How to Hire Great Salespeople in Australia (Without Getting Sold a Dream)

Hiring for sales shouldn’t feel like a gamble.
But in Australia right now, finding a sales rep who actually performs and stays is one of the hardest roles to fill.

You know how it goes:
You meet someone charismatic. They say all the right things.
They start… and three months later, they haven’t closed a single deal.

So how do you cut through the fluff and hire someone who delivers?

Here’s what we’ve learned recruiting top sales talent across Australia — and how we help our clients avoid costly hiring mistakes.

Why Sales Roles Are So Easy to Get Wrong

Salespeople sell and that includes selling themselves in interviews.

The problem is, being persuasive in a meeting doesn’t always translate to consistent, long-term performance on the phones, on the road, or in the CRM.

Here’s what we see often:

Candidates who talk a big game but can’t back it up
Overhiring for personality, underhiring for process
Managers unsure how to assess true capability
No clarity on performance metrics or onboarding structure

Sound familiar?

What a Great Salesperson Actually Looks Like

It’s not just about confidence it’s about consistency.

Here’s what we look for when hiring high-performance sales talent:

✅ Proven performance metrics past quotas, conversion rates, close cycles
✅ Process-minded follows CRM workflows and reporting
✅ Coachability takes feedback, adjusts fast
✅ Industry familiarity understands your product, market, or client base
✅ Grit handles rejection, stays consistent over time

These aren’t always obvious on a resume. That’s why our vetting process goes deeper.

Where Most Sales Recruitment Breaks Down

Most agencies don’t actually know how to assess salespeople.
They filter by job titles not pipeline-building ability.

At HJ Recruitment, we go beyond surface-level screening:

We assess soft skills and actual sales process
We test for cultural fit and industry alignment
We ask performance-based questions: “How do you handle lost deals?”, “What’s your conversion rate from first call to close?”
We back it up with reference checks from actual managers not mates

Case Study: Turning Around a SaaS Sales Team

A SaaS startup in Brisbane had churned through three BDMs in under a year. Each promised results none delivered.

We worked with them to clarify the sales structure, tightened the brief, and delivered a short list of five candidates all with experience in high-ticket tech sales.

The successful hire exceeded target in month two and built a new outbound process from scratch. They’re now the top-performing rep on the team.

Roles We Commonly Place in Sales

We recruit across:

B2B sales representatives
Business Development Managers (BDMs)
Account Managers
Territory Managers
Field Sales & Channel Sales
Sales Team Leaders
Sales Development Representatives (SDRs)
Technical Sales / Product Consultants

Need help figuring out the right profile for your sales funnel? We’ll help with that too.

Why Work With HJ Recruitment?

Sales is one of the highest-turnover, hardest-to-fill functions in any business — and we take that seriously.

With HJ Recruitment, you get:

✅ Honest advice on what type of salesperson you actually need
✅ Access to a national network of pre-vetted sales talent
✅ Deep screening for attitude, skills, and performance
✅ Fast delivery and full support through the offer and onboarding stage
✅ Long-term support if the fit isn’t right

Whether you need a closer, a hunter, or a relationship-builder we’ll help you find them.

Let’s Hire a Salesperson Who Actually Sells

Sick of hearing the talk but seeing no results? We’ll help you hire a rep who hits the ground running and stays.

Learn more about how we work on our About page, or check out our broader Permanent Recruitment services for other key roles.

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