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Sales leaders often build expansive, multi-point rubrics under the assumption that greater complexity demonstrates competence. In practice, evaluating reps against dozens of criteria makes training unmemorable and execution impossible. Consolidating criteria into a few core categories relieves cognitive pressure and enables higher execution standards.
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Your best reps are often "unconsciously competent" and can't explain their own success. Before an SKO, leaders must help these individuals deconstruct their process and build a prescriptive presentation, translating their individual "art" into a replicable science for the entire sales team.
Role-play feedback grounded in subjective opinions and personal gut feelings leaves sales reps confused about what advice to apply. Establishing an objective scoring rubric with explicit definitions for unacceptable, good, and great behaviors grounds peer feedback in concrete steps, ensuring training sessions translate into actionable behavioral change.
Instead of focusing solely on quotas, hold reps accountable for controllable inputs and behaviors, like the number of sales calls. This approach provides clear data for coaching and pinpoints the root cause of performance issues, rather than just judging the outcome.
Effective coaching follows a three-step process: Identify a metric-based performance gap, validate the specific rep behaviors causing it, and then co-create a coaching plan focused on improving those behaviors, not just the lagging metric.
A single performance metric is misleading. A rep at 85% with one major skill gap can be ramped quickly, while a rep at 85% with multiple minor weaknesses needs a longer, different coaching plan. Granular diagnostics are required to move beyond one-size-fits-all training.
Viewing quota as a lagging indicator, Figma's CRO warns that managing to the number creates "lazy leadership." Performance management should instead center on a detailed framework of inputs: behaviors (e.g., collaboration) and competencies (e.g., discovery skills), giving a real-time view of a rep's effectiveness.
Many sales organizations mistake "coaching the deal" for actual coaching. This is merely reactive performance management. True coaching focuses on developing a rep’s core capabilities—like discovery or closing—which prepares them for any future deal, not just the current one.
Effective sales processes establish a high minimum standard for operational excellence, ensuring consistent performance. However, they must remain simple and flexible enough not to stifle the creativity and unique methods of top performers, thus raising the floor without capping the ceiling.
When sales teams miss targets, the default reaction is to blame the reps. However, the root cause is often a leadership failure in maintaining standards and ensuring consistent execution. The problem is with the system and leadership, not just the individuals.
Sales processes become bloated over time, killing rep productivity. Instead of asking what to add, leaders should constantly ask what can be removed to achieve the same outcome. The best way to identify this friction is to be a rep for a day and experience the workflow firsthand.
