Having trouble closing on A-level sales talent? Losing too many recruiting battles to the competition? The problem could be your timing and stalled momentum throughout the sales recruiting process, so let’s take a look at some of the possible causes.

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A slow hiring funnel. Think about the Speed-to-Lead concept you have down to a science in your sales process. If your sales reps take forever to respond to an interested customer, that customer is going somewhere else.

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The same thing applies to candidates and your hiring funnel. If you’re taking too long to respond to interested candidates, those candidates are going to lose interest. And when that happens, you can kiss your chances of recruiting top-tier goodbye.

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More offers, more problems. At least for employers, that is. It’s a jobseeker’s market right now. That means those candidates you’re interviewing probably have at least a few different offers already sitting in their pocket. Or are about to.

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And since momentum is everything in sales recruiting, your slow process is cutting your ability to compete off at the knees. Candidates just aren’t going to stick around when they already have other options waiting for them.

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Stuck in the mud. That’s your hiring funnel when you’re too inflexible to adapt. Because if you’re not revisiting your interview cadence after consistently losing battles for top talent, then you’re making it really tough to put the right who in the right seat. Maybe even impossible.

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I’m not saying you should cancel interview stages you feel are critical. However, your interview cadence should be as compact as possible without sacrificing insight and impact. Remember, momentum is everything, so weeks between interviews just isn’t going to cut it.

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Fix your slow timing. It’s not as difficult as it might seem. In fact, don’t look at it like you’re reinventing the interview wheel because a few simple tips can help you streamline your process.

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• Take that sense of urgency from your sales process - remember Speed-to-Lead? - and apply it to your interview process.
• When you get a qualified candidate sent your way, schedule them asap.
• Don’t wait more than 48 hours to schedule the next interview.
• If your leadership team is involved in the interview process, proactively block off time on their calendar so it doesn’t slow the process.

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In a recent survey, 80% of CEOs said finding and hiring the right talent keeps them up at night. However, poor timing and a lack of momentum shouldn’t add to that tossing and turning. Keep your timing tight, momentum strong, and you’ll set yourself up for hiring top sales talent.