The recruiting of candidates for technical sales positions is best accomplished by combining both traditional “official” and unofficial methods. The traditional, corporate human resources led methods will leverage a company’s web site, external recruiters, and any internal or external job posting web sites that the company uses. The unofficial methods used by the hiring manager should include professional networking sites such as LinkedIn, the managers’ network of technology sales professionals both within and outside the company, and contacts and recommendations from customers. Althought the latter method is typically more effective in finding qualified candidates, combining the two will provide the broadest coverage and ensure the deepest pool.

The traditional methods mentioned above enable the gathering of candidates who are not already known by the hiring managers or the managers’ network. These methods can be effective, but often run the risk of excluding very qualified (and sometimes preferred) candidates because, although the recruiting organization is provided with all of the desired qualifications for the role, their evaluation of the candidates may be limited to resume searches for key terms. The fact that the recruiters may not be directly involved in the business for which they are recruiting also makes it challenging for them to discern truly qualified candidates. This is common in large organizations and underscores the need for well constructed job descriptions based on knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs) resulting from analysis such as the approach recommended by Rosse & Levin in their “High Impact Hiring”. The unofficial recruiting method, driven directly by the hiring manager, can often be much more effective in not only getting qualified candidates in a more timely fashion, but getting candidates who are the right fit for the organization.

A recommended best practice for any manager is to always maintain a pool of contacts and candidates in case positions come available. This is often referred to as the “flow” method of recruiting and should be addressed as an element of succession planning. This is particularly true in technical sales, as very well qualified candidates typically come from former colleagues, customers, and “friends of friends”. These relationships enable the hiring manager to always have a few candidates in mind who understand the business and who may be looking to make a move. Customers can also be excellent sources of candidates and, if asked, will often provide names of individuals (some even from competitors) whom they enjoy working with and trust. Occasionally they will even recommend some of their current and former employees. The more trusted sources the hiring manager has for candidates, the better the candidate pool.