Episode 10: Onboarding your sales team remotely

In this podcast episode of “True Confessions of a Sales Leader,” we discover how sales organizations like yours can successfully onboard a team remotely. Our guest is Tom Whalen, director of inside sales at McKesson, who provides first-hand experience of how his team has accomplished this.

Here are three key Highlights from the podcast episode.

1. ‘Walk’ the floor, remotely 
Pre-COVID days, many inside sales organization leaders would walk the floor, check-in, or offer advice on sales calls for the day. Tom says his team still does this, virtually. With a simple morning roll call with all reps, new and existing, he offers a fun trivia question to get the conversation rolling that also provides structure. They also discuss any specials or strategy around extra inventory. It’s also a great way to build camaraderie and get to know your new team.

2. Implement virtual coaching 
Virtual coaching lets sales leaders keep their team connected and engaged and ultimately be more effective. So, how do you simulate the presence of a sales leader? Technology helps. Video-based practice and coaching platforms (e.g. rehearsal) support salespeople’s ability to practice and refine “moments-that-matter”, get feedback from their managers, and share best examples across the sales organization. Tom Whalen gathers his teams online through MS Teams on Mondays to discuss the week’s goals, then meet again on Friday to discuss results. These approaches let leaders know what’s happening on their teams but also offers structure. 

3. Create a process for onboarding 
For success, have a well-defined process to onboard new team members—recruit, train, and coach—and consider these elements:

• Figure out how much time is being spent on coaching. 
• Develop a high-performance learning journey for your new reps. This will help guide the conversation to where they are today to where you want to get them.
• Communicate and pay attention to the details. 
• After a few weeks ask for feedback and take that feedback to make the next round better. 
• Track and measure for understanding.  What do you want the rep to get out of this? Are they getting it? What can you do better?