AMA: HubSpot Director of Sales, Katie Walsh on Sales Leadership

Managing a remote or hybrid sales force really comes down to intentionality. I anchor everything in clarity.Clear expectations around goals, behaviors, and how work gets done matter even more in a remote environment. When reps know what “good” looks like; in pipeline health, deal execution, and customer outcome, performance becomes consistent regardless of location. I invest heavily in managers.Managers are the culture carriers in remote teams. I focus on developing them to be excellent coaches, ...Read More

I think about AI in sales leadership as an accelerant and the foundation has to be trust. We use AI to help reps and managers see patterns faster, coach more consistently, and reduce busywork, not to micromanage or “catch” people doing something wrong. Being clear about intent upfront is critical to earning adoption. I’m thoughtful about where AI is applied. For call reviews, AI helps surface themes, talk ratios, missed questions, competitive mentions, so managers can focus their time on coachin ...Read More

Capture the reality, identify patterns, and turn insights into behavior change. If it doesn’t change how teams sell, it’s just reporting. First, I focus on getting clean, consistent inputs. Every deal is reviewed using the same core questions. Second, I separate deal-level learning from trend-level learning. At the deal level, managers use wins and losses as coaching moments: What would we repeat? What would we do differently next time? At the trend level, I look across deals to spot systemic th ...Read More

The ones who have a high learning velocity, resilience, and customer curiosity. I hire for how people think, not just what they’ve sold. Top AEs show strong problem-solving skills, ask thoughtful questions, and can explain why a deal moved or stalled — not just what happened. They’re coachable, reflective, and comfortable being uncomfortable. Those traits matter more than years of experience in a fast-moving sales environment. Second, I look for evidence of ownership.The best reps take responsib ...Read More

One that’s purpose-built, not stacked. Every meeting should earn its place by changing decisions or behavior. I’m ruthless about meeting intent. Forecast calls exist to assess risk and make decisions, not to restate numbers everyone can already see. Pipeline reviews are about deal strategy and gaps, not updates. If a meeting doesn’t require live discussion, it shouldn’t be a meeting. I separate inspection from coaching. Forecast calls are short, structured, and focused on commit accuracy and ris ...Read More