--- title: How Entry-Level Candidates Can Identify the Right Sales Culture - Victory Lap description: How Entry-Level Candidates Can Identify the Right Sales Culture In Uncategorized --- [![Victory Lap Logo](https://victorylap.io/hubfs/vlaplogo-4.png)](https://victorylap.io) - COMPANIES - [HIRING](https://victorylap.io/sales-hiring) - [SALES ONBOARDING](https://victorylap.io/managed-onboarding) - [OUTSOURCED SALES](https://victorylap.io/outsourced-sale) - [TEAM TRAINING](https://victorylap.io/sales-training-and-development) - [PLAYBOOKS](https://victorylap.io/sales-course-and-playbooks-0) - INDIVIDUALS - [SALES BOOTCAMP](https://victorylap.io/sales-course-and-playbooks) - ABOUT VICTORY LAP - [MEET OUR FOUNDER](https://victorylap.io/vl-story) - [BLOG](https://victorylap.io/blog) Tips for Hiring # How Entry-Level Candidates Can Identify the Right Sales Culture How Entry-Level Candidates Can Identify the Right Sales Culture In Uncategorized [Victory Lap](https://victorylap.io/blog/author/victory-lap) Nov 19, 2020 --- In , written by , on ![](https://victorylap.io/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/sean-pollock-PhYq704ffdA-unsplash-1024x683.jpg?width=1024&height=683&name=sean-pollock-PhYq704ffdA-unsplash-1024x683.jpg) Written by: [*Jill Erickson, Former Chief Revenue Officer, Shiftgig*](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jiller/) ### **My mentor out of college insisted my first job be in sales.** What I didn’t know is that he wanted me to learn *humility* by having the door slammed in my face many times before I felt the victory of my first sale. It was amazing and I grew hungry for more. I’ve been fortunate in my career to manage sales teams for early stage startups as well as billion dollar companies. I’ve learned that if the sales culture is healthy, you’ll go to the moon. And if the company you’re interested in joining embraces these five values and practices, take the job. ### **1. Authenticity** One of the top reasons sales people leave their current company is because of a dysfunctional company culture. Ask probing questions about the culture during your interview process. How many leadership changes have occurred? How is the office environment? What are the company core values and vision? How much time does leadership spend with the sales team? Etc. Questions like these will help you scope out more info on the company’s functioning and authenticity. ### **2. Communication** There’s nothing more ineffective than an uninformed sales team. During the interview process, make sure to ask how the company communicates with its employees, how often it does so, and on which platforms. Productive company cultures provide product and company information on a regular basis and reinforce clear expectations often. More importantly, healthy companies spend one-on-one time with you to understand what’s going well and what needs improvement.  If you don’t feel that the environment allows for open and honest communication, it’s a red flag. ### **3. Simplicity** Healthy sales cultures value making selling easy for their client facing teams. The most important question you can ask during the interview is: what is your sales enablement strategy?  If they don’t have one, it’s a red flag. While definitions of sales enablement vary, my definition is any process, platform, or marketing support that makes selling faster, easier, and more effective.  Sales enablement strategies include everything from management and coaching, to sales process, to consistent messaging, to tools and technologies that manage the process optimizing performance. How does the company make it easy for you to onboard and start selling effectively? ### **4. Accountability** A culture of respect and accountability keeps everybody honest. If the company doesn’t have a “do what you say” culture overall, it’s a red flag. Learn more about how the company holds each other accountable for delivering on objectives. ### **5. Fun** Fun happens when sales teams achieve goals. Goals are achieved when there is open and honest communication, authentic relationships, a sales enablement strategy, accountability for people’s actions. Great sales leaders know how to celebrate a winning team for their hard work. Ask for examples of how they celebrate their sales successes. The best way to be sure that the company you’re interested in has a great sales culture is to talk to other sales people on the team. This is common, so don’t be afraid to ask for introductions. No matter what your aspirations and career goals are, you’ve made a great choice to go into sales. And because of this choice, you will be a better person in life. [Tips for Hiring](https://victorylap.io/blog/tag/tips-for-hiring) ## Similar posts Tips for Hiring ### [Cultural Fit in Sales: The Key to Team Longevity](https://victorylap.io/blog/cultural-fit-in-sales-the-key-to-team-longevity) Building a high performing sales team is not just about hiring quota crushers. It is about creating a culture where they can thrive. Cultural fit is... Victory Lap Oct 4, 2025 Sales Tips ### [Equity: What Does It Mean, and How Can We Practice It?](https://victorylap.io/blog/2020/11/19/equity-what-does-it-mean-and-how-can-we-practice-it) Equity: What Does It Mean, and How Can We Practice It? In Uncategorized Victory Lap Nov 19, 2020 Sales Tips ### [Life Begins at the End of Your Comfort Zone](https://victorylap.io/blog/2020/11/19/life-begins-at-the-end-of-your-comfort-zone) Life Begins at the End of Your Comfort Zone In Uncategorized Victory Lap Nov 19, 2020 ### Get notified on new marketing insights Be the first to know about new B2B SaaS Marketing insights to build or refine your marketing function with the tools and knowledge of today’s industry. ![VictoryLapLogo - White](https://victorylap.io/hubfs/VictoryLapLogo%20-%20White.png) Victory Lap 1555 Sherman Avenue #140 Evanston, IL 60201 ### What We Do - [Sales Hiring](https://victorylap.io/sales-hiring) - [Sales Training and Development](https://victorylap.io/sales-training-and-development) - [Fractional Sales Teams](https://victorylap.io/outsourced-sale) ### For Jobseekers - [Sales Course and Playbooks](https://victorylap.io/sales-course-and-playbooks) - [Sales Career and Upskilling Platform](https://app.victorylap.io/) ### About Victory Lap - [Meet Our Founder](https://victorylap.io/vl-story) - [VL Team](https://victorylap.io/vl-team-0) © 2025 All rights reserved [Privacy Policy](https://victorylap-23748019.hs-sites.com/privacy-policy) [Powered by Atlas - a B2B SaaS HubSpot theme](https://www.kalungi.com/atlas-hubspot-theme-for-b2b-saas-software) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Victory Lap", "url" : "https://victorylap.io/blog/author/victory-lap" }, "dateModified" : "2023-09-20T17:10:31.920Z", "datePublished" : "2020-11-19T17:56:07.000Z", "headline" : "How Entry-Level Candidates Can Identify the Right Sales Culture - Victory Lap", "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://victorylap.io/blog/2020/11/19/how-entry-level-candidates-can-identify-the-right-sales-culture", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject" }, "name" : "Victory Lap LLC" } } ```