I recently read an article in Selling Power Magazine by Lance Tyson called “Why Sales Coaching Is the Multiplier Most Sales Teams Are Missing.”
One point really stood out:

Most sales managers think they’re coaching when they’re actually inspecting.
They’re reviewing pipelines.
Checking forecasts.
Asking for CRM updates.
Those activities may help measure performance, but they don’t improve it.
Real coaching focuses on the behaviors that drive results.

I see this all the time. A company invests in sales training, everyone leaves energized, and then 60 days later the team is doing exactly what they were doing before. That’s why I don’t offer stand-alone sales training. It has to be paired with coaching or it doesn’t work.

Why?
Because nobody is reinforcing the new behaviors.
One example: When you first train on a skill like discovery, reps will say they understand the concepts. But when we review sales calls from the previous week, I find they still present solutions before fully uncovering the prospect’s challenges, how those challenges impact the organization, and the associated risks.

Reps practice something they have learned, but it’s never quite right when they use it in the field. It takes coaching to help them integrate the new skill into their daily processes.

Ongoing coaching gives reps a way to fine-tune what they have learned and make it a habit.

The best sales managers don’t just inspect the score.
They help change the outcome.

How much of your sales management time is spent coaching versus inspecting?