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Hello, I am Steve Suggs, sales recruiting expert and author of the book, Can They Sell.
Welcome to my sales recruitment video blog where you learn to hire the best sales people.
While coaching sales managers, I’ve found that the reference check is the most commonly
overlooked step in the process of hiring salespeople. Managers tell me that they don't check references
because the candidate will only give references who will say great things about them, or it's
impossible to get references to talk to you because of their fear of a lawsuit. Both of
these are legitimate reasons, but I’ve discovered a way to get over both of these hurdles and
get six references to talk to me about the candidate. I’ve even had two Wal-mart executives
give me a reference for a candidate using this method that I'm about to show you. Here's
the reference check method. It's important that you follow every step, because each step
builds on the previous step. Also, this method is not only a way to get six references who
will talk to you, but it's also an assignment for the candidate to test their ability to
follow instructions, follow up on important tasks, and measure how badly they want the
job. Step 1–tell the candidate to provide you with six references in these three categories:
2 former bosses, 2 former coworkers, and 2 former customers. The coworkers should be
people with whom they worked closely on a daily basis. Not people who reported to them
or people to whom they reported, but coworkers with whom they work side-by-side. If you’re
recruiting someone without sales experience, ask them for two business people in the community
who can vouch for them. Step 2 - Tell the candidate that you want six people, that when
you call them, they will say great things about you. If you're thinking that this step
sets the candidate up for success, you are going to be surprised as to how many candidates
fail this step of the test. Strong candidates will give you six references in the three
categories you have requested and will call the references and alert them to the fact
that you will be calling them and will tell them to please say great things about them.
On the other hand, weaker candidates provide fewer than six references, multiple references
in the wrong categories, and they don’t even take the time to call the references
to make sure phone numbers work and to alert the reference that you’ll be calling. If
a candidate cannot follow this simple assignment, it's typically a good sign that they’re
not serious about a career, nor will they be capable of completing much harder job tasks
that you will be giving them the first week on the job. For those candidates who follow
your instructions, you now have six individuals who will talk to you with permission from
the candidate. So we've gotten over the first hurdle of finding people who will talk to
us. We get over the second hurdle of only hearing the good things about the candidate
by having great questions prepared to ask the referral source. Ask questions like: What
were they hired to do? Why did they leave? What positive words of reference do you have?
What were their best qualities as a salesperson? In what areas do they need the most development?
Would you rehire them? And, there are many others. For a complete reference check questionnaire
please visit CanTheySell.com. These questions warm up the referral source for more direct
questions. By the time I get to the reference check, I've interviewed the candidate over
the telephone, they’ve completed an e-mail questionnaire, and I’ve conducted a face-to-face
interview with detailed questions regarding the 5 dimensions of top salespeople. By now,
I have a pretty good idea of the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses. I now use a technique
that I learned from the TV detective, Columbo. While interviewing a suspect, when he wasn't
getting the detailed information that he wanted, he would turn to leave the room, place his
hand on the doorknob, and before turning the doorknob, he would turn to the suspect and
say, “Oh, By the Way I have one more question.” This “Oh By the Way question” was always
an important question that usually revealed the truth. So, after I've warmed up the referral
source with a few of my standard reference check questions, I throw out the “Oh, By
the Way question”. “How well did Ted manage his time?” “How well did Ted get along
with others?” “Can you trust everything that Ted tells you?” Before the phone call,
I simply write down some questions related to the potential weaknesses that I have observed
in the candidate up to this point in the interview process. Most of the time, the referral source
says good things about the candidate, and many times will give additional information
about some of the challenges the candidate has. These challenges may not be things that
are significant enough that you wouldn’t select the candidate for the job, but the
information from the referral source is information that you will need for coaching and training.
Remember, it's not always what people say when they answer these questions, but more
importantly, how they say it. Pay attention to the tone of their voice. Do they hesitate
before they answer, because they may be trying to not reveal a weakness in the candidate.
Notice the difference between things like, “Ted gets along well with everyone” vs.
“Yes, Ted pretty much gets along with almost everyone.” You'll be surprised that once
you get someone on the telephone who has been asked by the candidate to give a reference
what they will tell you about the candidate. Sometimes, you simply get lucky. I once had
a candidate who gave me a reference, and I happened to know the reference personally,
and when I called him, the first thing out of his mouth was, “Oh your interviewing
crazy Kathy.” Wow, did I get lucky. Here are two additional questions that will give
you more insight to the strength and weaknesses of the candidate: “Who are two other people
that I could call, who will say great things about Ted?” Then ask for someone that Ted
worked with that he didn't get along well with. How quickly the referral source gives
you two other names that will say great things about Ted is an indication of his strength
as a candidate. If the referral source says something like, “I really can't think of
anyone that Ted didn't get along well with.” Versus something like, “Well, Ted pretty
much got along with just about everyone.” Or, “I’m not really comfortable giving
out names like that.” Remember, it’s not always what they say when giving you more
names to call, but how they say it. Keep in mind, that it's important to give the candidate
these exact instructions. How well they follow the instructions is a test which will measure
many character and personality traits. Also, this method will give you the opportunity
to talk to six people who will give you surprising information about the candidate. When hiring
salespeople, check the references using this method so that you don't rob yourself of the
opportunity to possibly get important information about the candidate that will help you make
an important hiring decision. Thank you for joining me. See you next time on the Can They
Sell video blog for more sales job recruitment training. As always, please leave your comments
below and forward this video to anyone who will benefit. Now go enjoy recruiting the
best, and have fun while checking references.