Many sales organizations have a leaderboard. They rank salespeople by revenue, new accounts, profit, etc. Sometimes the idea is to acknowledge the leaders, and sometimes it's to shame the laggards. But a closer look is often quite revealing. Sometimes leaders are not the best salespeople after all.
Here are 4 advantages which might account for a leader's success:
1. Gimmes. The leader may be at the top because he has been given accounts by someone else. He may not have had to do the tough work of establishing a relationship or creating an opportunity. He is actually just doing a really good job of managing the accounts he has inherited. Being given growing accounts is great, but it doesn't necessarily make you a sales leader.
2. Better help. No salesperson should be ashamed of needing help to win a deal. If she needs her sales manager, VP or CEO to help her win a deal, it doesn't discount the work she did to position the opportunity. But some salespeople receive better help than others. Some have sales managers who are deeply engaged in coaching, developing and helping to create and win new opportunities. The reason some salespeople are lower in the rankings is because they aren't receiving the help they need.
