The Interview

Kluster's Take

Tom spoke with Deirdre Leone, VP of Sales for ContractPodAi. She gives a fascinating take on effective sales leadership.

Deirdre is an advocate for collaboration, the entire sales team needs to be in the same boat together. There needs to be the right balance between data entry and transparent communication. Deirdre asks a lot of very specific questions and “pokes holes in the sales cycle”. Through deal reviews, she understands where the holes are and how you can fill them.

In her experience, sales velocity is an important metric, as it informs us how engaged the buyer is. The closing percentage falls drastically if there are more than 30 days between sales motions. A key takeaway is to always maintain an appropriate level of engagement to move the sale along.

Understanding an individual's career aspirations is a big part of leadership success. Deirdre believes it is critical to understand the why behind people's actions to help them reach their goals.