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Really Understand Your Expectations Of Your Sales Team

We hire people, expect instant results, then churn the headcount when numbers lag. In Japan’s tight market, that revolving door is costly. Here’s how to realign expectations with reality.

Q: Are you hiring farmers when you need hunters?

A: Farmers maintain; hunters create. In Japan, farmers are more common. Ask candidates where their current clients came from. Leads, handoffs and orphan accounts signal farming; proactive prospecting and conversions signal hunting. Neither is “better”—mismatch is expensive.

Mini-summary: Hire for the outcome; verify hunting in the interview.

Q: How fast should new reps ramp?

A: Replace hope with evidence. Build a ramp curve based on your last 5–10 years of records. Track monthly revenue for the first four quarters, drop the best/worst outliers, average the rest and set quarter-by-quarter goals and coaching.

Mini-summary: Use your data to set realistic ramp benchmarks.

Q: Do your incentives drive the right behaviour?

A: If maintenance and net-new pay the same, you’ll get farming. In risk-averse Japan, high base salaries dull prospecting. Shift the mix to a sensible base, fair commission and a kicker for first-time wins—simple, transparent, predictable.

Mini-summary: Pay for hunting if you want hunting.

Q: How do you set targets that motivate?

A: Stretch, don’t snap confidence. Break the annual number into weekly leading indicators—conversations, meetings, proposals, follow-ups. Coach to those, diagnose bottlenecks and avoid moving goalposts weekly.

Mini-summary: Lead with indicators; keep confidence intact.

Bottom line: Audit recruiting, ramp benchmarks and incentives, then align them with the growth you want—from new and existing clients. That’s how you stop the churn and stabilise performance.

About the Author

Dr Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is a veteran Japan CEO and trainer, author of multiple best-sellers and host of the Japan Business Mastery series. He leads leadership and presentation programmes at Dale Carnegie Training Tokyo.