Keith Rose, author of Coaching Salespeople into Sales Champions, offers a quick list of questions that you can pass along to all your managers that they should be asking themselves:

1. Am I forcing people to do things my way, or encouraging them to play to their strengths?
2. Am I reinforcing good behavior by praising people in public, and correcting bad behavior by criticizing them in private?
3. Am I asking good questions that lead salespeople to draw the right conclusions, or am I telling them how to sell?
4. Do I have regularly scheduled coaching sessions that encourage reps to improve their performance, or do I only hold impromptu sessions when an issue needs to be addressed?
5. Do I continue going in circles, always focusing on the same skills, or do I build upon past successes and move on to other skills?
6. Do I set clear, attainable goals while providing clear metrics that allow salespeople to gauge their performance in those areas?
7. Do salespeople trust and want my leadership, or do they fear meeting with me?
8. Am I taking the time to coach everyone or just those that are struggling?
9. Do I approach every rep differently, based on his/her needs?
10. Do I react harshly to negative words and attitudes, or do I respond in a way that encourages salespeople to listen?

Source: “Is My Team Uncoachable?” by Keith Rosen, Small Business Solutions Blog.

What would you think managers should be asking themselves? Share your thoughts in the Comments Box below.

Tags: checklist, coaching, Leadership, metrics, performance, questions