Sales Managers often wonder about the best recipe for hiring new salespeople. Is an experienced or a rookie salesperson a better choice? What is the most effective approach to setting expectations for newly hired salespeople? What is the best strategy for newly hired salespeople? Should they focus on prospecting new leads, converting prospects into customers, or developing deeper relationships with existing clients?
Academic researchers Bryan Hochstein and Michael Peasley have some answers to these questions. Data from 280 salespeople examines the longitudinal growth of newly hired experienced and rookie salespeople to offer insights on how long it takes for performance to develop and how it differs based on prior experience versus sales-educated new hires.
Then, reporting a second study, concepts from choice and self-regulation theory are used to propose and test four dimensions of sales effort that impact sales growth. Their study includes data from 200 salespeople, which is used to analyze how each dimension of sales effort impacts annual sales growth for salespeople in their first year.
Their findings challenge the traditional view of one-dimensional salesperson effort, which often defines a generalist approach, and offer insights that help sales managers as they make decisions on which newly hired salespeople to retain and as they guide early-tenure salespeople in prioritizing their efforts across different dimensions of the sales process.
