Why 84% of Companies Have the Wrong Person in Sales with Josh Long

In this episode of U.S. Manufacturing Today (powered by Veryable), host Matt Horine speaks with Josh Long, founder of Bottleneck Breakthrough, about why sales is often the growth constraint in fulfillment-driven manufacturers. Long argues roughly 84% of companies place the wrong person in sales seats and that most failed sales hires stem from behavioral fit rather than a lack of sales skills. He contrasts sales-driven versus fulfillment-driven firms, explains why operations-minded owners struggle to manage sales personalities, and outlines a sales hierarchy of customer support plus (order takers), farmers, hunters, and closers, noting many teams were built for the easier 2013–2022 bull market and have struggled since late 2022. He shares a radiator manufacturer case where replacing a hesitant rep dramatically increased revenue, discusses pairing hunters with support staff and incentive-heavy comp plans, and describes using innermetrix-based assessments and a “sales team MRI” to evaluate fit, seat value, and revenue drag. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and Sponsor Intro 00:41 Sales Hiring Problem 01:53 Josh Long Origin Story 03:34 Sales vs Fulfillment Companies 05:41 Ops vs Sales Tension 08:48 Sales Rep Hierarchy 12:42 Why Miscasts Persist 14:49 Entropy Radiator Case Study 17:39 Post 2022 Slowdown Shift 20:26 Hunters Support and Comp 24:27 Interviewing and Assessments 27:59 Sales Team MRI Insights 29:54 Scaling to Bigger Teams 30:57 30 Day Evaluation Plan 33:24 Resources and Wrap Up 34:04 Final Outro and Subscribe Links Josh on LinkedIn Bottleneck Breakthrough Matt on LinkedIn Revitalizing US Manufacturing⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign Up on the Veryable Platform