sales people - psych press · driving sales starts with top sales people. ......

Psych PressTalent Management Psychologists

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Sales PeopleDriving sales starts with top sales people

Copyright © 2013 Psych Press 2

IntroductionConfidentialityThis is a highly confidential document. It is provided to thecompany or executive named on the coversheet on the basisthat it is accepted and recognised as confidential and thatsuch confidentiality will be strictly maintained.

It should therefore only be read by senior staff specificallyinvolved with the selection, promotion or development of theperson named, and stored securely with minimum access.

If such responsibility is not accepted, or the need for the reportor the organisational relationship with the individual concernedceases, the report should be returned to Psych Press ordestroyed. In a recruitment context, reports on unsuccessfulcandidates should be deleted.

Should a report be required at a later date, it can be obtainedwithout further cost from Psych Press archives.

PurposeThe report has been written specifically for a sales related roleand this purpose has determined the manner in whichinformation has been conveyed, the interpretation providedand the conclusions drawn. Therefore it should not be used forany other purpose as the information and results are likely tobe inaccurate and misleading within a new context.

Therefore it is a condition of the provision of this report that itwill not be provided to the individual concerned. The risk of itsmisinterpretation and the possible consequences for thoseinvolved require that the information be provided in anappropriate form and context.

FeedbackPsych Press recognises the ethical responsibilities to bothcandidate and client and will always provide appropriatefeedback to the individual concerned. Either telephone orface-to-face discussion can provide informed professionalfeedback on the assessment results within the context ofpersonal and career development.

Cross validation of OutcomesThis assessment report provides objective and independentinformation on a candidate's personality attributes inrelationship to a sales related role, which may not be availablefrom other sources. However such data should always be usedto complement and not substitute for information obtainedfrom other sources. Best practice and legal obligations requirethat decisions be made from a synthesis and assessment ofinformation acquired from different sources and not on thisreport alone. Psych Press can assist and advise in thedevelopment of other data sources such as structuredinterviews, referee reports, bio-data and the validation of thisdata against competencies relevant to job performance or roledevelopment.

Ongoing SupportPsych Press offers continuing support in the use ofpsychometric information. Clients are invited to discuss theissues flowing from this report at either an individual ororganisation level.

For further information on understanding and interpreting this report, please refer to the section headed 'General Information forInterpreting this Report' at the end of this document.


RationaleCurrent theory supports the observation that success metricsin a business can be approached through three sources ofcompetitive advantage: financial, technological or humanresources. The intellectual capital of human resources is theprimary and most valuable asset for an organisation (Cook,1988). As sales are the lifeblood of any revenue-seekingorganisation (Subhani et al., 2011) it is imperative tounderstand the psychological factors impacting upon salessuccess, and to predict sales performance, reduce selectionerror and increase profit and revenue. Reviews of thepsychological literature have identified personality as one offive effective predictors of sales performance (personality,bio-data, demographics, sales knowledge and sales attitude)(Charan, 2008; Barrick & Mount, 1991; Shippman, Switzer andRoth, 1988).

Thus for any organisation, the selection of the candidate that isthe 'best fit' is of critical importance. Studies havedemonstrated that valid selection practices are also crucial incontributing to considerable financial savings for anorganisation (Hunter & Hunter, 1984; Compton & Nankervis,1991). Such selection practices can impact directly on outputquality and quantity at the individual, group and organisationallevel.

Sales are related to wealth and opportunity creation at both acommercial/organisational level as well as a personal/careerdevelopment level. At the organisational level, understandingsales drivers contributes toward the commercial success of anorganisation – in both revenue and profitability. At anindividual level such insights and predictive ability will assist anorganisation to appropriately develop the careers of theirsalespeople with initiatives firmly based on applied behaviouralresearch.

The Saleable™™ profile provides personality data tounderstand Mr. Sample's potential for success in a salescontext. Both strengths and development needs are identifiedand related to effectiveness in a sales role.

The Saleable™ profile is based upon research examining thelink between personality traits and sales success. Relevantresearch has been examined to indicate which personalitytraits are most often associated with sales success. Results forthese traits are clearly defined and explained in the context ofa universally recognised sales cycle (Dubinsky, 1980), in orderto be easily interpretable - in commercial terms. The salescycle consists of seven stages from prospecting to making thesale to gaining referrals from valued customers.

The relationship between the identified traits and salessuccess has been explored with individual companies indifferent industries, and in general terms across all industriesfor respondents involved in sales in order to ensure itspractical value.

These seven stages have been condensed into three activities:


Executive Summary

SETTING A STRATEGY LOW AVERAGE HIGH

GOAL ORIENTATION

PLANNING

INITIATING CONTACT LOW AVERAGE HIGH

EXTROVERSION

PROACTIVITY

SELF-CONFIDENCE

DISCOVERING RESPONDING TO NEEDS LOW AVERAGE HIGH

AWARENESS

MOTIVATION

SUCCESS FOCUSED

MANAGING OBJECTIONS LOW AVERAGE HIGH

ASSERTIVENESS

COLLABORATIVE

PERSISTENCE

CLOSING LOW AVERAGE HIGH

COMPETITIVENESS

ENSURING SATISFACTION LOW AVERAGE HIGH

RELAXED STYLE

TEAM PLAYER

MANAGEMENT GROWTH AND REFFERALS LOW AVERAGE HIGH

MANAGERIAL


Response Style IndexUnusual results on any of these scales may suggest that candidates are responding randomly, attempting to present themselves in anartificially favourable light, entering artificially moderate responses or otherwise failing to complete the assessment in a complete andaccurate manner. Conscious and unconscious distortions in self-report data may be grouped into several categories, each of which isaddressed by the scales interpreted below.

SOCIAL DESIRABILITY

Social Desirability Score

LOW AVERAGE HIGH

INFREQUENCY

Infrequency Score

LOW AVERAGE HIGH

CENTRAL TENDENCY

Central Tendency Score

LOW AVERAGE HIGH

EXTREME SCORES

Extreme Scores Score

LOW AVERAGE HIGH

SOCIAL DESIRABILITY

SCORE : 8 %ILEMr. Sample ranked in the lower range on the Social Desirability measure.This suggests that he responded to the questionnaire items with littleconsideration for what he thought other people would expect him to say.

INFREQUENCY

SCORE : 1 %ILEMr. Sample ranked in the lower range on the Infrequency measure. Thisindicates that he appears to have considered each question and respondedthoughtfully, as his response pattern is quite consistent with the norm, andshows little evidence that he may have been responding to items in arandom fashion.

CENTRAL TENDENCY

SCORE : 11 %ILEMr. Sample ranked in the lower range on the Central Tendency measure.This indicates that his response pattern shows very little tendency towardsconstantly selecting the 'middling' response, such as 'sometimes', 'yes andno', or 'no more or less'. This suggests that he is likely to have beendecisive and committed in his response patterns, with little or nofence-sitting.

EXTREME SCORES

SCORE : 35 %ILEMr. Sample ranked in the average range on the Extreme Scores measure.This indicates that his response patterns showed some evidence ofselecting 'extreme' scores (e.g. ones or fives on a five-point scale) moreoften than might normally be expected. This suggests that he may havesometimes chosen stronger responses than he actually believes, but nomore so than average respondents might.


Personality Profile IndexPersonality assessments measure the candidate's relatively stable preferences for certain behaviours and give insight into how theirdispositions will fit into your sales team and how much of a benefit they will be to your organization's goal of increasing revenue and growth.Personality scores should be interpreted as the individual's preferred style of action in the sales environment.

The following graphs represent the individual's scores on a continuum from low to high. The characteristic corresponding with a low score islisted to the left of the graph, whilst the characteristic corresponding with a high score is listed to the right of the graph. If an individualscores high, the bar will be approaching the characteristic on the right, indicating the individual's preference for that type of strategy orbehaviour. If the individual scores low, their scores reflect an individual preference for the characteristic on the left, and the bar will endcloser to the left side of the continuum.


SETTING A STRATEGY

SHORT TERM FOCUS GOAL ORIENTATION

SPONTANEITY PLANNING

INITIATING CONTACT

INTROVERSION EXTROVERSION

HESITANCE PROACTIVITY

UNCERTAINTY SELF-CONFIDENCE

DISCOVERING RESPONDING TO NEEDS

BLUNTNESS AWARENESS

RELAXED APPROACH MOTIVATION

DISTRACTIBLE SUCCESS FOCUSED

SETTING A STRATEGY

GOAL ORIENTATION : 99 %ILEMr. Sample has scored in the high range on theGoal Orientation scale, suggesting that he is ahighly goal-oriented individual who knows what heis working towards and strives for it. It is alsolikely that he is able to keep the goals ofprospective customers in mind, and provide aclear and persuasive framework that fits the goalsof both customer and supplier. Such scores tendto indicate an individual who is not easilydistracted from their objectives, whether they besurpassing an annual sales target or convincing aprospect to take a product catalogue.

PLANNING : 72 %ILEMr. Sample scored in the high range on thePlanning scale, suggesting that he is able toeffectively plan his approach to prospecting andhow he will approach each potential customer. Ahigh planning score indicates that he will be highlyorganized and prepared for presentations or salespitches most of the time, and he should be viewedas thorough and dependable, and generally assomeone who can follow through on theircommitments.

INITIATING CONTACT

EXTROVERSION : 50 %ILEMr. Sample obtained an average score on theExtraversion scale, indicating that he will display hishighest levels of confidence in sales when dealingwith familiar colleagues and clients. Mr. Sample islikely to possess a reasonable level of energy whenit comes to interacting with clients and colleagues.He is likely to perform well in sales roles wherethere is a moderate degree of interaction with clientsand colleagues.

PROACTIVITY : 92 %ILEMr. Sample has scored in the high range on theInitiative scale, which indicates that he is anenterprising individual who is quite capable ofbuilding new client contacts from scratch. He islikely to devise and act on new and inventiveapproaches to prospecting, and should bemotivated to contact prospective buyers with aminimum of prompting. Whatever the project orproduct, he may be expected to get out there andmake the product (and themselves) known in themarketplace.

SELF-CONFIDENCE : 90 %ILEMr. Sample scored in the high range on theSelf-Confidence scale, which indicates that he isquite certain of his ability to influence salesoutcomes when given the chance to do so. Highlyself-confident individuals like Mr. Sample seethemselves as effective individuals who are able todirect sales situations, and this confidence iscommunicated to prospective clients through theircertain and reassuring manner. He should be ableto make good contact with customers, and speakcredibly and convincingly throughout the salesprocess.

DISCOVERING RESPONDING TO NEEDS

AWARENESS : 16 %ILEA low score on the Personal Diplomacy scaleindicates that Mr. Sample will experience difficultyin managing his emotions, and adapting hisapproach to suit various customers. He is likely tobe perceived as very direct in his communication,and while some customers will appreciate this,others may find it somewhat confronting. He maylack insight into modifying his own behaviours tosuit the client, which may have a negative impacton his engagement with customers. Mr. Samplemay particularly struggle to maintain a politedemeanour when working with difficult or belligerentcustomers.

MOTIVATION : 47 %ILEMr. Sample has scored in the average range on theMotivation scale, suggesting that he is reasonablywell-motivated to perform well in his work. Asprospecting often gives little in the way ofreinforcement, his moderate levels of motivationshould be enough to see him through mostchallenging times, while maintaining the drive towork hard and achieve objectives. While hismotivation is likely to suffer in particularlychallenging prospecting situations, he shouldgenerally be able to deal with the challenges of therole, and remain enthused enough to interacteffectively with prospective buyers.

SUCCESS FOCUSED : 20 %ILEMr. Sample scored in the low range for the SuccessFocus scale, which suggests that he may facedifficulties with keeping his sales goals in mind. Hemay tend to focus more on the process of selling, orengaging with new customers, and sometimesforget to single-mindedly pursue the end goal ofsuccessfully making a sale. He may be particularlysusceptible to distractions, and would benefit fromregular reminders about his sales and performancegoals.


MANAGING OBJECTIONS

TIMIDNESS ASSERTIVENESS

DIRECTIVE COLLABORATIVE

SELF-CONCERNED PERSISTENCE

CLOSING

CONTENTMENT COMPETITIVENESS

MANAGING OBJECTIONS

ASSERTIVENESS : 89 %ILEMr. Sample's high score on the Assertivenessscale indicates that he is a forthright person, whois able to communicate effectively in a variety ofsales environments. As an assertive salesperson,he should be able to efficiently share ideas andinformation with others, and provide feedbackwithout being aggressive or upsetting customers.He is also unlikely to be intimidated by aggressiveor belligerent customers, and should be capableof holding his ground in a calm and level-headedmanner.

COLLABORATIVE : 11 %ILEA low score on the Collaboration scale indicatesthat Mr. Sample may prefer to give directions toclients and colleagues rather than work inconjunction with them. A low score does notnecessarily imply uncooperativeness, but mayinstead indicate a need for independence in hiswork. Being quite individualistic, Mr. Sample maynot give as much weight to the suggestions ofclients/colleagues. He may be a tough negotiator,willing to argue for his desired outcomes and lesswilling to settle for a win-win solution. He shouldbe very capable of making decisionsindependently, and should enjoy working in salesroles that promote autonomy. He may be lesssatisfied working in sales environments requiringextensive cooperation and compromise.

PERSISTENCE : 94 %ILEA high score on the Persistence scale, asobtained by Mr. Sample, indicates that he shouldremain calm, relaxed and resolved regardless ofany stressful situations encountered during thecourse of the sales process. He should cope wellwith various setbacks, persevere despiteresistance from customers, and manage tomaintain concentration and remain focused onchanging a 'no' into a 'yes'. Mr. Sample shouldalso be able to handle higher levels of frustrationthan most others.

CLOSING

COMPETITIVENESS : 16 %ILEA low score on the Competitiveness scaleindicates that Mr. Sample is more likely to holdmore of a preference for job security, reliability,and a healthy work-life balance than for prestigeand advancement in his work. He is likely to besatisfied with managing sales opportunities in asatisfactory fashion rather than fulfilling the salesrole in a way that exceed expectations. He maysometimes show low levels of drive to fulfilrequirements of the sales role, and may avoidcompetitive situations. Mr. Sample would be bestsuited to sales roles which involve responding tocustomer requests, or otherwise do not require acompetitive edge to perform effectively.


ENSURING SATISFACTION

TENSENESS RELAXED STYLE

WORKS ALONE TEAM PLAYER

MANAGEMENT GROWTH AND REFFERALS

SUBORDINATE MANAGERIAL

ENSURING SATISFACTION

RELAXED STYLE : 91 %ILEMr. Sample scored in the high range on theRelaxed Style scale, suggesting that he shouldremain calm and perform effectively even whenfaced with stressful situations. He should be ableto choose his words carefully when dealing withdifficult clients or other stakeholders, and retain adegree of calmness even when customers arebeing rude or offensive, which will serve him wellin developing positive relationships with clients.

TEAM PLAYER : 50 %ILEAn average score on the Team Player scaleindicates that Mr. Sample shows some flexibilityin his desire to work with others. He may prefer towork with a group for some sales projects/tasks,and prefer to work alone for others. He does notordinarily experience any difficulty workingalongside others, and is likely to perform equallywell in a group context as alone. In situationswhere there is pressure to complete tasks quickly,he may prefer to work alone.

MANAGEMENT GROWTH ANDREFFERALS

MANAGERIAL : 78 %ILEMr. Sample scored in the high range on theManagerial scale, meaning he should becomfortable with taking on roles of leadership andmanagement within the sales team. This couldinvolve effectively directing the sales activities ofothers, or simply managing his own time andresources to perform efficiently in the sales role.He is likely to be able to gain the support ofco-workers, and use this to help accomplishorganizational goals and objectives.

Further InformationFor additional information regarding the practicality, theoretical background, administration, and scoring Saleable™ assessment,refer to the Saleable™ manual. This resource should also assist you in further interpreting the candidate's results detailed in thisreport. Additionally, do not hesitate to contact a Psych Press representative via email [email protected] phone +61 3 96700590 or fax +61 3 9642 3577.

mailto:[email protected]


General Information for Interpreting thisReportThis report provides objective self-report information on thecandidate's suitability for sales roles. It is based on researchexamining the link between personality and sales success. Theinformation provided gives an understanding of the candidatespreferred approach to sales within a universally recognisedsales cycle and enables an objective comparison with othercandidates and a normative group. The results can promoteuseful discussion and consideration of suitability whencompared and contrasted with other selection data.

Individuals do not "pass or fail" on personality dimensions -preferences are simply compared with a relevant populationgroup to assist selection, performance management or careerdevelopment decisions.

The results presented in this report are expressed in terms of apercentile (%) score for each test or questionnaireadministered. A percentile is a score below which a certainpercentage of the members of a selected sample group fall.For example, when using an Australian adult sample as acomparison group, the 78th percentile is that score belowwhich 78 percent of the total group falls.

Specific Population ComparisonsA general adult sample is only one reference group againstwhich an individual's scores can be compared. Since clientcompanies often need or may wish to compare individualperformance to their own company data or to an industry orspecific sales sample, Psych Press can build or provide suchnormative data for comparison purposes wherever possible.

InterpretationPercentile scores can be misleading if small differencesbetween individuals' scores are interpreted as implyingsignificant differences in suitability or work performance.

Score RangesTo avoid misinterpretation, score ranges are used to groupscores and relate them to a "normal curve of distribution". Putsimply, this means that on any assessment where an individualis compared with a large comparison group, a greater numberof people will fall in the “middle” or average range than ateither end of a particular scale. This is reflected in thepercentile ranges as shown below.

The contents of this confidential report are designed to be readby managers who are either experienced or trained in the useof psychologically based decision support tools.

The report is based upon objectively derived information and isexpressly intended to be used in conjunction with otherelements of recruitment or development information such asinformation derived from resumes or CV's indicating previouswork history and achievements, interview data, referencechecking, and perhaps assessment centre and/or bio-datainformation. Such sources of data, combined with professionaljudgement, allow the statements contained in this report to beviewed as professional opinion which can be compared andvalidated against other relevant sources of information.Interpretive statements should not be considered in isolationto this complementary information and the purpose for whichthe report was written.

Here it can be seen that the spread of scores within eachrange moves from a narrow band at each end of the scalethrough to a broader central 'average' band as scoresapproach the Average category. When used to interpret certainoccupational interests and personality scales scores do notrefer to a specific aptitude or ability, but rather are an indicatorof preference, liking or opinion in comparison to a group ofpeople.

Psych Press uses a basic score range for ability percentile scores:91st - 99th percentile – Superior performance63rd - 90th percentile – Above Average performance37th - 62nd percentile – Average performance10th - 36th percentile – Below Average performance1st - 9th percentile – Poor performance

About this Sample Report This document is intended for example

purposes. For enquiries or to organise a

permanent branded platform to be setup for

your upcoming hiring campaigns speak to

Dr. Gavin Didsbury on +61 3 9670 0590 or

email [email protected]


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