How can I tell if a rep will actually perform, not just interview?
You sit across from someone who answers every question well. Three months later, you are surprised. This is not bad luck — it is a measurement error you keep repeating. The interview room rewards one narrow thing: speaking well about work. Some people who speak well about work are poor at doing it. Some who speak poorly are excellent at it. You have been grading the wrong test and calling the result a mystery. The fix is not a cleverer question. It is a different kind of evidence. Before you decide, you must watch the person do a piece of the actual job, under conditions close to the real one.
You cannot tell from talk. An interview measures one skill only: performing well in an interview. If you want to know how someone sells, make them sell — a live mock call, a real objection, a short paid trial. Choose to judge the work itself, not the story about the work.
What changes unlock by starting
- A repeatable test that predicts performance better than interview charm
- Fewer surprises three months after hire
- A written standard you can defend when a hire goes wrong
- Faster decisions because you trust evidence, not instinct