The Question Isn't, "How Big Is Their Rolodex?"
When the subject of hiring salespeople comes up, the Rolodex, virtual or otherwise, isn’t far behind.
A salesperson’s business networks are only of some value. Certainly not as much value as many candidates would like their interviewers to believe.
In my experience, a candidate’s business network is only one component of their overall Personal Capital. Their experience, domain/industry expertise, business savvy, presence and charisma, communication and relationship-building skills, value delivered to customers and clients, and other factors all contribute to the overall potential productivity of the candidate. The network is just a part.
If you break down that part—the candidate’s business network—into its many component categories, you’ll start to get a sense for where the misunderstanding around the Rolodex emanates.
Leaving out the candidate’s true personal relationships, you’ve got their former bosses, former subordinates, former colleagues, former customers (with many different roles and responsibilities at different organizational levels), former business partners, and then all of those peoples’ “present” counterparts. For a salesperson with ten years of selling experience, you’d expect to see 300 to 500 people or, in some cases, many more.
Hirers want to know, “From contacts in their Rolodex, how many decision-makers, in my target market, can the candidate secure a meeting with?” But that’s not the right question. Here’s why: Depending on what your company sells, a candidate’s Rolodex may be worth little or even nothing.
For example, let’s say your company sells ERP (enterprise resource planning) software. Your candidate comes out of SAP, a large competitor. She’s been there for eight years, and did very well. She tells you she’s got access to CFOs, COOs and senior executives at a hundred Fortune 500 companies. Sounds great, right? Are any of those companies going to unplug their SAP installations and replace them with yours? Not likely. In addition, you can expect that salesperson to have considerably less access carrying a business card with your company’s logo than she did when she represented SAP. That’s just the way things are.
It’s very different for those selling professional services. Before my lawyer retired, he jumped from firm to firm. I stayed with him for the duration. I was an entry in his Rolodex and a valuable one at that.
So, the question should be, “From contacts in their Rolodex, how many decision-makers, in my target market, who could conceivably acquire my product within one year, can the candidate secure a meeting with?”
I’m not suggesting you ignore the Rolodex issue. Just look at it for what it really is in your unique situation.
Filed under: Hiring, Sales Strategy
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Well put. Taking it a step further wrt Linkedin, how much of that Rolodex is Web enabled and thus connected to 2nd and 3rd-level connections via Linkedin? Can the ex-SAP’er leverage the successful SAP installs into referrals for the new gig? Possible?
Sure, Mike. Possible. But the inference of the term “Rolodex” in the traditional sense means that if I sold directly to Jeffrey Immelt at GE before, there’s an expectation that I can secure a meeting with him as a representative of my new company.
I agree that the rolodex should be severely discounted in hiring. Good sales people are those that follow a deliberate process that will take them to the “right” contacts quicker than those that rely on past (possibly outdated) contacts. Is the salesperson organized, can he/she ask good questions, can they challenge a prospect with new ideas? These are more important.
Another good point from you, Keith. Thanks.
“From contacts in their Rolodex, how many decision-makers, in my target market, who could conceivably acquire my product within one year, can the candidate secure a meeting with?”
–very well put Dave.
I have seen it in spades that a rollodex is quickly out of date or not relevant to the new company/selling effort.
The most successful sales leaders spend as much time assessing competencies and qualifying what someone will sell rather than what they have done or who they know (knew).
Eliot Burdett.
http://www.peaksales.com/blog
Again you and I agree, Eliot. Thanks for the comment.
I agree. As a 20 year sales professional, the value of a good sales person has to be greater than his/her Rolodex.