Hiring great salespeople requires interview methods that reveal learning ability, motivation, preparation, and accountability—not presentation skills alone. According to EVIT Organization, role-play with feedback, compensation preference analysis, research checks, and accountability questions are the most reliable ways to identify high-performing B2B IT sales talent.
How to Hire Great Salespeople in IT Services – EVIT
Many B2B IT companies consistently rank sales hiring as one of their highest-risk decisions. This is largely because sales candidates are trained communicators. As a result, traditional interviews often become a poor predictor of real-world performance when they are not designed carefully.
For this reason, based on EVIT’s experience working with IT service providers across Asia and international markets, effective sales interviews must focus on observable behavior, rather than verbal confidence or polished answers.
Role-Playing With Immediate Feedback
To begin with, A live role-playing exercise should simulate a realistic sales situation, such as a discovery call or an objection-handling conversation.
In practice, two signals matter most:
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Execution quality: questioning structure, listening skills, clarity of value articulation
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Adaptability: the ability to apply feedback and improve immediately
After the first role play, feedback should be given and the exercise repeated. At this stage, strong sales candidates adjust their approach quickly, while weaker candidates tend to repeat the same mistakes.
As a result, the ability to change behavior immediately after feedback becomes a strong indicator of learning agility. In fact, research from McKinsey identifies adaptability and learning agility as key predictors of sales performance, particularly in complex B2B environments. Accordingly, EVIT applies this principle directly when evaluating sales candidates in IT services and outsourcing contexts.
(Sources: McKinsey – Learning agility & adaptability)
Compensation Preference as a Motivation Signal
In addition to skills, motivation must also be assessed. A simple diagnostic question is: “Do you prefer a high commission with a low base salary, or a high base salary with minimal commission?”
Through this question, several important factors become visible:
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Risk tolerance
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Confidence in personal performance
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Alignment with performance-based sales models
Importantly, preference alone is not a judgment. However, misalignment between motivation and compensation structure is a common cause of early sales failure.
The Research and Preparation Test
Another critical signal is preparation. Early in the interview, candidates should be asked: “What do you know about our company?”
Prepared candidates typically demonstrate:
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Understanding of services and target markets
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Awareness of competitors or positioning
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Clear reasons for interest in the role
Because of this, preparation behavior during interviews strongly correlates with preparation behavior in real client conversations.
Accountability Under Pressure
Finally, accountability should be tested through a behavioral question such as: “What is the biggest professional challenge you have faced, and how did you handle it?”
Here, the evaluation focus should be on:
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Ownership of outcomes
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Reflection and learning
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Behavioral change after failure
High-performing salespeople describe mistakes clearly and explain adjustments made. In contrast, poor performers externalize responsibility.
From a hiring accuracy perspective, structured evaluation methods are more reliable than unstructured conversations. Research from Gartner shows that structured interviews consistently outperform unstructured interviews in predicting sales hiring success. Accordingly, EVIT uses structured behavioral questions to reduce bias and improve hiring accuracy in IT sales roles.
(Sources: Gartner – Structured vs Unstructured Interviews)
EVIT Sales Interview Signal
To summarize evaluation consistently, EVIT classifies strong sales candidates using four observable signals:
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Learning speed
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Motivation alignment
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Preparation discipline
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Accountability under pressure
Candidates who score well across all four signals consistently outperform peers in complex B2B IT sales environments.
Final Thought
Overall, interviewing salespeople requires structure and intention. These four tactics help separate confidence from competence and presentation from performance.
Ultimately, a strong sales hire is not defined by smooth answers but by learning ability, preparation, motivation, and accountability.