Many companies go through periods of time where they need to hire a large volume of sales representatives, and they need to do it as quickly and efficiently as possible. Companies are often unable to keep up with these large hiring demands due to lack of process, resources and even time. Whether this need is due to business growth, high turnover environments, or a start-up business, the longer it takes to fill these sales roles, the more money they’re missing out on. In order to be successful when these hiring needs occur, companies should use the following steps to set up a process for success.
1. Assign a Dedicated Resource
The first step is to assign a dedicated resource to manage the ongoing process. Without this resource, you will experience peaks and valleys in hiring due to lack to focus and attention. If you are unable to assign someone internally, consider a recruiting firm that specializes in this type of search.
2. Set Monthly Hiring Goals
The next step is to set up monthly hiring goals. The best way to figure out your monthly hiring goals is to work backwards from your end goal. Start with the number of hires you want to make per month. Once you’ve come up with this number, you then need to figure out the number of finalists you need to achieve this goal. At a minimum, you need 4 finalists per hire. Finally, you need to calculate how many interviews are required to achieve your number of finalists. At a minimum, you need 5 interviews to find one finalist.
For example, I need to make 5 hires for the month of July. Therefore, I need a total of 20 finalists (4 per hire). In order to find 20 finalists, I need to set up 100 interviews (5 interviews per finalist).
3. Define Candidate Requirements and Screening Questions
A crucial part of the process is to define the minimum candidate requirements and to set up specific screening questions. Setting up these requirements and questions ensures that everyone in the hiring process is on the same page and making their decisions based on what was defined. If these requirements aren’t clearly defined, you will end up wasting time by interviewing finalists that are not what you were looking for.
4. Ensure You Have Enough Recruiters In Place
After setting up your monthly hiring goals, you can get a better idea of what it will take to achieve your monthly hires. A goal of 5 hires per month can yield over 100 interviews alone. Make sure you have a dedicated team and enough recruiters so that it’s possible to make your numbers and not fall behind.
5. Utilize Various Candidate Sources
Part of making your monthly hiring numbers is making sure you have a steady flow of potential candidates. Just like salespeople need to use a wide variety of techniques to reach prospective clients, recruiters need to have access to many sources of potential candidates. These sources can include job boards, advertisements, and even cold calling databases of competitors or similar industries. If you’re having trouble utilizing these sources, consider using a recruiting firm that has access and the skills to use these tools.
6. Measure Activity and Results
As you’re going through this hiring process, make sure to measure your activity and results against your targets. This is extremely important so you know where to adjust resources and your approach as you continue the process. For example, you might need to increase the number of recruiters to meet your goals, or you might adjust your monthly goals based on the amount of resources you have available.
Having an ongoing hiring process will ensure you won’t be caught off guard the next time you need to hire a large volume of sales representatives. Not only will this process save you time and effort, it will also make sure you capitalize on the total revenue opportunity available.
What is your current process for hiring large volumes of sales reps?
