Good help is hard to find? Not necessarily. A potentially untapped talent source may be right under your nose.
Job sites, referrals, social media postings—there are and endless number of ways to spread the word about your openings for new talent.
However, sales leaders often neglect their most obvious talent source—their own people.
I’ve found in my work with organizations that the best hires tend to be the ones already within the organization itself. Now, you might think of this in the traditional sense of promoting a sales rep to a manager (which may not be a good idea), but I’d like for you to think a little more outside the box.
I’ve seen delivery drivers in an organization moved to a sales position and they’ve thrived. Why? They had a great attitude, a willingness to learn, and invaluable in field experience which gave their entire sales team additional insight to better position their products, services, and offerings.
Similarly, I’ve seen operations specialists, even HR workers, thrive in a sales position because again, they had the right “stuff” and with a little training they became valuable, key members of their sales teams.
It makes sense if you think of it, even if someone comes from a completely different part of the organization, they still often have a “head start” and even an advantage over an external hire. They already know the organization, and can usually bring their own insights and perspectives from their original department into the fold to contribute to their own success as well as the entire sales team’s growth.
How often, in your organization, do leaders from different departments come together to strategize, align, and collaborate?
