How to Be a Hall of Fame Coach Like Halas, Lombardi, Walsh and Madden

There are 21 NFL Hall of Fame coaches, yes, just 21.  As we start the playoff run of this NFL season, we are reminded that winning championships not only takes great players on the field, but also great coaches and leaders.

The question often asked is – are great coaches made or born?  Well, according to Vince Lombardi, "Leaders aren't born, they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work. And that's the price we'll have to pay to achieve that goal, or any goal."

But, we still ask this same question in Sales – is a sales manager born a great coach or can a sales manager become a great coach?

The good news – our research at the Sales Executive Council shows we CAN make great coaches, which means there are more than just a few "Hall of Fame" sales coaches out there.

But now the question becomes, HOW do we foster successful coaching in our sales organizations?  What's required to make "Hall of Fame" sales coaches?  

Here at the SEC, we set out to answer those questions.  Answering these led us to develop The Anatomy of a World Class Coaching Program. It's compromised of 15 sales coaching attributes that, together, make for a world-class coaching program.

Here are just a few to consider as you think about your own sales organization:

Ensuring Coaching Capacity – We recognize the time commitment required for quality coaching and have instituted strategies to free up manager time to coach.

Our research has found that 3-5 hours per month is critical.


Allocation of Coaching Time – We direct managers to overweight coaching effort to salespeople with the greatest potential for improvement (core performers) and those whom we most want to retain (star performers).

Why focus on core performers? Because effective coaching to core performers provides the greatest opportunity for improved sales performance.


Secondary Coaches (no, not football coaches of cornerbacks and safeties) – Though managers own overall coaching and development strategy for their direct reports, we leverage specialists and peers to coach in their area of expertise when appropriate.

While having this Anatomy as a guidepost is a start, our members also use it to diagnose the effectiveness of their current coaching programs; it can be deployed internally to understand if your company is creating and fostering a culture of "Hall of Fame" coaches.  The results help sales organizations pinpoint their coaching strengths as well as areas that need additional focus.

As Lombardi said, we can make great leaders and great coaches, which will take a lot of hard work; but that makes winning all the more satisfying.

SEC Members, download the Anatomy of a World-Class Coaching Program and also check out our Coaching topic center for more tools and resources on embedding coaching in your organization.