The Pitfalls of Promoting Good Salespeople To Sales Management Roles

When a company promotes a top-selling sales rep to a managerial role, it's often done on the principle of “disciple selling,” or the hope that the new manager will pass on their sales skills to their new team. Unfortunately, what often happens is the complete opposite of what the company is expecting. On paper it sounds like a great idea, but there are definitely a few potential pitfalls to watch out for.

Sales Figures May Take a Hit

A good salesperson is hard to replace, but to replace an exceptional one is all but impossible. If you promote your top seller, are you going to find that your sales figures take a significant hit? And what happens if your figures drop month after month? Whatever you're hoping to gain by promoting your top seller might be entirely negated if their replacement isn't up to scratch.

Changing the Team Dynamic

Strong sales teams aren't strong solely because they're made up of high-performing individuals. Team dynamics, or the way team members interact with one another, also plays an important role. Changing up the dynamics by promoting one team member can be a positive thing, but it's not guaranteed. Promoting a great salesperson who isn't well integrated within the team, for example, may result in a great deal of disruption. Team leadership training can help address these types of problems, but in the short-term the team's sales figures are likely to suffer.

A Good Salesperson isn't Necessarily a Good Manager

When you promote a good salesperson you don't just risk losing sales; you also risk the possibility that your excellent salesperson just isn't a good manager. The fact is, some of the qualities that make someone great in sales don't necessarily translate into good managerial skills.

In short, don't promote a salesperson purely on the basis of their sales figures. Make sure they also have the qualities you'd be looking for in a manager you would be hiring from outside the company. It is also key that the salesperson fully understands the difference between managerial skills and sales skills to be decide whether the position is for them, which is something that is often overlooked by companies in a rush to fill the position.

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