My Favorite Candidate Did Not Score High on Drive! How is That Possible?

When recruiting “hunter” salespeople, hiring managers occasionally “fall in love” with a candidate with a great resume, who subsequently scores lower than expected on Drive.  It can be tempting to ignore the test results, and move forward anyway, trusting gut instincts over the diagnostics.  However, we ignore the warning of the test at our own risk.

Here are three common reasons this situation occurs, and the key to avoiding it:

1. The candidate has built up a great book of business over the years, but is more interested now in dialing back his/her work commitments.  The candidate may talk a good game during the interview process, but down deep, he wants to “retire on the job.”  Testing can be an effective way to uncover such a pattern and allow us to make an informed decision.
2. The candidate has worked for a larger company, whereby the brand recognition and collateral materials opened doors, allowing him to close more easily.  We need to be sure that the candidate’s Drive profile matches the requirements of our open position.
3. The candidate is a skilled interviewee.  The best sale you ever see out of the candidate may be in the interview.  He may certainly know how to sell . . . the question is whether he will sell after we have invested in hiring and training.

The key to avoiding “falling in love” with a candidate in the first place is to test him before the face-to-face interview (usually after the resume review and phone screen).  Testing early during the recruiting process keeps us objective and data-based, allowing us to invest our time and effort in candidates with higher potential.

Dr. Christopher Croner and Richard Abraham are authors of Never Hire a Bad Salesperson Again and developers of the proprietary and patented sales assessment test, The DriveTest™, for sales candidates. To experience the difference of the DriveTest, contact us today!