Whats been the most difficult obstacle you have ever overcome? Why was it difficult? What plan did you execute to get past it? Why do you believe you were successful? Based on your experience today, what might you have done differently?

Are you familiar with these questions? All of these questions focus on specific past behavior, and they come out of the structured behavioral interviewing technique, which I recommend for interviewing your sales candidates. Structured behavioral interviewing is a standardized way of getting information from candidates about their past behavior and performance. The premise of this interview technique is that past behavior is the best indicator of future behavior. According to Kathryn Neiner, principal with The Chrisa Group and an expert on employment interviewing, two reasons for using behavioral interviewing are:9

1. Its more valid than traditional interviews. Questions are designed to evaluate only competencies that have been shown through job analysis to be required for successful job performance. This prevents you from assessing irrelevant knowledge or skills.

2. When used properly, behavioral interviews reduce legal risks because all candidates are treated the same. Regardless of who conducts the interview, all candidates are asked the same questions, assessed against the same set of job-related competencies, and rated using the same method.

An effective structured behavioral interviewing program requires you to develop job-related competencies (which you developed in your job description), write behavioral questions about those competencies, and train interviewers to use the system. To institute this technique in your sales organization, dont hesitate to bring in outside consultants who will help you to identify the key behaviors of sales professionals in your organization. These consultants will rigorously detail the nature of the sales process and the behaviors that make an individual successful. For leads, ask your peers who they use and search for vendors via the Internet. Find 5 to 10 people who conduct interviewing workshops and talk with them on the phone, take a look at their materials and approach, and meet with them. If after meeting with the various vendors you find that you dont have the budget to work with an outside consultant, through conversing with the various salespeople and consultants, you will have already learned a great deal. You can use this insight to inform and guide your interviewing process.

Training

Professional services staff come to work every day wanting to play at the top of their game. Salespeople are no different, and the aggressive ones are

going to be demanding about what they need to deliver consistent, outstanding performance. It is your job to deliver on resources and training. Dont hesitate to give your people everything they need to succeed, if you believe they have the potential-and the heart and attitude-to be successful. Training is core to your job as a sales manager; and to a willing heart and mind, you can teach all the skills a person needs to succeed at selling. Although you cant make someone a superstar-you can help all of your professionals develop along the lines of skills, knowledge, and process.

Skills, Knowledge, and Process. Sales training needs to be focused on three core areas-skills, knowledge, and process. The skills component is behavioral; for example, the ability to communicate, listen, present, and negotiate are skills. The best training techniques for skills development are role-playing exercises, video training, and group work. Regardless of industry or company, sales-specific skills are universal and include:

Prospecting

Qualifying

Precall planning/strategy Engaging/probing

Closing

Knowledge is information and understanding, and the specific knowledge areas on which you train will be unique to your particular firm. The best training techniques for knowledge development are studying and reading, video training, e-learning, and experiential learning, for example, accompanying client service professionals to client meetings or client engagements. In the professional services industry, knowledge includes an understanding of:

The firm-its history, mission, and key strengths The key service lines, or practice areas, that you are selling The consultants, or intellectual property and capabilities, that you are selling

Sales professionals at FTI, for example, are trained on the core knowledge areas of litigation process, forensic/litigation, complex data, web hosting, and trial services; they are also trained to mine consultants or know who their key consultants are and what theyve delivered. In this way, when an existing or potential client has a specific area of inquiry, the sales professional can immediately identify the proper expertise.

In addition to skills and knowledge, process training is another core area for sales training. Process includes all of the structures, systems, or sales processes unique to your firm, for example, account management, running conflict checks, or using customer relationship management (CRM) systems.

The best training techniques for process training are case study review and experiential and workshop-based learning, in which you apply the processes you are supposed to be learning to your own scenarios.

The following sections detail FTIs training programs, which are designed to develop the sales organization along the skills, knowledge, and process lines detailed previously. The FTI training program begins with new hire Boot Camp and extends through the ongoing quarterly review process.

Boot Camp. Boot Camp is an organized training for new sales professionals. In keeping with its military meaning, Boot Camp is hard work; and to complete Boot Camp, new sales recruits must take responsibility for their own success. The duration of the training program is typically one week, and the goals of Boot Camp are threefold:

1. Training: Boot Camp delivers extensive training across skills, knowledge, and process areas. It provides new sales recruits with tips and tools to succeed.

2. Testing: Boot Camp identifies the best. Because of the intense nature of the training and the set standards that new recruits must meet, only those who are hungry will complete the training.

3. Team building: Boot Camp training brings new sales professionals together, forging a team bond.

The steps to establish a new Boot Camp training practice in your firm are:

1. Set the dates: Dependent on the hiring frequency of new sales professionals, determine set times each year when Boot Camp will be held, for example, quarterly or two times per year. Work to hire new sales professionals in groups, or waves, so that Boot Camp is their first introduction to the company.

2. Confirm a budget: Boot Camp training requires resources, but it can be done inexpensively. Expenses include travel and accommodations, facilities, trainers, curriculum development, and entertainment. To reduce your expense, before looking outside your firm for training resources, look into your salesforce to identify a professional who is an excellent mentor, is well-organized, and has demonstrated an interest in developing people. Reach out to this individual to see whether he or she would like to take a leadership role in running your Boot Camp; offer a flat quarterly fee for running the program. If you do not have an internal resource, ask your peers for trainer recommendations.

3. Locate a site: FTIs Boot Camp is conducted on-site. Some firms prefer to conduct this training off-site. The location is up to you and will be influenced by your training budget. In addition to the training facilities and technology capabilities of the site, consider the entertainment