To efficiently screen sales reps, hold a group interview where candidates perform a pre-sent script. Then, provide live feedback and ask them to try again. This quickly assesses their preparation, ego, and coachability.

When interviewing salespeople, the biggest red flag is blame. Strong candidates demonstrate humility and self-reflection by taking ownership of lost deals and analyzing their own shortcomings. Weaker candidates deflect, blaming the product, competition, or other external factors, signaling a lack of coachability.

To hire for traits over background, Mark Kosaglo suggests testing for coachability directly. Run a skill-based roleplay (e.g., discovery), provide specific feedback, and then run the exact same roleplay again. The key is to see if the candidate can actually implement the coaching, not just if they are open to receiving it.

Senior commercial leaders are professional interviewers who excel at telling you what you want to hear. A hiring process based solely on conversation is flawed. To truly vet a candidate, you must incorporate exercises that force them to demonstrate their abilities and "show you the receipts" of their claims.

When asked about their sales process, weak candidates brainstorm a long list of activities. Strong candidates have a concise checklist for the key "moments of truth" in a deal, like discovery or proposal calls. The brevity and clarity of their answer signal true process discipline.

To understand a candidate's true drivers, ask them to walk through every major career decision they've made, from college choice to job changes. This narrative reveals patterns and motivations—such as status-chasing, financial incentives, or problem-solving focus—far more effectively than direct questions.

In a rapidly changing environment, adaptability ('malleability') is key. To get past rehearsed answers about work projects, ask candidates to describe personal changes they've made in their own lives. This reveals their genuine capacity for self-reflection and adaptation.

To accurately assess an unteachable trait like coachability, you can't just ask about it. You must create a situation that requires it. For coachability, run a brief role-play, provide direct feedback, and ask them to do it again, observing their verbal and non-verbal reactions to the coaching itself.

Vague feedback like 'be more confident' is unteachable. To train soft skills for sales or presentations, break them down into specific, observable actions: 'raise your voice,' 'talk faster,' 'pull your shoulders back.' This makes abstract qualities tangible and creates a repeatable training process.