Elijah Adams

What Qualities do Sales Managers look for in new Sales people?

When hiring new salespeople, what qualities are more important to sales managers?

Someone asked a Sales Manager, "What do you actually look for in a person trying to get into sales?" I happen to have just overheard a conversation that prompted me to start thinking about it. The real stuff, not the meaningless stuff on your resume.

Confidence? Passionate? Ability to coach? Grit?

It made me think... If you are a Sales Leader, what is it about particular individuals that makes them stand out to you, even if they have never successfully closed a deal before?

Put your thoughts down. This perspective could be useful to someone who is attempting to break in (and who could be reading this very moment).

Let's help the next group of viewers out.

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10 comments

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jefe

Arsonist

🍁

Coachability, willingness to learn, and drive.

Most everything else can come after those

CuriousFox

WR Officer

🦊

I just live for this gif 🦊

Gasty

Notable Contributor

War Room Community Manager

Efforts!! How much homework they did before the interview speaks a lot about the candidate. Plus if they're asking the right questions.

If they've never successfully closed a deal before, then that'll be a "?". Would deep dive to see if it's all making sense or not.

Mr.Lego

Big Shot

Sales Director.

Whenever I am hiring new sales people, I break it down into three areas.
1. Coachability: Can they take feedback, apply it quickly, and replicate the improvement? Are they curious and willing to ask questions? Truly coachable reps are confident enough to seek guidance and open enough to evolve. They want to be refined because they’re invested in becoming great.
2. Grit, Resilience and Positivity: While each of these could be their own point, these qualities are closely linked. Grit fuels resilience, and resilient reps usually show up with a positive mindset. They bounce back quickly from rejection, stay focused, and know that yesterday’s “no” gets them closer to tomorrow’s “yes.”
3. Organized: This one might spark debate, but in my experience, my most successful reps are also the most organized. I’ve always lived by the rule: “If it’s not in the CRM, it doesn’t exist.” Organization doesn’t just keep you on track, it shows self-motivation, attention to detail, and the follow-through needed to win deals and close gaps in the pipeline.
Bonus: Experience
I was hesitant to list this one but Experience can be helpful, but it’s not always essential. That is why I put it as a "bonus." Some of the best reps I’ve hired were recent grads or career changers. The only time it really matters is when a candidate has clearly learned how to build a pipeline, qualify rigorously, and let go of dead opportunities. Experience matters most when it translates into better judgment.

Hope this helps!

Really appreciate you sharing this it hits home. Coachability is huge, especially in fast-moving roles like sales. I’ve noticed the reps who stay curious and open to feedback grow the fastest. And that connection between grit, resilience, and positivity? Spot on. It’s not easy bouncing back from constant “no’s,” but having the right mindset makes all the difference. Also love the CRM reminder being organized might not be flashy, but it’s what keeps everything moving. This is a solid breakdown I’m definitely keeping in mind.

LambyCorn

Arsonist

A mfkn E

brilliant response, as someone who is in interview stages this is massively helpful
thank you!

medhardwaredr

Politicker

Director of Sales NA

Eagerness

F5onrepeat

Politicker

Sales minion

Being resourceful and the ability to self-motivate.
We don't always have time to find the answers for you whether it's a technical or product question. Need to be able to find/research those answers yourself.
Need to understand your 'why' and continue pushing yourself

TheHypnotist

Executive

1 - Trustworthiness.
2 - Desire to get the right result for the customer, not sell at any cost.
3 - Personal responsibility, as well as owning victory they will own defeat and execute a postmortem on mistakes to avoid making the same ones again. May also be called coachability / willingness to learn and try new approaches.
4 - Lifts / helps team members and does not feel the need to put others down
5 - Asks insightful questions designed to help others come to important realisations instead of "telling people what they should do".
6 - Initiative: they are motivated and do not need to be chased / pushed.

dualaces123

Opinionated

Account Executive

1. Would I buy from them?
2. Do they demonstrate the abilities I need from them in the job (can they close, do they follow up, do they try to engage other stakeholders, can they identify and create a champion, etc)?
3. Can they both take and implement constructive feedback?