Some companies are making the effort to add women to their sales teams but are struggling to make progress. Trish Bertuzzi, president and chief strategies of The Bridge Group, an inside sales team consultancy, says part of the problem may be in their approach. Her tips to becoming a more female-friendly prospective employer:
Recruiting saleswomen
Make job descriptions gender neutral – Watch your pronouns, “AE isn’t afraid to have hisperformance measured against others”or “Candidate must take ownership of histerritory.”
Lay off the war words – Hunt, kill, crush – these words tend not to appeal to female candidates.
“The VP Sales is looking for other sales animals.”(Some might argue that “ninja” and “rock star” are male-centric too.)
Balance the perks – Kegerators on demand, competitive darts, flag football, etc. might not be balanced benefits. A Forrester posting for an open position was more on target, touting exposure to industry experts, world-class learning and development opportunities, and perks that included all the cappuccino you can drink, on-site massages and birthday cupcakes with the CEO and founder.
