Sales Manager Skills Interview
Author:
Alycia Damp, PhD IRHRA Sales Manager interview assessing key skills required for success. We've also included a few motivation and values questions to help you make the best decisions about your candidates.
Focus area:
Question
1
Why are you interested in making a career move to our company as Sales Manager? How do you see this opportunity within the context of your career?
What does this question reveal?
Fit and motivation to join the company
Explore tips
- Is seeking an opportunity to grow by applying and developing multiple skills
- Wants to make a defined impact on others and the organization’s success
- Is motivated to add value to the company's culture and work environment
- Is passionate when discussing how this connects with their strengths/interests
Question
2
Communication skills are really important to this role. When it comes to that skill set, what aspect are you best at, and can you share an example of how you've done this in a previous role?
What does this question reveal?
Understand their strengths and how communication is critical to success
Explore tips
- Clearly highlights their specific strengths in communicating
- Shares key communication tactics (e.g. active listening, tailoring to audience)
- Uses evidence from past experience to justify their strengths
- Tailors response with examples relevant to the position and organization
Question
3
In your past experience, when have you had a difficult time understanding the nature of a customer's/colleague's concern? How did you navigate that conversation?
What does this question reveal?
Understanding complicated or ambiguous communications/concerns
Explore tips
- Exhibits patience and calmly asks questions to clarify understanding
- Repeats back what they hear to ensure their understanding is accurate
- Ensure they reach an understanding of the other's viewpoint
- Takes note of non-verbal cues to gauge other's emotions/respond appropriately
Question
4
How would you best organize your time to focus on existing versus new client relationships? Why?
What does this question reveal?
Foster current client relationships and gain new clients
Explore tips
- Considers the company’s values, targets and goals for its client base
- Understands that both farming and hunting are important for sales
- Uses CRM to plan and monitor relationships and inform time allocation
- Identifies accounts of key value to nurture and set boundaries for new clients
Question
5
What do you consider worse: not hitting monthly quotas or having unhappy customers? Why?
What does this question reveal?
Prioritize customers’ wants and needs
Explore tips
- Shows they would tailor their approach to customers’ wants and needs
- Considers the company’s goals, values and sales targets
- Prioritizes providing a good sales experience for customers
- Shows they can effectively balance competing priorities
Question
6
Imagine we hire you for the Sales Manager role. How would you go about keeping our sales team engaged?
What does this question reveal?
Engage with sales team to increase performance
Explore tips
- Coaches team on sales process/practices to achieve high performance standards
- Understands personal/professional goals of sales reps to motivate performance
- Fosters trust and open communication between all team members
- Recognizes failures and mistakes as opportunities for growth
Question
7
Imagine a month where your sales team is struggling to close deals. At the end of the month, the team is frustrated and stressed. How would you improve your team’s resilience?
What does this question reveal?
Bounce back from a bad sales day
Explore tips
- Shows they would maintain a level emotional response and a positive attitude
- Shows they would solicit feedback for how the situation could be improved
- Shows they would identify the issues preventing sales and develop a solution
- Shows they would maintain open communication and support with employees
Question
8
Give me an example of a time you negotiated with others/a client to reach a sale or business agreement. Why was the sale successful or unsuccessful? What did you learn from that negotiation?
What does this question reveal?
Analyze and gather key takeaways from negotiations
Explore tips
- Demonstrates an ability to adapt and problem-solve to find a solution
- Entered the negotiation well prepared with a target outcome based on research
- Builds rapport with all parties to ensure they felt supported and understood
- Uses strong ethical and moral principles to guide decision-making
Question
9
Imagine you are training a new employee on overcoming customer objections during the sales process. What tips would you give them?
What does this question reveal?
Address customer objections and negotiate sales
Explore tips
- Pays close attention to what the customer is saying to understand their needs
- Emphasizes importance of asking for sale
- Justifies the value of the product or service provided
- Uses evidence to show why the product/service is best (e.g., testimonials)
Question
10
Tell me about the last time you lost a sale or a lead you were trying to generate for the business. What did you learn from it?
What does this question reveal?
Update performance based on lost sales and apply learnings to future sales
Explore tips
- Demonstrates a willingness to learn from failure and not be deterred by it
- Identifies relevant the factors that prevented the sale from succeeding
- Considers how process/practice can be updated to prevent future losses
- Strives for perfection but is also realistic about what is in their control
Question
11
Imagine a scenario where the sales pipeline you implemented is not as effective between different members in the team. How would you identify and address the issue?
What does this question reveal?
Diagnose and address problems in the sales pipeline
Explore tips
- Considers whether reps are dropping inactive or dead leads that waste resources
- Determines root cause (e.g. inefficiencies, bad pricing/product, poor support)
- Reviews targets to ensure they are achievable and tracks progress
- Coaches reps who need performance improvements
Question
12
Can you give me an example of a time where you executed a sales strategy and your skills had an extremely positive impact on the company's revenue?
What does this question reveal?
Design effective strategic sales plans and decisions to drive company growth and revenue
Explore tips
- Designs sales startegy by considering the long-term needs of a business
- Shows ambition in their ability to impact performance and growth of the business
- Closely aligns their plans/actions with business development goals
- Considers past experiences as learning opportunities for sales function success
Question
13
Imagine you are working on developing a new sales or business development strategy. What company and industry information would you need to develop a feasible and effective plan, and what challenges would you anticipate?
What does this question reveal?
Apply industry knowledge to create a tailored sales strategy to reach sales goals
Explore tips
- Demonstrates understanding of key industry and company characteristics
- Suggests identifying the people, processes and resources that boost productivity
- Discusses capacity planning, quota allocation and territory design
- Discusses using valid data to back up the sales/business development plan
Question
14
Based on your past work history and professional experience, in what type of work environment were the happiest and most productive.
What does this question reveal?
Preferences for organizational culture and workstyle
Explore tips
- Discusses attributes that align with your organization
- References different organizational factors (people, place, work, etc.)
- Highlights the values that shaped the environment/culture
- Shares a story from past experience to support their claims
Question
15
What is one thing you wish I had asked you in our conversation today?
What does this question reveal?
Self-awareness of unique strengths and value-add
Explore tips
- Gives a response that is relevant to the role in question
- Justifies their suggestion by explaining their value-add
- Exhibits strengths that were not previously covered
