Let’s face it: everyone has flaws. Whether it’s things they are not good at, or personality traits that are a little annoying, everybody has something. If you’re one of those people who think they don’t have one, then that’s yours. At least one of them. But there is one trait that I see in the occasional manager that I find particularly off-putting. If you have a manager with this issue, changes are definitely in order. If you happen to be a manager with this trait, you better fix it because it’s a career killer.
I remember being in my late twenties and finally deciding it was time to get a real job. Get serious. Up until then I had been in school, then wholesaling cars, a bit of backpacking thrown in for good measure, but it was time to get my life started in some kind of direction. I had had earlier success selling used cars at a new car dealership, so that seemed like a good place to start. I went for an interview at a local Ford store. What I’ve learned since that time is that you have to be pretty horrible to not get a shot at selling cars at most car dealerships. If you can fog a mirror, you’re getting hired at tons of places. You may not survive but you will get a job. That’s partly because it’s hard to hire good people and it’s also because, quite frankly, it’s hard to spot a good salesperson. They come in all types.
At most car dealerships, you have to be pretty horrible to not get a shot at selling cars.
Anyway, back to my story. I was looking for a job selling used cars and was interviewing at a new car dealership in town. The used car manager… let’s call him Ed, because well his name was Ed, spent a ton of time talking to me. Easily an hour. I had experience. I was a top salesperson at another store years earlier. I had spent several years as a used car wholesaler. I knew the business. After the interview I thought, no brainer, got the job. Ed asked me when I could start. “Right away.” But no call. No offer. No job. I couldn’t figure it out. I thought… maybe I knew too much. In fact, at my next interview, which happened to also be selling used cars at a different Ford store, when the manager asked if I had experience selling cars I said, “Nope, but if you hire me, I guarantee I will sell you a ton of cars.” So, he did hire me. And I did sell a ton of cars. In fact, within six months I went from used car sales to New Car Manager and not long after became a general sales manager and so on.
I used to wonder why I didn’t get that job. Did I know too much? Was it because of my wholesale experience? But now I know, because I’ve seen it in manager after manager since. Ed was afraid I would take his job. Simple as that. He worried that hiring me would eventually result in his position being threatened. It’s a thing. Some managers actually avoid hiring people they view as too strong because they feel insecure about their own job. The more insecure they are, the worse salespeople they hire. If they accidently hire a really good one, then it’s under the bus they go at the first possible opportunity to do so.
Here is the simple truth. If you’re that manager who avoids hiring strong salespeople because you are afraid that they will threaten your job, then I’m afraid you have attained the level of your incompetence. You are destined to fail, because without strong people under you, you cannot move up. You cannot achieve. If you are afraid to share your knowledge with others, want to keep people in the dark so they can’t threaten you or your job, then you are just lost. Scared. Weak. A bad manager. Your career has stalled and unless you change you cannot get it back.
The most important part of any good sales manager’s job is team building.
The most important part of any good sales manager’s job is team building. Sharing your knowledge. Empowering. Mentoring. Helping. Leading. Creating great salespeople. That’s your job. If you’re going to be a sales manager, you need to have confidence in yourself and your abilities. Having strong people under you that generate results only reflects positively on you. Lifts you higher. Helps your career. It’s a lot like the coach of a team. It’s only the players' fault for a while. Sooner or later, it’s the coach. If the team performs badly over a long period of time, it’s management. In sports or in sales.
If you’re that manager who has a terrible team, that’s on you. If your team is terrible because you’ve avoided hiring quality people who might take your job, I’ve got news for you, it’s only a matter of time. If you’re that GM or Dealer who is looking at your sales team and thinking, “that’s one crappy sales team,” then look no further than the sales manager that hired them and is responsible for replacing them. Time to fire the coach.
Funny thing is, that same Ford Store recruited the crap out of me for a New Car Manager position only two years after Ed passed on giving me a job. I turned them down. It turns out it was crazy town anyway, so really, I dodged a bullet. It is the one lesson any good manager must learn eventually. You are only as good as the people under you. If they are weak, then so are you. Bottom line. Good luck and good selling.