You are given a new territory with no existing pipeline and a quota starting in 90 days. How would you plan your first three months?

What the interviewer wants to hear

• Define ideal customer profile and target account list
• Build a prospecting cadence with activity targets
• Work backwards from quota using conversion rates
• Use referrals, partners and marketing support
• Track leading indicators and adjust

Model answer

In the first two weeks I would learn the product deeply, study our best existing customers and define the ideal customer profile. Then I build a target list of accounts and contacts. I work backwards from quota: if average deal size is 5 lakh, win rate 25% and meeting to opportunity rate 50%, I know how many meetings and opportunities I need each month, and so how many outreach touches. I set up multi-channel sequences and daily activity targets, and ask marketing, partners and existing customers for referrals. Each week I track leading indicators like replies, meetings and pipeline created, and adjust messaging and targeting.

More hard Sales Executive questions

• Tell me about a time you missed your quota. What happened and what did you change?
• The business team wants your product, but procurement is pushing hard for a 25% discount near quarter end. How do you handle the negotiation?
• Your manager wants you to add a deal to commit to make the team forecast look better, but you believe it will not close this quarter. What do you do?
• You learn late in the cycle that the prospect is leaning towards a competitor. How do you respond?
• A customer who signed three months ago says you mis-sold them and wants to cancel. How do you handle it?
• Your manager wants you to push through a deal you believe the customer will regret. What do you do?
• You have a mid-size customer paying $50,000 a year. How would you try to grow them to $150,000 over two years?
• Your commission plan pays most on a product that is often not the right fit for your customers. How do you handle this?
• You take over a territory where most of the pipeline is old, inactive or unqualified. How do you rebuild it quickly?