Before day one
The engagement starts with an agreed number of committed days per month, a named sponsor (usually the CEO or managing partner), access to the CRM and the finance numbers, and a short written brief on what the board expects the sales function to deliver this year. Without the last one, the first month is spent finding out.
Weeks 1 to 4: diagnose
The aim is a clear-eyed view of the pipeline, the team and the operating rhythm, and agreement with the sponsor on the three things that matter most. This phase is essentially a sales process audit run from the inside.
Possible work for the director
- Pipeline review from the CRM: size, shape, speed, ageing, coverage against target
- Forecast history against actuals for the last four quarters
- Win/loss review of recent closed deals
- One-to-ones with every seller or partner in scope, and with delivery and finance leads
- CRM and reporting assessment
- First pipeline review run in the new format, in week 3 or 4
- A one-page diagnosis and three priorities, agreed with the sponsor
Support to agree with the client
- CRM export and access; forecast history; revenue by client and service line
- Introductions to the team framed by the sponsor, not the director
- Time with the CEO or sponsor each week
- The board's expectations in writing
- Honesty about what has been tried before and why it faded
Weeks 5 to 8: fix
The priorities become changes. Potential priorities include qualification criteria, stage definitions and reliable records. The director also starts working the largest opportunities personally, where that is part of the agreed role.
Possible work for the director
- Written qualification criteria applied to every open opportunity; unqualified deals closed or restaged
- Stage exit criteria and validated probabilities; CRM reconfigured to match
- The reporting suite for the leadership team, for the decisions the leadership team needs to make (see management reporting and cadence)
- Fortnightly pipeline review and weekly deal reviews established
- Coaching for sellers on live opportunities; a coaching plan where development needs have been identified
- Personal involvement in the two or three largest opportunities
- A first re-forecast built on the validated pipeline
Support to agree with the client
- Authority for the director to change CRM configuration and stage definitions
- Attendance at the pipeline review by the sponsor
- Decisions on any people issues the diagnosis raised
- Marketing and delivery leads available for the value proposition and handover work
Weeks 9 to 12: embed
The cadence has to become the team's own, run the same way whether the director is in the office or not. This phase measures adoption, reports to the board, and sets up the decision about what happens next.
Possible work for the director
- Team leaders or senior sellers running deal reviews with the director observing
- Adoption measures: stage evidence completeness, forecast category accuracy, next steps closed
- Leading indicators reported: qualified pipeline created, conversion by stage, time in stage
- Board or leadership report at day 90: what was found, what changed, what the numbers show, what is next
- A recommendation: continue at the current commitment, reduce it, or recruit a permanent director (with the role defined from the evidence)
- Where recruiting: the role description, interview plan and assessment against the capability benchmark
Support to agree with the client
- A decision on the recommendation
- Continued sponsor attendance at the cadence
- Budget decisions for any coaching, training or hires the plan calls for
What to review at day 90
- Check which forecast opportunities meet the agreed qualification criteria.
- Stages mean the same thing to everyone and the CRM reflects buyer reality.
- The leadership team has a reporting suite it uses, and a pipeline review it runs on rhythm.
- Review how the forecast was prepared and explain its assumptions to the board.
- Progress on the largest opportunities has been reviewed, including any barriers.
- There is a clear recommendation on the shape of sales leadership from here.
Review progress against the scope and the available evidence. Longer sales cycles may mean that revenue effects are not yet visible. Agree the next period of work from what has been learned.
Fees, the committed-days model and FAQs are on the fractional sales director page.
This plan is free to use within your firm. Please link to this page rather than republishing it.