Let me describe a situation you’ve probably been in.
You’re in a 1:1 or a deal review.
You’re asking good questions.
“What happened here?”
“Why didn’t this move?”
“What’s the next step?”
The rep answers.
You ask clarifying questions.
You give a little direction.
It feels productive. You’re excited to see the rep move forward.
A few days later… you’re having the same conversation again and rolling your eyes.
That’s the signal.
The issue usually isn’t effort or intent.
It’s that nothing in the salesperson’s environment changed after the conversation.
Inside sales leaders often place too much weight on the conversation itself and not enough on what happens next.
You need an accountability structure you actually follow.
That includes:
- Informal check-ins
- Visual cues if you’re in person or intentional visibility if the salesperson is remote
- Making calls together for in-the-moment correction
The leaders getting traction right now are designing this on purpose.
They’re building a cadence where accountability is expected and visible.
There’s a set time where it happens each week. Expectations are written in a way the rep can revisit without needing a reminder (even though you’ll still remind them). Follow-up is defined.
I have a question for you:
If you’re away for a week, would accountability continue as expected?
That answer tells you how much of it lives in your presence versus your system.
Important Safety Tip:
Think about one accountability conversation you’ve had more than once in the last two weeks without anything changing.
Now decide what needs to be built so that conversation only happens once.
Keep building your virtual leadership cadence!
Lynn