Many sales leaders believe they just need better people to hit their numbers. The thinking goes: if I can just recruit a few more top performers, everything will fall into place.

On the surface, it makes sense: high performers win more deals, so more high performers should mean more wins.

But in today’s sales environment, that belief is a trap.

Why “Better People” Doesn’t Fix Broken Sales Systems

The real issue isn’t a shortage of talent — it’s a system that keeps even your best people from performing at their best. Bloated tech stacks and outdated playbooks slow your team down, while CRM dashboards reinforce transactional habits and create a drag on your entire revenue engine.

Even top producers can’t outrun a broken process forever.

The numbers prove it:

• 50% of top producers fail when they change employers (Harvard Business Review).
  
• The average top sales performer closes only 46% of what they forecast (Sales Mastery) — worse odds than placing a pass bet at a Vegas craps table (49.3%).
  
• 76% of B2B sales candidates are unhirable, and only 12% are likely to fit your sales environment (based on over 10 years of WINS Selling Style Profile™ data).

This “just hire better” approach often leads to:

• Longer ramp times and slower revenue recovery after a salesperson turns over.
  
• Inconsistent sales performance, even among so-called “A-players.”
  
• Manager burn out from dealing with the endless firefighting and talent churn.

This is the Transactional Trap: the cycle of Pitching > Proposing > Defending… and losing. If the system is broken, no amount of heroic hiring will save you.

The Shift from Transactional to Transformational

The way out isn’t to keep searching for unicorn hires — it’s to build a system where more of your people can shine.

The WINS Model treats sales as a leadership discipline, not a numbers game. Built on more than 11 million hours of live fieldwork, WINS transforms sellers into Growth Multipliers — servant leaders who serve their buyers’ shared goals for growth and lead their buyers along a shared path to change. 

We don’t train sellers. We train leaders who transform buyers into champions of change.

How the WINS Model Changes the Game

1. Develop — Codify Conversations That Win

Your team stops winging it and starts speaking the same language. Sales cycles shorten, win rates climb, and training sticks because it’s built to be applied every day. Example: A professional services firm reduced team size by 50% while exceeding quota, hitting 50% of their second-year targets by the end of Q1.

2. Screen — Spot Growth Multipliers Before You Hire

Predictive hiring replaces gut feel. In just 10 minutes, the WINS Selling Style Profile can identify who will thrive in your environment and who won’t. Example: A global industrial sales team doubled its headcount in six months while reducing ramp-up time by 45%.

3. Hire — Activate Always-On Hiring

You never stop building and nurturing a bench of vetted, ready-to-go candidates so sales vacancies are filled in weeks, not months. Example: Over his first two years on the job, a newly hired technology sales manager cut his time-to-fill open sales roles from 93 to 38 days while adding 11 top performers.

What the Transformation Looks Like

When leaders embrace Develop, Screen, and Hire, they do more than improve hiring metrics or shorten cycles — they change the DNA of their sales culture.

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Break the Cycle

If your team is stuck in the Transactional Trap, the cycle won’t break itself.

Book your free WINS Strategy Session and you’ll get:

• A free trial of our WINS Selling Styles Profile™
  
• A free trial of the Growth Culture Risk Report™
  
• A free roadmap tailored to help you build a sales team that scales

Let’s rewire your revenue engine so you can stop chasing unicorn hires and start building a sales culture where every salesperson performs like a top performer.

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Continued success,