The Nuances of Making the Right Hire with Chris Riley

In this curated episode of the Revenue Builders Podcast, John McMahon and John Kaplan, sponsored by Force Management, delve into the intricacies of sales hiring, dissecting the reasons behind sales rep failures, and exploring the critical aspects of assessing the hiring process in a leadership role. Joined by Chris Riley, CEO of Winning Edge Advisors and former president of Worldwide Field Operations at DataRobot, the trio shares insights into the challenges of identifying the wrong hire, the importance of coaching, and the nuances of adapting to evolving business landscapes. KEY TAKEAWAYS [00:00:52] Identifying Sales Rep Failures: Chris Riley discusses the multifaceted reasons behind sales rep failures and emphasizes the role of managers in daily coaching and feedback. [00:01:56] Critical Traits: The hosts and Chris highlight the significance of work ethic, coachability, and the ability to absorb and learn as key traits in successful sales hires. [00:03:33] Character Traits: The discussion touches on the challenge of changing inherent character traits, emphasizing the importance of recognizing a person's fundamental nature. [00:05:10] Skills Transferability: Chris shares insights into evaluating if a salesperson's skills are transferable to different sales environments and the potential pitfalls of misplacing talent. [00:06:34] Strategic Hires: The hosts stress the importance of strategic hires in business ops and go-to-market strategy, pivotal for proper business metrics and effective training. HIGHLIGHT QUOTES [00:03:47] "If they're hungry enough, as you said, they're persistent. You might be able to help them develop skills, but you're not gonna change their character." [00:04:20] "Persistence, heart, and desire. You just have to give it everything you got." [00:06:52] "One, if you hire really good people and then when you onboard them the right way so you can decrease the ramp time and then you train them and develop 'em to increase their productivity and you give 'em to good leaders, you're probably not gonna churn them either." Listen to the full episode with Chris Riley through this link: https://revenue-builders.simplecast.com/episodes/driving-accountability-and-building-trust-with-chris-riley Check out John McMahon’s book here: Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/1K7DDC4 Check out Force Management’s Ascender platform here: https://my.ascender.co/Ascender/