Sales Training, Coaching,
and Development

The current reality of sales training and where
teams need more support to succeed.
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sales training coaching

Sales Training, Coaching,
and Development

The current reality of sales training and where teams need more support to succeed.

DOWNLOAD THE RESEARCH

Why does sales training matter?

Because it’s what keeps your people. Lack of training and career growth is the #1 reason reps and managers say they’d leave, and 79% of reps want more training and coaching than they’re getting.

Factor 8 surveyed thousands of sales reps, frontline managers, and senior leaders to see how sales teams are trained, coached, and developed, and where it breaks down.

SALES REPS

79%

want more training and coaching from their company.

SALES REPS

44%

don’t receive any training beyond initial new hire onboarding.

SALES MANAGERS

40%

of managers say lack of training and career growth is the #1 reason they’d leave.

SALES LEADERS

84%

lack some confidence in their company’s current sales training plan.

What makes sales reps and managers leave?

Lack of training and career growth. It’s the #1 reason reps would leave their role, and 40% of managers say the same. Leaders see it differently: they rank compensation as the top driver of retention.

Why managers say they would leave

No training or career growth
40%
Low compensation
22%
Bad leadership
21%
Toxic culture
11%
Poor work-life balance
6%

What leaders think keeps people

#1
Compensation and commission
#2
Work-life balance
#3
Training and development
#4
Career growth and promotion path
#5
Team culture and collaboration
Leaders think pay keeps their people. Their people say it’s training and growth.
Training and development ranks #3 on leaders’ list of what attracts and retains employees, behind compensation and work-life balance.

Who We Surveyed

Thousands of sales professionals across every level of the sales organization, every major sales function, and companies of every size.

Experience Level

Rep / Non-Management
31%
Management
32%
Senior Leadership
37%

Company Size

Small
54%
Mid-Market
23%
Enterprise
23%

Sales Functions

Inside / Virtual Sales
Leadership / Operations
Account Executives
Account Managers
Sales Enablement / Training

Top Industries Represented

SaaS / TechFinancial ServicesEducation / TrainingHealthcare / PharmaLogistics / TransportationPublishing / MediaStaffing / HRConsultingConsumer GoodsInsurance
Respondents are primarily based in the United States, with additional responses from Canada and other countries.

Does sales training stop after onboarding?

For 44% of reps, yes. They don’t receive any training beyond initial new hire onboarding, and 29% describe the training they did get as poor or nonexistent.

Reps haven’t given up on it, though. 79% want more training and coaching from their company.

Does your company provide sales training after onboarding?

Yes 56%
No 44%
Sales rep responses
29%
of reps say their company training was poor or nonexistent.
4%
say their company training is best-in-class.

What do sales reps want from training and their manager?

79%
want more training and coaching
44%
get none after onboarding
Reps are asking for more development. Nearly half aren’t getting any after onboarding.
60%
need more support with prospecting, well ahead of closing (15%), qualifying (11%), demos (9%), and discovery (5%).
27%
say the #1 thing they want from their manager is someone who will fight for what they need to succeed.
32%
want more call coaching, skill coaching, or sales training from their manager.
Training and tools
Sales training and tech/tools top the list of what reps want more of in their day-to-day work.
#1 reason to leave
No training or growth path is the top reason reps would leave their role, ahead of burnout.
20%
say their manager is great and they don’t need anything more.

What do sales managers need to coach their teams better?

More support, and nearly all of them say so. Managers are coaching less than leaders want, and they’re asking for the process, frameworks, and training to do it well.

97%
say they need more support from leadership and enablement.
49%
want more support, process, and coaching frameworks for themselves.
40%
coach their reps fewer than 3 hours a week, and 10% say they don’t coach at all.
51%
say their teams need more prospecting training.
56%
say their reps need more sales skills training.
Top 3 asks
Sales process, sales training, and coaching frameworks top the support managers wish they had.

What leaders want managers to do

Coach reps more often
Hold reps accountable
Drive consistent execution

What managers say they need to do it

Sales process and methodology
Coaching frameworks
Ongoing skills training

How confident are sales leaders in their training plan?

Not very. 84% lack some confidence in their company’s current sales training plan. Only 16% say they’re very confident.

How confident are you in your current rep and manager training plan?

16% Very confident
62% Somewhat confident
8% Not confident
14% “What training plan?”
Sales leader responses
Low adoption
is leaders’ biggest frustration with training and enablement, followed by low buy-in and proving ROI.
39%
say their company offers both rep and manager training.
52%
want managers coaching reps more often and holding them accountable.
Top of funnel
Most leaders say top-of-funnel selling skills are where reps struggle most.

Top skill gaps leaders see in reps

1. Time management
2. Discovery
3. Value selling

Top skill gaps leaders see in managers

1. Leading vs. selling
2. Coaching
3. Rep accountability
14% of leaders answered “What training plan?”

Your team is telling you what they need.

The demand
Everyone wants more
79% of reps want more training and coaching, and 97% of managers want more support.
The gap
Training stops early
44% of reps get no training after onboarding, and 84% of leaders lack confidence in their plan.
The blind spot
Pay vs. growth
Leaders bet on compensation to keep people. Reps and managers say training and growth matter more.

Want the full research?

Get every chart and breakdown in the complete infographic, and build stronger reps, better managers, and a training plan that actually sticks.

Want the full research?

Get every chart, breakdown, and respondent detail in the complete Sales Team Challenges and Skill Gaps infographic.

Citing this research?

Please do. Attribute findings to Factor 8’s Sales Training, Coaching, and Development research and link back to this page.
Example: According to Factor 8’s Sales Training, Coaching, and Development research, only 4% of sales reps say their company’s sales training is best-in-class.