The End-of-Quarter Sales Scramble: Wrongfully managing the numbers and not the people

As the end of the quarter approaches, I see a familiar mistake made by many organizations regarding their sales teams: a mad scramble as salespeople rush to close deals, desperate to hit their targets. It's a chaotic time, marked by frantic calls, aggressive discounting, and last-minute pleas to prospects. For many, it's a time of stress and anxiety, a fire drill that happens every three months like clockwork. But while this quarter-end push may seem like a necessary evil, it's actually a symptom of a much deeper problem in the sales process.

 The truth is this scramble is not just inefficient; it's counterproductive. It perpetuates a vicious cycle where salespeople focus on short-term gains at the expense of long-term success. Instead of consistently prospecting and building a strong pipeline, they neglect the top of the funnel, leaving themselves in a poor position for the next quarter. And so, the cycle repeats.

 But it doesn't have to be this way. Successful salespeople don't scramble at the end of the quarter because they've done the work to set themselves up for success well in advance. They've invested time and effort into prospecting, nurturing relationships, and qualifying leads so that by the time the end of the quarter rolls around, they already have a healthy pipeline of deals that are ready to close. There's no need for panic because they've managed their time and their funnel effectively.

 Sales Managers: Stop Perpetuating the Problem

 Unfortunately, many sales managers perpetuate this problem. In their desire to hit quarterly targets, they ask their teams, "What can you close this quarter?" This question, though well-intentioned, sends the wrong message. It shifts the focus from long-term strategy to short-term tactics. It encourages salespeople to do whatever it takes to close deals now, even if it means sacrificing the time and energy required to focus on future opportunities, ensuring success in future quarters.

 This type of management is not managing the people to achieve the numbers; it's managing the numbers to the people. And while it may sometimes work in the short term, it's a recipe for long-term failure. Salespeople become conditioned to think in terms of quarterly sprints rather than sustained, strategic efforts. They develop a reactive mindset, constantly putting out fires instead of preventing them. It also focuses on resources on late pipeline activities instead of prospecting that keeps the pipeline robust.

 Sales Leadership: Create a Coaching Culture

 The responsibility for breaking this cycle doesn't just rest with individual salespeople or their managers; it starts at the top with sales leadership. Leaders who perpetuate a culture of frenetic activity at the end of each quarter are doing their teams a disservice. They are creating an environment where stress and burnout are the norm, and short-term thinking overshadows long-term growth.

 Instead, sales leaders should strive to create a coaching culture, one that promotes consistent, sustainable success. In a coaching culture, the focus is not on the end of the quarter but on the entire sales process. It's about helping salespeople develop the skills and habits they need to succeed every day, not just when the clock is ticking down.

 Similar to sports

 Consider the analogy of a mid-distance runner with a strong finishing kick. This runner is always behind near the end of the race, relying on their kick to pull out a win. Sometimes it works, but more often than not, it's not enough.

 Now imagine the runner’s coach spending their time before the next race, trying to improve the runner’s kick since it wasn’t enough to win the last race. A good coach would recognize the runner's strong kick as a strength but would also realize that to truly succeed, the runner needs to improve in other areas. They would work on the start, the early race, and the mid-race performance, finding places to improve by 1%, 3%, or 5%. The goal would be to put the runner in a better position near the end of the race so that the kick isn't necessary, or if it is, it's enough to secure the win.

 The same principle applies to sales. Instead of relying on a frantic end-of-quarter push to meet targets, salespeople and their leaders should focus on improving the entire sales process. By working on prospecting, qualification, and relationship-building throughout the quarter, they can position themselves for success without the need for a last-minute scramble.

 Build a culture of winning, not a culture of simply trying

 The end-of-quarter scramble is easily recognizable and is a symptom of a larger problem in sales and should be treated as so. It's a cycle that can be broken, but only if salespeople, managers, and leaders alike commit to a different approach. By focusing on the top of the funnel, prospecting consistently, and improving overall sales skills, it's possible to achieve sustained success quarter after quarter. Just like the mid-distance runner who learns to improve throughout the race, sales teams that take a long-term, strategic approach will find themselves in a much stronger position when it matters most.