How HR Can Fix Poor Sales Performance in SMEs

Here’s the thing founders miss

In most SMEs, when targets are missed, the first reactions are “market is slow,” “competition has dropped prices,” or “marketing is not giving good leads.” Very rarely does the founder say: our people systems behind sales are broken.

HR, when used strategically, can directly improve sales performance by redesigning how you hire, train, measure, and reward the sales team.

The real reasons sales underperform in SMEs

On the surface, sales teams look busy: calls, meetings, follow-ups. But results are inconsistent. The root causes almost always fall into four areas HR can influence.

1. Wrong sales hiring

Many SMEs hire “good talkers” or people with big-brand logos on their CVs. That does not mean they can sell your product to your customer in your price band.

• Misfit in buyer type (enterprise vs SME vs retail).
• Misfit in sales motion (transactional vs consultative vs relationship).
• Misfit in sales cycle length and ticket size expectations.

HR can fix this by building a clear sales role profile with the founder and Sales Head: target segment, sales style, required skills, and behaviours. Then hiring becomes structured, not “gut feel.”

2. Weak onboarding and training

Most SMEs give new sales hires product training and expect them to “figure it out.” That leads to long ramp-up times and uneven performance.

A better HR-led onboarding plan covers:

• Clear sales process: lead handling, qualification, demo, proposal, negotiation, closing, handover.
• Objection handling scripts and practice.
• CRM discipline: logging activities, follow-ups, and pipeline.

3. No clear KPIs or dashboards

In many SMEs, the only number that matters is “monthly target.” That is not enough to manage a sales team. HR can help build a performance framework around leading and lagging indicators:

• Leads contacted
• First meetings booked
• Qualified opportunities
• Proposals sent
• Win rates
• Average deal size
• Collection discipline (DSO)

When these metrics are visible and reviewed regularly, underperformance becomes specific (“low meetings” or “weak closing”). Then HR can support targeted coaching, training, or performance improvement plans.

4. Misaligned incentives and recognition

If your incentive structure is unclear, delayed, or not linked to the right behaviours, you will not get consistent performance.

• Design simple, transparent incentives tied to key KPIs, not only total revenue.
• Ensure on-time payouts.
• Add non-monetary recognition (leaderboards, awards, spotlight in reviews) to sustain motivation.

Strong incentive and recognition systems improve engagement, which improves sales productivity and business profitability over time.

What HR should actually do for Sales

For SMEs, HR’s job is not just to “process sales offers.” HR must co-own sales performance levers with the Sales Head.

1. Align sales hiring with business strategy

• Define ideal salesperson profiles per product and segment.
• Use structured interviews, tests, and role-plays to filter candidates.
• Maintain a talent pipeline so hiring is not panic-driven.

2. Build a proper ramp-up plan

• 30–90 day onboarding with clear weekly milestones.
• Joint training calendar: product, market, competition, pitch, objection handling.
• Track time-to-first-deal as a key onboarding metric.

3. Introduce data-driven performance management

• Standardise KPIs and dashboards across salespeople.
• Run reviews based on data, not feelings.
• Use insights to decide who needs training, role change, or exit.

4. Protect sales energy and reduce burnout

Sales is high-pressure work. Burnout kills performance and increases attrition.

• Set realistic quotas and monitor workload with business leaders.
• Encourage recovery: time-off, support systems, reasonable work hours.
• Train managers to give constructive feedback, not only pressure.

What results can SMEs expect?

When HR and Sales work together properly, SMEs typically see more predictability and better conversion, not just “more activity.”