Most MSP owners get their first sales hire completely wrong. They focus on revenue from day one, measure the wrong things, and wonder why it falls apart.

Alan Lloyd from Accelerate Consulting spent years building sales teams in the MSP space. In this episode, he explains why your instincts about sales hiring are probably backwards - and what actually works.

We cover the real metrics that matter (hint: it's not dials or monthly revenue), why the first 90 days should never be about hitting targets, and how to spot whether someone's coachable before you hire them.

If you're thinking about bringing on your first salesperson, or your current sales team isn't performing, this one's for you.

Key takeaways:

• Why measuring output is almost useless
• The one metric that actually predicts success
• How to onboard without the "here's a laptop, off you pop" approach
• When to know if you've made a hiring mistake

Guest: Alan Lloyd, Accelerate Consulting

Connect with Alan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alanlloydonline/

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro

01:15 - The "angry man" misconception

02:45 - Why MSPs struggle to hire salespeople

05:20 - Looking for experience vs coachability

09:30 - How to identify coachability in interviews

12:15 - Setting up your first hire for success

15:40 - Week one: orientation and foundations

18:25 - The "so what?" test for value propositions

22:10 - Why you should never measure dials

25:35 - Pipeline over output: what to actually track

29:45 - The sensitivity analysis you must do first

33:20 - When to know you've made a bad hire

36:50 - Industry Manure: what's dead on LinkedIn?

39:15 - Pass the Pitchfork: why MSPs can't find customers

41:30 - Yell from the Barn: Accelerate Consulting

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