Sales Manager Checklist to Review Your First Quarter Progress
By Michael J Griffin
4 minute read
The end of the 1st quarter! How are you doing as a sales manager? Remember those commitments, goals, changes you set out for 2025? Progressing, struggling or stalling? Let’s walk through a checklist of 20 +1 questions that you might answer with a ‘Yes’, ‘No’ or ‘Not Sure.’ Reviewing your answers can allow you to congratulate yourself, make 2nd quarter changes, or give you a wake-up call to improve your sales leadership or team performance.
How is your attitude to lead and grow your sales team? Is it resilient, positive and focused on supporting your salespeople success?
Would your salespeople strongly agree that you are committed to their success and growth?
Do each of your salespeople get at least 3 hours of coaching and guidance from you every week?
Are you scheduling at least 4 joint sales visits to customers with each salesperson per month?
Do you and your sales team participate in sales role plays at least once a month?
Does each of your salespeople have a development plan that you and each salesperson review and update quarterly?
Are you having Key Account Strategy sessions with your salespeople on a weekly basis that focuses on you premium accounts?
Did the sales team maintain a lead conversion rate that meets or exceeds your established KPI?
Has your sales team maintained a healthy sales pipeline with a steady flow of new opportunities?
Have there been any notable successes or wins this quarter that other salespeople can replicate?
Verne Harnish states daily “huddle” or “kickoffs” every morning with your salespeople is a strong driver of success. Are you having at least 3 “kick off meetings” a week with your team, F2F or virtually?
Do you hold at least one product or skill training with your team per month?
Do you care and take note of the mental or physical health of each of your salespeople?
How fluent and proactive are you to implement possible AI solutions to enhance and accelerate your salespeople performance?
Are you a coach that regularly provides respectful feedback, both recognition and constructive feedback, to the members of your sales team?
Do you have excellent cross departmental collaboration (finance, customer service, distribution, HR, senior directors) to support sales team success?
Do you believe you are measuring the right KPI’s of sales team performance?
Do you have a concrete plan with observable outcomes to nourish and grow yourself as a sales manager/coach?
Have you scheduled performance/development sessions for each sales team member to review the 1st quarter performance?
Are incentives and rewards adequately motivating the sales team?
20 +1. The lagging KPI: Did your sales team meet at least 95% of their first Q target?
Record and analyze your tally of “Yes, No, or Not Sure” answers. You may also circulate this checklist and get feedback from either your salespeople or your boss. See where your perceptions match or misalign with those of your team or boss.
Congratulate yourself and team for the Yes answers. With your team or boss come up with measurable, observable plans with KPI’s to correct the “No or Not Sure” answers. Then have an even better 2nd quarter!
Michael J Griffin
CEO & Founder of ELAvate
Sales Productivity Consultant and Coach
500 satisfied clients across 19 nations
michael.griffin@elavateglobal.com
+65-91194008 (WhatsApp)