Kevin Onarecker spent 30 years rebuilding broken sales teams in med tech and pharma, and he'll tell you straight: when leaders say "we just need to close more," they're missing everything.

After leading sales orgs from rep to VP, Kevin reveals why promoting your top performer destroys teams, how Fortune 500 companies train customers to expect discounts, and the brutal math that makes quota-setting either your secret weapon or your biggest liability. He breaks down why confident reps who "porpoise" (up one year, down the next) don't actually have a plan, how one executive killed a deal by offering a discount too early, and why the best sellers radiate quiet confidence instead of cockiness. This isn't about motivation speeches or ABC (Always Be Closing). It's about the assumptions hiding in your recurring revenue model and why your top three accounts might be producing 60% of territory revenue while you're spread across 150 hospitals.
Key takeaways:

Quota-setting is make-or-break - bad assumptions about recurring revenue and customer retention destroy forecasts and kill morale
Top performers bring attitude first, then knowledge and skills - hire for resilience and self-confidence that comes from preparation, not ego
The optimal sales team size is driven by what managers can actually coach - focus on the 3-5 accounts producing 50-60% of revenue, not spreading thin across 150
Reps miss quota because they lack strategic plans - break annual goals into monthly benchmarks and reverse-engineer the behaviors required
Discounting without strategy trains customers to wait for deals and crushes your math - it takes more than 25% additional revenue to overcome a 25% discount

Have questions about getting your team back on track? Drop them in the comments.

Connect with Kevin Onarecker:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-onarecker-8401093/
Website: onareckerconsulting.com
Email: konarecker@onareckerconsulting.com
Book: Selling Smarter
System: Back On Track

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– Jennica and the Revenue Unscripted podcast team

Connect with Jennica Dixon on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennica-dixon/
Visit the Slattery Sales Group website here: https://www.slatterysales.com/

Listen to Revenue Unscripted on these podcast platforms:
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#RevenueUnscripted #JennicaDixon #SalesLeadership #RevenueGrowth #B2BSales #SalesStrategy #SalesPerformance #ForecastAccuracy #SalesManagement #RevenueLeaders #FounderInsights #SalesCoaching #MarginProtection #SalesDifferentiation #RevenueOptimization Revenue Unscripted is the podcast where sales fiction meets reality. Hosted by Jennica Dixon, President of Slattery Sales Group, this show pulls back the curtain on what really drives revenue growth in complex B2B sales environments. Through candid 30-45 minute conversations with founders, CEOs, and revenue leaders, Jennica explores the real stories behind sales challenges, breakthrough moments, and the blind spots that quietly drain growth, margin, and valuation. Jennica brings over 40 years of combined client experience working with more than 2,400 companies across 170 industries. Her firm specializes in behavior-based sales transformation, helping organizations turn unpredictable pipelines into reliable revenue engines. From forecast accuracy and margin protection to sales team performance and competitive differentiation, Revenue Unscripted tackles the messy realities of human selling that traditional sales training glosses over. Whether you're a founder scaling your first sales team, a CRO rebuilding forecast credibility with the board, or a revenue leader trying to protect margins while accelerating growth, Revenue Unscripted delivers practical insights from leaders who've faced the same battles.