Sales Management - Career Path for Top Performers - Really?

In a conversation with a top-performing salesperson in factory automation software for several years, I mentioned the premise of my book on the transition to sales manager, and was surprised at his response.

Maybe he's onto something...

I shared the statistic that 85% of top salespeople who are made sales managers don't last a year and leave the company, and he said that he hadn't seen that happen much.  He agreed that top salespeople don't often make good sales managers, but said that top salespeople he's know don't accept the promotion, if offered.

When I asked what he saw instead, he said "The really good salespeople don't WANT to be sales managers - the ones who DO want to be sales managers are the ones who struggle with sales, who are burnt out, who want to escape the pressure of continually making the numbers."

So, in your experience, is this a stereotype?

Or do companies that promote a struggling salesperson to be the sales manager have the right idea - IF certain other traits and characteristics are there?

I've been interviewing successful sales managers who were top performers to identify what traits & characteristics they have in common, so that whether a company promotes the top performer or someone else, they'll stand a better chance of success...

More on those traits and characteristics next week...