Most new account managers are onboarded by shadowing. That feels practical, but they learn the habits of their buddy, not the method of the organization. Whoever onboards on the method gets a team that does the same things, even when it grows fast. A 90-day onboarding program gives that a fixed form.
Why shadowing alone is not enough
Shadowing is valuable. You see how an experienced colleague runs a conversation and how customers respond. It goes wrong when shadowing is the whole program.
Every sales rep has their own habits. Some are worth gold, others once grew out of convenience. A new colleague cannot see that difference. They take over everything. After three months you have a second version of the buddy, not someone who works by your method.
On top of that, a buddy is busy. Explaining happens in between things. What they forget to mention, the new colleague only learns when it goes wrong. I see this often: a new account manager who only hears after six months that there is a fixed exit criterion for a phase.
The principle: onboarding building layer by building layer
A good onboarding program follows the same structure as the method. First who we are and what we promise, then how the sales process runs, then what we do just a bit differently at the customer. Only after that the rhythm of the week and the numbers.
That order is no accident. Whoever knows the promise understands why a phase is set up the way it is. Whoever knows the phases understands why a win point falls at that point. And whoever understands all that sees a KPI as a tool, not as a reckoning.
Day 1 to 30: understanding
- Week 1. Promise, core values and the company story. At the end of the week the new colleague retells the story themselves.
- Week 2. The phases and exit criteria. Shadowing two colleagues, with the assignment to name for each conversation which phase it was in.
- Weeks 3 and 4. The win points, seen at customers. Carrying out one moment themselves under supervision.
So shadowing does belong here, but with an assignment. The new colleague does not just watch, they name what they see in the language of the method.
Day 31 to 60: doing
- Own portfolio. A small portfolio of C and B customers, following the contact cadence.
- Weekly one-on-one. With the sales manager, about one exit criterion and one win point.
- Sales meeting. Taking part with a deal of their own, which they explain themselves.
Start with C and B customers for a good reason. Mistakes are less expensive here. And the new colleague builds confidence before sitting at the table with the most important customers.
Day 61 to 90: independent
- Full portfolio. Including A customers, with a warm handover by the previous account manager.
- Own KPIs per phase. With the same norms as the team.
- Evaluation on day 90. What helped, what was missing? The outcome improves the program for the next colleague.
A fictional example: Sanne at an installation company
Sanne starts as an account manager at a fictional installation company with twenty employees. The company promises maintenance without surprises. One of the win points: a free baseline inspection of the installation for every new customer, discussed at the kitchen table or at the office.
In week 1 Sanne reads the company story and the promise. On Friday she retells it to the managing director. She forgets to mention the baseline inspection. That is exactly what you want to see: now you know what to give extra attention in week 2.
In week 3 she shadows two baseline inspections. In week 4 she does one herself, with a colleague next to her who only steps in when needed. Afterwards they discuss one thing that went well and one thing for next time.
In month 2 she gets fifteen B and C customers. In the sales meeting she presents a deal in the quote phase. The sales manager does not ask how big the deal is, but whether the exit criterion of the previous phase has been met. That is how she learns to apply the method to her own work.
On day 90 Sanne says the explanation of the contact cadence came too late. She would have wanted to know it in month 1. The program moves that part to week 2. The next new colleague benefits right away.
Common mistakes when onboarding account managers
Handing over the best customers too soon. It is tempting. The new colleague is there, the previous account manager is busy. But an A customer who gets an uncertain new contact notices. Wait until month 3, or do the first conversations together.
Wanting to tell everything in the first week. Nobody reads an eighty-page binder properly on day 1. Pace it. One building layer at a time, and let the new colleague tell it back.
No fixed moments with the sales manager. Without a calendar appointment, the one-on-one keeps slipping. Put the conversations for all 90 days in the calendar in advance.
Never updating the program. The method changes, the onboarding program stays behind. A new colleague then learns how things went last year.
How to start tomorrow: a checklist
You do not have to wait until a new colleague starts. With these steps the program is ready before anyone begins.
- Write down the company story. One page: where you come from, what you promise, for whom.
- List the phases with exit criteria. One sentence per phase: when is this phase done?
- Choose your win points. At most three, with for each moment who carries it out and when.
- Assign someone responsible for each week. Who gives the explanation, who takes the new colleague along?
- Schedule the conversations. Weekly one-on-ones and the evaluation on day 90 are fixed in advance.
- Decide on the starting portfolio. Which B and C customers are suitable to begin with?
How the onboarding program connects to the other building layers
The onboarding program does not stand on its own. It draws its content from the rest of your method. The promise and core values come from building layer 1. The phases and exit criteria from building layer 2. The win points from building layer 3, the customer journey. The contact cadence from building layer 4. The role and the job profile from building layer 5. The KPIs per phase from building layer 7.
If something changes in one of those building layers, the onboarding program changes with it. That is the advantage of onboarding on the method: you do not have to maintain it in two places.
Frequently asked questions
How long does onboarding an account manager take?
Count on about three months until someone independently runs a full portfolio. With complex products or long sales cycles it can take longer. The 90-day program gives structure, but you can stretch the stages if needed.
What belongs in a sales onboarding plan?
At the very least: the promise and core values, the phases of the sales process with exit criteria, the win points, the contact cadence, the KPIs per phase and a fixed rhythm of conversations with the sales manager. And an evaluation at the end.
Who is responsible for onboarding new sales reps?
The sales manager owns the program. Colleagues take on parts, such as shadowing or demonstrating a win point. Agree each week who does what, otherwise it falls between the cracks.
Does this also work for an inside sales employee?
Yes. The structure stays the same, the content adapts to the role. An inside sales employee gets the phases and moments they play a role in themselves, and KPIs that belong to that role.
Capturing and sharing
Capture the program in the Onboarding program of building layer 6. With the template builder you turn it into an onboarding guide that moves along as the method changes. The new colleague follows the program through a personal link, without an account of their own. You can read how that works at the onboarding program for sales staff. If someone leaves, you record in the new Knowledge transfer building block how the knowledge stays with the company: see knowledge transfer when a sales rep leaves.