Welcome back,
Today we are going to look at what we should expect from a sales manager. I’m sure anyone in sales has horror stories of bad sales managers. It’s okay if you are currently working for one, you don’t have to raise your hand if they are near J
I am asked what makes a good sales manager, and what should I expect from a sales manager. This blog is not going to say what a typical sales manager is, it is going to discuss what we should be expecting out of sales managers. That’s right when we interview with sales managers, we should be looking for a few things. These will be indicators about what we are about to get ourselves into in hopes of avoiding a bad situation.
I have had a couple Rockstar sales managers, a couple really bad sales managers, but mostly just okay sales managers. I know what to look for in a sales manager that I figured I should share with you so you can avoid some difficult relationships in the future.
I have had two really bad sales managers in the past. The first one should have been fired based off how sexist, manipulative, and degrading he was about others. He took his title to his head. The other was kind, but did not know how anything worked at the company even though he had been there for twenty plus years, and he could not offer help when asked. He was like a cockroach. He knew how to survive in the corporate world, but just didn’t add much value. It was unfortunate that this happens, but I’m sure this manager was not the only one.
With the bad out of the way let’s start with what we should be looking for in great sales managers. When we think of a sales manager, we should be thinking about someone who will invest in us and grow us. We need someone that will be a coach. Not like a coach on a football field that yells in plays and tells us to execute what they say, but someone that will ask us questions to pull out our own unique solutions to the problems at hand.
When I went to get certified by John Maxwell, my eyes were open to this new type of coach. A coach that has passion to grow those under them and help those they manage find their own true answers. Most managers want to manage people and processes to keep things moving smoothly, but a coach will encourage us to try for more than we think possible and to find the best answer within us. They want to invest in us as well.
These types of managers are also very transparent and knowledgeable about the products and processes of the organization. They know how to guide us around the pitfalls and educate us why we don’t want to go down a certain path, but still give us the option to choose our paths. They will ask us questions to make us think about why we are doing something and then ask us to provide why we believe this is the best path to take. They may challenge our assumptions, but to help us make sure we effectively thinking through the process. Not allowing us to just wing it.
Sales managers should also be looking for their replacement. Maybe the sales manager will be promoted someday, change corporations, or maybe they will expire. The sales manager should be functioning just like a leader that is looking to grow others around them so when the sales manager is gone, the organization will still thrive and move forward. They should be focused on leaving the organization better than they found it. Not because they want all of the applause, but because they value other individuals highly.
We need to stop looking at sales managers as people that just merely manage people and processes to keep things moving along, we need to expect more out of them to be coaches and leaders that want to grow people around them. They foster a culture of possibilities and adventure to personal and professional growth for their employees. Isn’t that someone you’d like to work for?
If you have a great manager that you’d like to mention in the comments below, please do so. I am always looking for people to interview and find out what makes them great and what values they focus on. It will also help all of you get better understanding as well.
Have a great week and I will see you next time!
Link to this week’s Youtube video
Sincerely,
Kevin Sidebottom
“Businesses wonder why the majority of their sales teams struggle at winning profitable business. I teach your sales team to walk with the customer through the five buying decisions, and in the correct order to generate more sales with high margins!”