

Using the pledge as a starting point, we created a “corporate culture” suitable for growing a sales organization.

From the very first interview, we looked for employees who valued our company culture, learned quickly, and worked tirelessly. These individuals needed to be able to build a case for our products, nurture customers by working collaboratively, and adhere to the “ABC” principle of sales (“always be closing”).

We looked for salespeople with open minds and thick skin. In addition to the expected rejection by sales prospects, our employees would also undergo a comprehensive evaluation by cofounders, other employees, customers, advisors, and themselves twice a year.

Admittedly rigorous, this evaluation process allowed our salespeople to either earn an elevated status with a promotion and salary increase or receive probationary status with a new set of benchmarks and objectives. The overall goal with these evaluations was clarity, and we hoped this transparency would catalyze our sales culture and help attract the best candidates.

Loopd team members sharing their culture at one of a series of events for event professionals in San Francisco 

Business Development Manager Dave Numme promoting Loopd at SXSW with his radio voice

I hope you enjoyed this preview to my new book Takeaways: Secret Truths from Leading a Startup. Don’t forget to subscribe to OWN IT to access the first ten rules.

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