The influence of Onboarding on sales performance

“Recruiting the right person for the right job is good; keeping them is better.”

What’s behind this common sense?

First, a matter of cost: recruitment is expensive.

A successful recruitment that results in a separation within the first year is even more expensive!

The replacement of a failed hire represents between 30% and 400% of his or her annual salary, depending on the job in question (Source: Talent Management & HR).

Second, let’s be positive and look at the short and long-term benefits of successful onboarding.

Benefit n°1: it allows for a quicker start-up.

Valued by the reception and support during his first steps in his function, the sales person is put in confidence and he takes more quickly in hand his objectives.

While on average it takes an employee between 6 and 8 months to become operational, successful onboarding can reduce this time to 4 months.

Benefit #2: It promotes retention which naturally benefits your sales.

According to a Welcome To The Jungle survey, 45% of sales resignations occur in the first year, whereas 3 years later, 58% of employees who benefited from a good onboarding are still present in the company (Workelo survey).

With a sales force in place for a long time, a lasting commercial relationship is created, based on proximity.

Good customer knowledge, mastery of offers and sales processes promote deployment and up-selling within an account, which can lead to an increase in revenue of 15 to 25%.

Benefit #3: It guarantees high productivity thanks to the happiness of the feeling of belonging.

Successful onboarding improves overall team productivity by 70% and the chances of new hires staying by 82%, according to a Glassdor study.

In 2019, an in-depth study on happiness and productivity found that workers are 13% more productive when they are happy. The research was conducted in the contact centers of British telecommunications company BT over a six-month period by Jan-Emmanuel De Neve (Saïd Business School, University of Oxford), George Ward (MIT) and Clement Bellet (Erasmus University Rotterdam).

Onboarding is therefore part of the implementation of a general policy of sales force engagement with a guaranteed return on investment.

Benefit n°4: it contributes to the increase of the company’s attractiveness.

Everything is known and companies that integrate and train their teams on a long-term basis are becoming more and more attractive.

And naturally, they attract the best candidates.

In addition, a well-integrated sales person will be the best ambassador for his or her offer and company

And to top it all off, he will become the first “co-opter” for his next recruitments.

The fifth major benefit of successful onboarding is its influence on the company’s business culture.

Everything is linked: a business culture is built around sustainable and concrete practices. It combines know-how, image and values; it radiates beyond the offers and the sector of activity.

Some companies have become reference sales schools, such as Rank-Xerox, Procter & Gamble, IBM, Foncia, to such an extent that the salespeople from their ranks recognize themselves, thus spreading their culture beyond their own company.

So how do you ensure a successful integration?

How to set up the “preboarding” of the “onboarding”?

At Halifax Consulting, we believe that artificial intelligence and technology are the future of successful onboarding.

Our Montreal partner, Atmanco, a specialist in psychometrics, has been working for 20 years on the integration of sales teams by measuring the fit between :

-a profile and a profession: jobfit with a success rate of 80%.

-A profile and a team: the teamfit with 70% improvement of the collective synergy.

-A corporate profile and culture: the Fit culture with a compatibility rate of 84%.

– Automated coaching routines, especially for onboarding.

The improvement results on onboarding and recruiting are amazing.

In conclusion, while recruitment is expensive, successful onboarding pays off.

Its benefits go far beyond the purely quantifiable: they offer a lasting impact on business performance.

Onboarding is prepared before any recruitment, and data intelligence is an essential guarantee of success.

To find out more about identifying true sales talent and ensuring your onboarding for your company, learn about sales and manager assessment.

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