When Digital Media companies hire me to help them build out their sales teams-
whether it’s a sales executive or VP/Sales- they always need the same thing.
 Relevant relationships (solid Rolodex at the agencies and advertisers),
stability (for Retention sake- not too much movement), and proven sales
achievements (for Ramp- can they actually execute).

How companies “pre-qualify” sales candidates they are considering hiring is
vital. In this ultra fast paced world of technology and communication- where
texting and twittering are now mainstream- where you can access information when
and where you want it- all in real time- CEO’s and VP’s Sales are still under
the same pressure to ramp up their sales efforts and meet their revenue goals. 
Hiring a body vs taking the time to hire the right person because you are under
pressure to drive more sales is common. Getting “back to the basics” on due
diligence and gaining deeper information is key. Otherwise mistakes will be made
in hiring the wrong sales executive- costing the company precious time, money,
and credibility.

After 6 years in Manhattan, serving CEO’s and VP’s Sales in Tech/Digital Media, we have rolled out a better way for our clients to on-board mid-senior level sales execs faster, and predict 90 day pipeline performance.  Selections are made using our Madison Search Candidate Scorecard, a precise measurement of a candidate’s alignment to the position’s KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators) , Rolodex verification, Ramp Time analysis, and Retention variables. We source faster and more deeply, saving our clients time, money, and less churn.

So the next time you consider hiring an external search firm, or even
internal recruiter- ask them:

1)  What is your “process” beyond a resume for pre-qualifying sales
candidates?

2)  Are you local to our market? can you meet with the candidates face to
face?

3)  What is your track record in selecting the right sales candidates in our
industry?

4)  Do you test for drive?

These KPI’s are the most critical elements in measuring performance, fueling
our “quality vs. quantity” process- a massive improvement to hiring “bodies”,
this process costs the client no more in money or time, and will in fact reduce
the risk in building out sales teams when time is of the essence in reaching
your revenue goals.  Being local executive search consultants in NYC, we pride
ourselves in meeting with our clients and candidates face-to-face.

Besides making sure these KPI’s align with the position at hand- the most important intangible is whether the sales candidate has the internal “drive” for success.

CEO’s, VP’s Sales, Hiring Managers- Is Drive Testing part of your selection process when assessing sales execs?

When I say drive testing I am not talking about testing someone’s automobile skills- I am referring to a sales candidate assessment test that actually tests for drive- the most critical personality trait for success in sales- the toughest trait to measure and the easiest for candidate’s to fake. How many times have you hired a sales exec that either stopped delivering when the rolodex ran dry, or simply did not achieve the # of meetings to fill the pipeline, and ultimately came up way short on their revenue goal at plan? Why is this? They may have not been the right candidate for the job to begin with. For true success to happen- you need the right racehorses in place for starters. How do you know who the right racehorses are just? You need to do more than just look at who has the prettiest mane.

Time and time again I have seen companies, and VP’s Sales hire too fast because they are under pressure to produce #’s- bringing in “bodies”- only to have to let them go after 6-8 months when they don’t produce.  The costs of bringing on the wrong sales hires are exorbitant- from wasted time on training, compensation, recruiter fees, internal company drainage and external reputation/credibility, and most importantly lost sales.

Drive testing typically scores on 3 elements:

1) Need for Achievement

2) Competitiveness

3) Optimism

The Drive Test should be a critical tool in the hiring selection process for all companies, ensuring that you are hiring driven top producing sales people that have the internal traits for success. I recommend SalesDrive to my clients, believe in it so much that I deduct the cost from my fee. You should also read the book Never Hire a Bad SalesPerson Again.  The tests usually run $200 to administer and should be done on the top 2-3 finalists- it’s a small investment to make sure you have the right sales exec in place- the costs of making this mistake is far greater.

If you are any type of middleman (or middlewoman), agent (from real estate agent, travel agent, even recruiter), or business that disseminates/distributes “information” or “information services”- chances are that your industry, and job- have been turned upside down by the Internet, some being com-modified. Information which was once only privy to the middleman, is now accessible mostly for free online- and in real time. Everyone and every business has had to “evolve” in some way. The world has gone digital- from newspapers/books morphing into the Kindle device- it’s all about turning everything and everyone into “bytes”. Even the phone companies are in trouble with magicJack. Watch this video from Fred Wilson, venture capitalist from Union Square ventures on “Which Markets will  be Disrupted Next”- pretty informative.

I think we can also automate the venture capital firms- they are middlemen as well.  Unlike individuals or angels, where investors are putting their own money on the line with these companies (actual skin in the game)- venture capitalists use “other people’s money” (from funds-albeit risky funds) to invest. User community companies like KillerStartups lets’s people vote online for the best submitted start-ups. Cutting them out would save the funds a ton of money (as they can just give the money directly to the companies) and it would put more money in the pockets of the companies founders after an IPO or acquisition. No more venture capital middlemen.

The venture capitalists would argue that they earn their money and provide “value-adds” besides just picking which companies to fund- ie: strategy, management expertise, etc.- but who needs value-add when everything can be done online and in real time- right? Now I am only kidding- the Internet will not supplant all people- certainly not venture capitalists- but point is it will definitely take the place of some, and change the landscape of the way others conduct their business.  Fact is the good “middlemen” will always provide real intangible value, besides just basic information. The Internet and technology in general is simply a tool for people to do their jobs better and faster.

I have always been around sales, and have great respect for the people that do it the best. My father was a National Sales Manager, my mother owned one of the largest recruiting agencies in the Tri-State area (they are both my mentors and no coincidence that I am  HeadHunter). Starting my professional career in the “agent training program” and mailroom at the William Morris Agency in Beverly Hills (check out The MailRoom Fund)- then moving into executive search out in California, and finally New York City- I have been privy to so many different types of sales personalities/executives- people that are not good, mediocre, and the best. So what makes sales people the best?

As I seek the best sales candidates in the market for my client companies, I tend to see a running theme- they make the right career choices at the onset, are very analytical in their planning and have a long term view,they do not move around, have stability and stick with things, they are tenacious, they are hard/smart workers, they know how and who to shmooze at their company and outside, they are savvy in the way they speak and handle situations, they are ethical and honest, and most important, have a track record and know how to sign the client in their industry of expertise- thereby driving sales and revenue for their company- bottom line. In Hollywood there are “signing” agents, and there are “booking” agents. The one that actually signs the talent, meaning signing them to the agency- is the one with the power- they are the ones with the big paycheck. Any agent can “cover” the open roles at the studios and TV channels and “book” the actors in a role, but there is only one signing agent. If that agent leaves- he takes the client (actor) with him/her (if they are loyal- that’s a whole other discussion). So in business I break sales executives into 2 categories- the A hunters and the B hunters- everyone wants the A hunters- they are successfully selling for their current company are are more expensive to get- but they are worth it since they make it up in dollars and cents- these are the sales stars. A senior agent once told me and it stuck, that “it’s always easier to represent stars”- than it is to represent an up and comer- why- because with stars its cut and dry- if you want them you have to pay their quote and its “play or pay”- non- negotiable- less hassle. Same holds true for senior level search- they are actually much easier to conduct than lower level sales staffing. There are less qualified sales execs to ID and approach- and if you want them it’s typically on their terms- since they are the proven sales stars. They have the “it” factor.

I consider myself a hunter that hunts hunters- and a sales exec that places sales execs- so I truly respect top sales pros and all that they do to succeed in life and career.  Love reading Everybody’s Business- Ben Steins’s weekly commentary in the Sunday NY Times. Check out his recent article on “Attention Must Still Be Paid”- talks about how “a master of sales deserves respect as a master of human nature”-how “sales- when done right- is more than a job- it’s an art”.

There are so many new start-ups companies in the recruiting space with a different take on “automating” the process- all interesting- but will never take the place of a true Executive Search Consultant that has the relationships, knows their industry, local, and how to source and recruit quickly and effectively in this new all digital age. Some are NotchUp, BountyJobs, Zubka, RealMatch, TalentSpring, InfoGist, TalentHook, etc. I found a great blog post from a very knowledgeable source called The Boolean BlackBelt on the question of “is candidate sourcing dead”. The answer is no. He truly understands the intricacies that a researcher in an Executive Search Firm  faces daily. One of which is time. This is the reason we only take on and work no more than 5 real Performance-Based searches at a time. No recruiter (internal or external can work on more than 5 real searches at a time). Things have changed now with the advent of information access, but at the end of the day you need to get on the phone with top working sales candidates, get their attention, and recruit them for your search. There is no magic pill, but there is a silver bullet.

I have been seeing alot of sales candidates recently that have the hybrid (Print/Digital) sales background- most of their sales background is print- with the past few years being on the digital side. Some were at larger publishing companies where they were selling both print and online. As mentioned in a previous blog my digital media clients seems to want the pure online ad sales candidate- the up and coming rock start digital media sales exec that does not have too many years experience- say 4-5 years+. They tend to shy away from the “hybrid” candidate.

My advice to these hybrid sales candidates is to target online companies that cater to a specific niche, that matches their own focus. For example- if you were with a large publishing company and one of their properties you sold for was Pharma- then target online companies that are healthcare/pharma focused- you will have better luck with those companies as oppossed to let’s say an online ad network that covers various verticals. If you were at a luxury publication- focus your search on luxury/high end related online companies where they are targeting the luxury advertisers (which unfortunately are also taking a bit of a hit now).  As always, and now more than ever- as start-ups need to drive immediate traction,deal flow, and revenue- it’s all about where your immediate, current existing top relationships are- and how fast you can turn them into dollars for your new company.

 atwitter- according to Webster- nervously concerned, excited: gossips with speculation.

Twitter- like so many other viral social networking sites- great management team, top tier VC funding, HUGE audience and user base- no revenue. I get the thought process and model- gain an audience first with free usage, then start charging for premium and additional services. Now Twitter has other services like Exec Tweets, and of course- TwitterJobSearch is in beta, sure content is next. My guess is that Twitter will try and turn itself into the next large portal- social networking portal if you will- Yahoo- watch out. As the article states however in practice most companies that attempted to recruit using Twitter are unconvinced of its potential and have had few responses- even the ones that have a good following.

Speaking about Content- I am so happy to hear about Journalism Online- a subscription service where the publishers and people that are actually creating the content can get paid. My view is that originally produced professional content should not have been free in the first place- and don’t agree that if you start charging they will stop reading. That makes no sense- 10% of 0 is zero- if you are not getting anything from them now then what are you losing- decreasing ad revenue? If they are real readers they will not stop- and as long as you make the payment easy and simple- there should be no issue (no pun intended) everyone needs to stop being babies about it and not operate out of fear. What do you know that is free? Why should content be free? isn’t there a cost to produce it? Do you like to get paid for your work and time?- I know I do- why shouldn’t they? sounds like robbery to me.

Lastly- speaking about highway robbery- just read about the audacity of the founders of Skype-which was sold to eBay in 2005 for $2.6Billion, on top of performance incentives that later lifted the final price to $3.1Billion.  In 2007 eBay’s CEO acknowledged that the company grossly overpaid by writing off $1.4Billion of the purchase price. Not only did Skype’s founders retain ownership of the peer to peer technology used in Skype ,and actually license it back to eBay(can you believe it-smart lawyers)- but they are now in a dispute with eBay over this escalating intellectual property issue- and it is a problem for them in selling off Skype. Great for Skype’s founders who are now trying to buy it back from eBay with the help of Private Equity- amazing. So you’re telling me that the founders made off (Madoff?) with $3.1Billion, still retained the IP after the sale, is now in a dispute with the company that paid them $3.1B, which is prohibiting eBay from selling the company, and getting back a minor portion of what they lost, and on top of it the founders are trying to get the company back in the process??? Due to this issue eBay will try and spin Skype out in the open IPO market- good luck. In 2008, under eBay’s auspices, Skype generated real revenue of $551Million, and is expected to top $1Billion in revenue in 2011- still only 1/3 of what eBay paid in 2005- hmmm- but I wonder what the revenue was when the founders sold it in 2005- anyone know?  I should have been an engineer. Can anyone explain the thought process of why companies buy other companies that are not a good fit with their core businesses (in this case its auction site and Paypal online payments service)-  only to realize this after, and then have to sell it off as a loss?

It seems that every company- no matter if they are on the Digital Media side (selling online advertising) or on the High Tech (selling software & services) is looking for the same person- “early career, up and coming sales star that has the relevant industry experience to be an individual contributor and now drive revenue and deals for them”. Issue is that if you go to their direct and indirect competitors and try to bring over the A and B players- they will most probably not be interested as they are currently hitting their #’s for their current employer and having success- why leave to start all over again? A good sales exec takes his/her contacts/rolodex/relationships with them wherever they go- in my opinion that is the only real job security out there- (how solid, relevant, and current) your true relationships really are- you can leverage those wherever you go. We all need to call on our relationships sparingly- picking our battles and making sure we can bring/add value to whoever we contact- you certainly do not want to be exhausting your rolodex, calling up your contacts every year with a new product or service- one loses credibility.

That being said my strategy has always been to shoot one level below title wise (if I am doing a VP/Sales search- look at Directors and Senior Directors)- and try and be a bit creative on where to hunt as far as Target List companies. You always want to be moving people up in title, compensation, and career- not down- so the opportunity you have needs to be a better than where the person is currently at. You can always make up for their OTE in equity participation- but I rarely see up and comers that are willing to go down on base- unless there is some event taking place at their current employer and they want to leave. So since most companies want the early-mid career sales stars- where does that leave the mid-career, and mid-later career sales folks- the ones that  have higher past earnings and sales management in their background- even if they are willing be an indie contributor- companies seems less likely to speak/meet with them- and want the more early career sales exec.

Going back to rolodex and contacts- assuming the later career sales exec is doing all the right things presentation wise (on their resume, in person, on the social media sites), and is able to demonstrate the energy level and DRIVE (this is key), there is no reason why they can’t be as successful if not more than their earlier career counterparts. They have had more time to build their relationships over time, which they can now leverage- and their sales/business acumen accumulated over the years- this is their real currency and value. If they can show brains, and brawn- fights over.

These guidelines and list of rules embody who and what the Lone Ranger is and why he has remained a hero and a legend:

• The Lone Ranger is never seen without his mask or a disguise.

• With emphasis on logic, The Lone Ranger is never captured or held for any length of time by lawmen, avoiding his being unmasked.

• At all times, The Lone Ranger uses perfect grammar and precise speech completely devoid of slang and colloquial phrases. (good business and life rule)

• When he has to use guns, The Lone Ranger never shoots to kill, but rather only to disarm his opponent as painlessly as possible.

• Logically, too, The Lone Ranger never wins against hopeless odds; i.e., he is never seen escaping from a barrage of bullets merely by riding into the horizon. (reality based)

• Even though The Lone Ranger offers his aid to individuals or small groups, the ultimate objective of his story is to imply that their benefit is only a by-product of a greater achievement — the development of the West or our Country. His adversaries are usually groups whose power is such that large areas are at stake.

• All adversaries are American to avoid criticism from minority groups. (he’s an Equal Opportunity Employer)

• Names of unsympathetic characters are carefully chosen, avoiding the use of two names as much as possible to avoid even further vicarious association. More often than not, a single nickname is selected.

• The Lone Ranger does not drink or smoke, and saloon scenes are usually interpreted as cafes with waiters and food instead of bartenders and liquor. (just like me)

Everybody needs their own rules to live by- what’s yours?

Hi yo Silver- awaaaayyyyy!!!!

Ten quick silver bullet tips for writing a clear and compelling sales resume- having this info already on there will help the reader and sell yourself better

1) For “each” position- explain briefly what type of company they are/were? listing headcount and revenue (if public)

2) If there are more than several jobs within a short time frame, you might want to highlight(briefly) in parenthesis why you left each position.

3)  What did you sell at each role? what “type” of products/services were they?

4) Who did you sell these services to at each role? specifically who and what department within the organization (ie: CMO’s, brand managers, IT departments, large enterprise, SMB, Fortune 1000)

5) Were there any specific “categories” or verticals? did you have a specific territory or region? (ie: Media, Healthcare, Financial Services,etc.)

6) Where are your “most recent” agency or direct client company contacts- more importantly wjo are your top “relationships” that were built over time? (note: most recent)

7) Are you open to relo? If not did you cover NYC or east coast agencies/companies? besides travel are you willing to be in NYC a few days out of the week?

8) Who did you report to? did you manage a team? how many? what were their titles? did they have their own revenue goals?

9)  Make your sales revenue numbers the first bullet point- what are/were the average “range” of deal sizes you sold at each company? how long was each sales cycle?

10) What was your sales quota? what did you achieve against that quota? (can’t quantify if you only list percentages without the actual number)

Show a consistent theme throughout the resume of hitting or coming close to sales revenue quota goals,  sales accomplishments/awards, and big wins. “Frame” yourself by weaving in a progression of overall skills, relevant industry knowledge, and industry relationships.  Sometimes having the objective at the top is helpful to highlight what exactly you are seeking- ie: an early stage start-up where I can add immediate value by driving revenue and leveraging my relationships built up throughout my career for long term company success.