Telling candidates they won’t be moving forward in the interview process can be awkward, uncomfortable, or even something you tend to procrastinate. Some recruiters and hiring managers ignore providing feedback for candidates altogether. Others wait days, even weeks to reject candidates. Letting too much time elapse before delivering the “bad news” hurts everyone, including your company’s reputation.
Why Top Sales Candidates Turn Down Your Offer Updated July 8, 2026 You run a candidate through the whole process: multiple interviews, strong alignment, everyone
I was on the phone with one of my candidates yesterday. A true talent with an amazing track record of sales success hunting and winning new business. Probably not another person like him in the entire region –he is that good.
He went for an interview and was expecting to discuss an offer
Hiring is difficult. In some cases you’ll spend more time recruiting for someone than they will last in the job! But if you are struggling with your next hire, you could be overthinking things.
If you’ve noticed during the recruiting process ……
The position has been open for more than 6 months.
Let’s look at the recent stats on the US economy:
Managing a sales team is a complex and challenging job. It’s also a very different job within companies of varying revenue sizes. In some cases, you’ll need to be a front-line seller, in others, you’ll need to be a sales strategy master. Yet in all sales leadership positions, you’ll have to have command of more than just sales skills, you’ll need to be able to lead others.
Anyone who’s recruited for their team’s openings already knows that posting a list of job openings alongside a graphic of your company’s values is the easy part. Demonstrating those values in person is the real challenge. There is an attitude from both sides of the interview table that can leave the entire interview process flat, disconnected, and cold.
Sometimes an executives busy schedule is not his or her own. Let’s face it, “things happen.” Unfortunately, this happens to some busy hiring managers or recruiters more than others. When you are unable to consistently keep your calendared appointments, arrive late, or constantly reschedule there are both direct and indirect costs.
To build a rock solid high-performance company you must hire the best salespeople you can recruit. So, what can you do to attract A-players? First, it’s important to understand what salespeople want. What keeps salespeople engaged? When we ask thousands of sales reps across the country what kinds of environments they thrive in, we heard common themes.
.What Motivates Recruiters to Help You Find Top Sales Talent?
Yesterday I had a conversation with a potential client.
He was frustrated because he hadn’t been able to find a replacement hire for over seven months. He was already working with three other recruiters and had no candidates in current consideration for the role.
Are the recruiters to blame? They had presented multiple candidates, and the one that the client was most interested in was over the budgeted compensation level. He made a comment that he thought perhaps the recruiters just wanted more money and were inflating salary expectations.
