Although the title of this blog is an oft repeated phrase when a relationship is not working out, there is probably more truth to it in a sales office. Unfortunately, sales orgs take the opposite view of, “It’s you, not me.”

When the sales rep or team is not performing to expectations, it is common for management to lay the reasons for missed numbers on their shoulders. I worked for an organization that had almost five fairly bad years of revenue misses on a nationwide basis. Upper management focused all of their attention on cutting individual reps to rectify the problem. “They are lazy. They are not focused. They are not a good fit for the job.” All of these reasons and more were put on the heads of the Sales Reps.

Year after year the problem persisted. They then moved a handful of Sales Managers around. However, even with five years of missed goals, not a single VP or higher in Sales was changed. If you are in Sales, you will most likely know this is not uncommon for an organization.

However, poor sales performance is typically management’s inability to motivate, develop or even hire correctly. Focus on the direct Sales Manager if the problem is localized. If the inability to perform to expectations is on a regional level, we should set our sights up a notch to the VP level first. Is s/he able to select capable managers? Do they provide adequate development for success? Is the VP integrated in the field or do they manage by reports and occasional manager meetings? Are corporate goals explained with clarity and purpose? Is there an effort to align team and corporate goals?

A process which holds those at the top accountable first will insure those at the end of the chain will have all the resources necessary to perform. Focusing only at the front line will placate the symptoms of poor sales engagement without ever curing the cause.