John Beaver founded GSA Optimum
(www.gsatech.com), a manufacturers’ rep firm calling on OEMs and major end users from Maine to Virginia.

“You can’t grow business without people.” That was a major message contained in a podcast conducted by MANA member John Beaver earlier this year.

After having said that, however, Beaver hardly left his audience in a vacuum as he explained that finding, evaluating and hiring new people is not necessarily an easy task and the road to finding the right people isn’t easily traveled. It can be filled with potholes — mistakes are going to be made along the way. “Your own people aren’t always going to do the job perfectly. As a rep you can certainly try to do everything that’s needed to be done by yourself — and not get it all done. That’s why if you want to grow your business, you have to find and hire the right people.”

By way of example, he cited the legendary “Red Baron” of World War I who, while he was able to shoot down 85 enemy planes, he himself was shot down several times, the last time leading to his own demise. “That’s why I tell my people that when looking for new personnel, it’s okay to make mistakes and get shot down occasionally. We all make mistakes, but ultimately, we do survive.”

Beaver founded GSA Optimum, Oakdale, New York, in 1984. The metropolitan New York/New Jersey independent manufacturers’ representative firm has 28 employees covering Maine to Virginia out of its four offices. The agency specializes in electrical mechanical, electronic, and electrical components. This growth can be partly attributed to his successful acquisition of six firms. He served on the MANA Board of Directors from 2015-2019. In 2017 and 2018 he was organization chairperson. He is also an active member of ERA and NEMRA. As a member of ERA, he has been president or chairperson of the Metro NY/NJ ERA local chapter for over 16 years.

Hiring at the Right Time

He explained that the need to hire additional personnel often arises when the rep has a feeling that the timing is right. “And when that feeling comes, it’s better to hire someone earlier, rather than later.” He explained that a rep can be in a position where “…he’s been representing this line for a couple of years and grew the business up to X number of dollars. Then things stalled and the principal fired him. Adding personnel to continue to grow the business is key. As an example, we’re presently at 28 people, and we’re looking to add more.”

When it comes to offering advice to others on finding personnel, Beaver explained that he’s written several articles on the subject for Agency Sales. His first course of action has always been to check with people he knows for recommendations. “By far word of mouth is the most effective means by which I’ve been able to find prospective personnel over the years.” He adds that he’s never taken someone from another rep firm, but he has recruited personnel from distributors. “I don’t approach them; however, it’s always been the case where they’ve come to me first. And, the fact is they were going to leave the distributor at some point anyway. In addition, while some principals have taken some personnel from me, I’ve also hired people from principals.”

After checking sources he knows, he then starts placing ads in sources such as Indeed, Zip Recruiter, and even Craig’s List. Another source for new hiring recent college grads is called Handshake.

Once potential recruits are identified, then comes the process of evaluating resumes. “When looking at a resume, I’ll start from the bottom — and read up. The first thing I look for is to eliminate someone who might be a ‘jumper.’ I’m not going to go for someone like that. Next, I like to hire someone with experience in my own industry. If the guy has been selling software and it really doesn’t fit into my industry, I won’t make the hire. I don’t really want to have to retrain someone who’s set in their ways from another industry.”

The Interview as Science

The next step in the hiring process is the interview and, according to Beaver, “Interviewing is basically a science. I always like to start the interview with a general chat and make use of a number of silent pauses. I like to see how they react, how they pick up things when there’s no conversation. I’ll ask them about their past job and make every effort I can to pick up on their personality.”

He continues, “A key is to let them talk, to get them to talk. I want to determine how social they are. I’ll even ask them what their parents have done for their careers. In addition, I’ll always ask technical questions. I might ask them what they know about Ohm’s Law. In response, I’ve had some people look at me like I’m crazy, but others know what I’m talking about. If I’m dealing with a more seasoned salesperson, I might ask them how they’ve handled various accounts in their territory. On the other hand, if they’re new to sales, I might ask how they feel about winning or losing when it comes to getting an order.

“I’ve always made it a practice to have more than one person conduct an interview. We’re careful not to share any of our notes before an interview. But after the interview, we compare our notes.” He adds that another important part of the hiring process is to be careful when it comes to checking references.

After running through the search, interview and hiring process, Beaver offered some cautionary advice when it comes to hiring sales personnel. “Be careful of that person from your industry who becomes available for hiring because there’s probably a reason why he’s available. As an example, I can remember one salesperson who I thought was going to be perfect for us. However, during the interview process I became concerned because he just wouldn’t stop talking. I admit, I hired him anyway, but then ultimately fired him. Obviously, there was a reason why he was kicking around in the industry.”

Getting the Right Fit

Another example of a bad hire might be someone who is ultimately too good for the position you’re offering. “We like to think the rep profession in our industry offers the potential to earn lots of money. However, there are some people that you really can’t pay what they’re worth. I can remember one instance when a potential salesperson was hired and the minute he sat down with us I knew he was an ‘A’ player. To his and our benefit, he hit the ground running and was killing it. But what happened was he proved to be too good for the position and left us after just two years. As I look at it, it takes me two years to get someone up and running and this wound up being a great loss for us. My advice in this case is if you can’t ultimately pay him what he’s worth because he’s going to leave you before you know it, avoid the ‘A’ player.”

Then Beaver went on to discuss what to do when you have someone in your organization whom you’ve got to constantly talk to when they’ve had opportunities to take other positions. “If you’ve got a good relationship with someone, at some point in time they’re going to come to you to talk about a new opportunity — with another company — that they’ve been offered. In all honesty, I may tell them to take the opportunity if I feel it’s right for them.”

A final subject regarding hiring addressed by Beaver was that of training. “I’m not a believer in bringing new personnel inside and having them sit and watch for a year. I want them out on the road right away.”

In addition, a large part of the training process, he explained, “has to do with familiarizing new personnel with buzzwords and acronyms. That part of the job can be done by having new people mentored or even trained by our customers. I can remember customers training me and I’d maintain that my customers are training my new guys.”

For any additional or in-depth training, Beaver maintained, “I’m not necessarily the best trainer in the world. If there’s a need, I’ll find a good trainer in the area who can help out.”

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