Sales People: The Right Roles, The Right Seats, The Right System
Stop relying on star players or founder heroics. The People pillar of the Sales Velocity OS™ ensures you have the right people, in the right roles, following the right system.
Why People Are the Bottleneck in Sales
Most B2B SMEs don’t struggle with effort. They struggle with clarity.
- The founder still carries the biggest deals.
- Sales hires fail because roles weren’t defined properly.
- Managers report numbers but don’t coach performance.
- A couple of star performers hold the team together.
- Accountability is vague, so underperformance lingers.
When People are the bottleneck, the business hits a ceiling. You can’t scale because every new hire either fails to ramp, burns out, or simply leaves. The result is a sales team that looks busy but doesn’t compound results.
Book a Discovery CallWhat People Means in the Sales Velocity OS™
In Sales Velocity OS™, “People” isn’t about headcount – it’s about structure. It’s making sure the sales organisation is designed to scale, not just survive.
Defining roles clearly.
Every person knows exactly what they own and how success is measured. Without this, accountability blurs and underperformance hides in the averages.
Giving reps the tools and coaching to succeed.
A process without support is just pressure. When reps have scripts, playbooks, and ongoing coaching, confidence grows and execution becomes consistent.
Installing accountability so performance is consistent.
Weekly scorecards and clear metrics remove ambiguity. Reps either meet the standard or they don’t, which keeps performance transparent and fair.
People is the multiplier. When you get this right, every other pillar:
Compounds faster.
When you get it wrong, even the best strategy dies in execution. A sales team without structure quickly reverts to chaos, no matter how strong the market opportunity.
Signs the People Side of Sales Is Broken
You don’t need an outside consultant to spot when the People pillar is failing.
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Reps hitting target is the exception, not the rule. Targets feel like luck, not system.
Some quarters look strong, others collapse without warning. Without a repeatable engine, leadership can’t plan or forecast with confidence.
Onboarding takes too long and results are inconsistent. Some hires ramp in months, others never find their feet.
The business loses momentum every time a rep struggles to settle. Inconsistent onboarding also frustrates managers, who spend more time hand-holding than leading.
High turnover or burnout. Reps don’t see a clear path to success, so they leave.
The strongest performers get poached, while weaker ones drift. The cycle of hiring, failing, and replacing drains time and cash.
No clear role definitions. Everyone “sells a bit” but no one owns outcomes.
Prospects fall through the cracks because ownership is blurred. Instead of alignment, the team wastes energy stepping on each other’s toes.
Coaching is absent or ad hoc. Managers focus on reports, not raising capability.
The pipeline gets discussed, but skills don’t improve. Without coaching, the same problems repeat every quarter.
If these sound familiar, the problem isn’t effort. It’s structure. Until you fix the People pillar, sales will always feel fragile.
Core Components of the People Pillar
Role Clarity
Every role has defined outcomes and KPIs. No more vague job descriptions or “just sell more.”
- SDRs own outreach and qualification.
- AEs own discovery, demos, and closing.
- Account Managers own expansion and retention.
- Sales Leaders own coaching, consistency, and clarity.
Role clarity sets expectations and creates accountability.
Onboarding & Ramp
Onboarding can’t be left to chance. A structured 30/60/90 plan accelerates results.
- Day 30 – product knowledge and ICP clarity.
- Day 60 – running full discovery calls with support.
- Day 90 – managing their own pipeline against process and playbook.
Without this, reps take 6–9 months to ramp. With it, they’re closing in weeks.
Coaching & Development
Reporting is not coaching. Sales leadership is about making reps better every week.
- Weekly pipeline reviews.
- Role-plays embedded into team meetings.
- One-to-ones that focus on skills, not just numbers.
A manager’s job isn’t to nag the team. It’s to raise the standard.
Accountability & Scorecards
Each role has its own measurable outputs, tracked weekly.
SDR – qualified meetings booked.
AE – opportunities progressed with exit criteria met.
Account Manager – retention and expansion rates.
Scorecards bring transparency. There’s no hiding in averages – everyone knows what good looks like.
Leadership & Culture
Without leadership, sales teams drift. Leadership isn’t just reporting upwards – it’s driving consistency downwards.
- Managers enforce process.
- Leaders coach and set expectations.
- Culture shifts from chaos to clarity.
Strong culture means reps know what’s expected, managers know how to deliver it, and leadership trusts the system.
How We Build the People Pillar (Sales Velocity Method)
We don’t throw headcount at the problem. We build a system around People.
This isn’t recruitment. It’s building a system that makes recruitment pay off – turning every new hire into a consistent performer instead of a gamble.
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Audit the current team. Who’s in the right seat? Where are the gaps?
We look at output against expectations, not just effort or personality. This quickly shows who’s carrying the weight, who’s misplaced, and where true capacity gaps exist.
Define roles. Create clarity for SDRs, AEs, Account Managers, and Leaders.
Every role gets a clear mandate and measurable outcomes. No more blurred responsibilities or reps trying to do three jobs badly.
Install onboarding. Structured 30/60/90 plans tied to Playbook and Process.
New hires know exactly what milestones to hit and when. This accelerates ramp time and reduces wasted salary on underperformers.
Train managers to coach. Role-plays, one-to-ones, and pipeline reviews become habits.
Managers stop being reporters of numbers and start being developers of people. Coaching becomes the lever that raises the whole team, not just the top reps.
Embed scorecards. Each role measured weekly against outcomes, not vague activity.
Accountability moves from opinion to fact. Everyone knows what good looks like and whether they’re meeting the standard.
Reinforce rhythms. Weekly cadences keep accountability alive.
Pipeline reviews, one-to-ones, and team meetings all link back to the system. Rhythm builds momentum, and momentum compounds results.
Why People Is a System, Not Just Recruitment
Hiring alone doesn’t fix sales. Too many companies think a star hire will solve everything – but without structure, even great hires fail.
A system turns talent into consistent performance; without one, turnover and disappointment follow.
People must be:
Supported by clear process.
Reps need a defined path to follow, not just freedom to “figure it out.” A clear process ensures consistency across the team and prevents deals from being lost in chaos.
Equipped with a live playbook.
Tools, scripts, and frameworks make execution practical and repeatable. Without them, every rep reinvents the wheel – and results vary wildly.
Held accountable through scorecards.
Weekly numbers show what’s really happening, removing ambiguity. This makes underperformance visible early and gives managers a fair way to measure progress.
The People pillar is what multiplies the effect of every other pillar. Without it, sales runs on personalities and heroics. With it, sales runs on a system that compounds results and scales predictably.
The Payoff of Getting The Right People
When People are right, sales shifts from fragile to scalable. The business stops depending on individuals and starts compounding as a team.
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Predictable performance.
Targets stop being hit-or-miss and become consistent across the team. Leadership can forecast with confidence, knowing results are the outcome of system, not luck.
Faster onboarding.
Ramp time shrinks from months to weeks. New hires know exactly what’s expected, and managers can see progress against clear milestones.
Reduced staff turnover.
Reps know what success looks like and how to achieve it. Clarity builds confidence, which makes top performers stay and prevents burnout.
Founder freedom.
The sales engine runs without the founder parachuting into every deal. Leaders can focus on strategy instead of rescuing revenue month after month.
People & EOS
EOS gives the concept: Right People, Right Seats. The Sales Velocity OS™ makes it practical in sales by turning broad principles into specific roles, scorecards, and rhythms.
V/TO defines direction. People pillar makes sure sales roles align with it.
The Vision/Traction Organizer sets the “where we’re going.” The People pillar translates that vision into role design and expectations, so sales execution directly supports strategy.
L10 meetings track People health. Scorecards show who’s performing, not just who’s busy.
Instead of vague updates, managers bring hard numbers tied to each role. Leadership can quickly see if issues are talent, training, or structure.
Right Seats clarified. SDR, AE, AM, and Sales Leader expectations are no longer vague.
Each seat comes with defined outcomes and measurable KPIs. That makes hiring clearer, onboarding faster, and accountability fairer.
Together, EOS and Sales Velocity OS™ make People not just a concept, but a working system. Sales stops being the exception and starts running with the same discipline as every other part of the business.
People FAQ’s
What roles should a sales team have?
It depends on stage and size, but most teams need SDRs, AEs, Account Managers, and Sales Leaders.
How do I know if I have the right people in sales?
Check output against scorecards. If reps consistently miss expectations despite coaching, they may be in the wrong seat.
What’s the difference between sales management and sales leadership?
Management reports on numbers. Leadership develops people and drives consistency.
How do I create a 30/60/90 onboarding plan?
Break down milestones by knowledge, skills, and pipeline ownership. Each step ties back to Playbook and Process.
How can I reduce rep turnover?
Clarity and coaching. Reps leave when expectations are vague and support is missing.
How often should managers coach reps?
Weekly. Coaching must be baked into pipeline reviews, 1:1s, and team meetings.
How do scorecards improve accountability?
They define outcomes for each role and make performance transparent. No hiding, no excuses.
What’s the role of culture in sales performance?
Culture sets the tone for clarity and accountability. Weak culture = chaos. Strong culture = consistency.
Do smaller teams need structure too?
Yes. Even if the founder is selling, roles and expectations must be defined to prepare for scale.
How does this tie into EOS Right People, Right Seats?
Sales Velocity OS™ provides the frameworks, scorecards, and coaching rhythms to make “Right Seats” real in sales.