It is one of the things that has always made me smile – the job advert which simply say ‘Business Development Manager, South West, Profile Sales’, well that’s okay then isn’t it, what could be more simple?
The fact is someone who on the surface of it might fit these three criteria, could easily be the most unsuitable person for the role in real terms.
Being in the right location, nominally fitting the outline job title, and being in the particular sector mentioned is no guarantee that the person you are looking for is right there and ready to start.
There are so many factors to consider when trying to identify someone with the right profile to work in your business – basic skills, of course, the right personality to carry out the job, and most crucially someone who can fit into your culture.
I have been a part of so many sales teams in the past where a new arrival is announced to the team and you just know they are not the right fit. More than anything else these days – the ability to fit into your team culture is the key ingredient. It is this ability which helps not only the new starter, but crucially all the existing personnel with whom they will be working to form a team and through that team ethic to deliver for the benefit of the company.
A great sales person will not deliver on their potential if they don’t have the support of the rest of the team; more so they will upset the team dynamic in the business and cause negative performance results as a consequence.
I am a big believer in TEAM – those who know will have heard me say on more than one occasion ‘Together Everybody Achieves More’ – it is one of those horrible acronyms I know, but the message is incredibly simple and very true.
So the key message from me for any employers looking to take on new staff is to be very mindful of the culture of your company and the need to find the right person to fit into it – lesser skills being used by someone working as a part of a team will deliver more than great skills acting in isolation.
It is why my passion for the Pace project is so great – the team dynamic is really important to me and I want to play my part in ensuring that the people we source for our clients really meet their needs in every sense – not just the fact that they are a BDM in profile sales in the South West!