Sandler Research Center Survey Highlights Challenges for Sales Leaders in 2021

The Sandler Research Center surveyed sales leaders and sales managers in Q4 2020 to gauge the impact of the global pandemic on sales processes and operations across a variety of industries. We analyzed the results and released a complete report entitled Leading From the Front in Challenging Times. The report highlights several potential challenges for leaders who are committed to effective learning and development paths for sales professionals in 2021.

Specifically:

• 39.7% of sales leaders and managers reported that they have not received appropriate sales leadership training and development prior to starting a sales leadership role.

• A staggering 67.5% of sales leaders reported not having received any training whatsoever on how to lead remotely – an increasingly important priority. The situation was even more concerning for sales leaders in small and mid-sized business (those with annual revenues under $500 million). These leaders were between 9% and 15% less likely to have received even the most basic training in remote leadership than their peers in larger companies.

• A total of 42% of frontline sales professionals, according to the survey, have not been adequately trained in remote selling.

These three results suggest that there is a significant gap between where sales leaders are right now and where they know they need to be in terms of their commitment to training and development for the sales team.

Here are some resources from Sandler that can help close that gap:

• Download a free chapter from David Mattson’s new book for sales leaders, Scaling Sales Success, here.

• To get the latest insights on remote sales leadership skills, check out this powerful How to Succeed at Remote Leadership podcast.

• To learn more about effective prospecting strategies in the era of video meetings, take a look at this online course, 21st Century Prospecting.

To get your own copy of the Sandler Research Center report Leading from the Front in Challenging Times, click here.