VP’s of Sales: Here’s How Top Performers Evaluate Your Job Opportunity

In my two plus decades of hiring and placing 100’s of top performers, some interesting themes have emerged around candidates’ preferences and expectations?–?especially among?true A Players.?

when a company like yours utilizes my services, you rightfully place?extremely high expectations on?candidate?quality. You want the best candidates!

You want quota killers. President’s Club stalwarts. Top 10 Percent among their peers year after year. Great?culture fit.?Lots of client reviews, Loves babies and puppies, etc...

This sounds?great, and quite frankly I’ve built my reputation around presenting these candidates to my clients, but what are they looking for in their next position???

When true Top performers are evaluating new opportunities, what are their most?important?criteria?

Over the past two decades, the “A Player” sales professionals I’ve spoken with continually rate these 6 factors as the most critical when considering a move. And, as a VP of Sales,?what can you do to improve your standing in these areas??

The list.

1.???Top performers want to hear most of the team made and exceeded quota, and more than one hit it out of the park.

?Your answer to this simple question often causes an A player to decide Go or No-Go for an opportunity.

If more?than a third of your reps exceeded quota last year, and a?couple of them far exceeded expectations, this should be?promoted early and?thru -out the?interview process.

And it goes without saying?that?at least one of your top reps should be involved in?the?interview process. This interaction is critical for both sides.

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2.???They?want to learn their?future boss has a history of?producing quota overachievers.

Why did NBA players want to play for Steve Kerr or Phil Jackson? Because they knew they produced champions.?Tell that A player what you’ve accomplished.?Not quite there yet, or having a down year??Tell them about your past accomplishments.

One of my clients shared an example of this in our intake call.?He took over as VP Sales and had no history with the company.?

He shared” I’ve coached $500,000 producers at my last two companies, and I have no plans to let that streak be snapped here.”?You can guess the quality of candidates he’s drawing with that statement.

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3.???They?want?evidence?that Sr. Management has a history of success.

True?A Players?focus on this line of questioning far more than B+ Players. Again, this is because they KNOW that wherever they land, they will close plenty of deals and earn plenty of commission.

If you’re lucky?enough to work for a highly accomplished CEO, by all means get this message to your sales candidates.???

At the end of the day, a?top performing sales pro is putting their family’s future in the hands of three people: their boss, their Sr. Management team, and themself.

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4.???They want to know that your market is?well-defined, and rich with possibility.?

Simply put, are there still many potential buyers who have Budget, Authority, Need, and Time Frame for what you’re selling??If so, communicate this in the interview

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5.???They assume?their own experience as a Candidate is a?reflection of your leadership style.

Either you’re committed to the hiring process or you are not. If?you’re committed, you have a set process in place, with a beginning, middle, and end.

You’re not obligated to?share the entire process up front, but?there should be a commitment to an overall timeline, and at least one touch per active candidate, per week.

I’ve seen plenty of A Players lose?their passion for a specific opportunity due to poor communication, inconsistent or confusing steps, and hiring managers just going dark for too long. Painful for all sides.

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6.???They want to read some decent reviews on GlassDoor.?

We all know?naysayers are generally more?likely to post there than happy employees, and we take the ratings with a grain of salt. But if you have strong reviews (3.8 or higher), promote the heck?out of that.?

If your score is weak,?I recommend?directly asking your employees (across all divisions of course) to contribute to GlassDoor. Do not in any way try to influence the content.

In fact,?I’d?message?something like,?“Please be fair, but honest. We will read the reviews carefully, and take actions on areas for improvement.”

If you've created an?above-average sales?culture, that will be reflected in the reviews and help you hire more top talent.?

Conclusion

My clients have had?varying degrees of success addressing each of these top 6?factors.

But the strength of the talent pool each company has attracted has directly correlated with their performance against these factors.?

Let me know your thoughts.?I’m interested in hearing your experiences in recruiting top performers to your team.