Hire Right, Higher Profits: The Executive's Guide to Building a World-Class Sales Force

Hired and fired... It’s the revolving door on sales teams. Executives hire what they believe to be great salespeople, but the results never come – and the salespeople are let go. This perpetual cycle eradicates profits, makes revenue targets pipe dreams, and has sales leaders pulling out their hair in frustration.

Despite these issues, executives continue to try to "hire great salespeople." That three-word expression is exactly what Hire Right, Higher Profits is all about. Sales management strategist, Lee Salz begins the book by challenging readers with the $25,000 Revenue Test which most executives fail. Then, he hits readers between the eyes with the statement "there are no great salespeople" and offers proof of it! He also cautions those executives – who view the competition as their primary sales talent source – of its risks.

But Salz doesn’t stop there! He challenges executives to shift their perspective from hiring salespeople to investing in revenue. Each salesperson represents a revenue investment made by the company with the core objective of receiving a fast, high return on it – no different than when companies invest in sales strategies, tactics, and ideas to grow revenue.

Hire Right, Higher Profits teaches executives how to determine what type of revenue investment is needed, evaluate revenue investment candidates and get a fast, high return on the investment made in their new salespeople. The book is a step-by-step, practical guide teaching you how to implement the revenue investment concept – impacting both the top and bottom lines. It’s a fun, educational read and is chock-full of stories as you learn how to:

* Shift your executive team’s perspective from hiring salespeople to investing in revenue

* Identify the factors that affect revenue investment performance – the causes of a salesperson's success or failure in the role

* Assemble a Revenue Investment Evaluation Program to contrast candidates with the performance factors

* Scrutinize a Revenue Investment Prospectus – a salesperson’s resume – to get to the truth

* Evaluate candidates so you select the right salespeople for revenue investments

* Protect the revenue investment through structured sales onboarding

* Design sales onboarding curriculum to get a fast, high return on the new revenue investments

* Assess revenue investment performance both during and post-onboarding

The methodology presented in Hire Right, Higher Profits can be implemented in any company, in any industry, of any size. The book is not based on scientific studies, but rather on real-world, field-tested sales management practices that Lee Salz has developed and used for over twenty years with both his sales teams and for clients. Whether you are a seasoned executive or new sales manager, this book has everything you need to build a world-class sales force.

Lee B. Salz is a leading sales management strategist and expert in hiring and onboarding highly profitable sales forces. Through his sales management consulting firm, Sales Architects, Lee has helped hundreds of companies experience explosive growth through the migration of their sales teams from “people-based” to “process-based.” An expert in hiring, onboarding, management, coaching and compensation, he designs the programs companies need to cultivate and maintain high-performance sales forces.

In addition to Hire Right, Higher Profits, he is the author of three best-selling business books: Soar Despite Your Dodo Sales Manager (WBusiness Books, 2007), which won the silver medal in the Top Book Awards; Stop Speaking for Free! The Ultimate Guide to Making Money with Webinars (Business Expert Publishing, 2010); and The Business Expert Guide to Small Business Success (Business Expert Publishing, 2010).

He serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of Sales & Marketing Management magazine, is the host of the Sales Management Minute podcast series, and is the chairperson of the Sales Management Challenge executive skill-development program.

Lee was recognized as one of the Top 25 Sales Influencers by OpenView Labs in 2011 and 2012, and is a member of the Top 25 Online Influencers in Talent Management (HR Examiner 2011). His articles have been published in hundreds of websites and magazines. He's been interviewed on ABC News and MSNBC, and has been quoted and featured in many leading publications, including CNN, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Dallas Morning News, Selling Power magazine, and Sales and Marketing Management magazine.

To help companies implement the sales enablement methodology presented in Hire Right, Higher Profits, Lee launched The Revenue Accelerator® - a web-based, sales onboarding technology firm. The firm’s technology platform has been used to onboard thousands of salespeople – resulting in shorter ramp-up times, higher revenue production, and reduced sales turnover.

Lee is a results-driven consultant, dynamic speaker, and passionate entrepreneur. He lives in Minneapolis with his wife, three children, and two dogs. When he isn’t helping companies grow, Lee can be found on the baseball field coaching his kids or in the gym preparing for his next powerlifting tournament.

Lee can be reached for consulting or speaking at lsalz@salesarchitects.net