The #1 Mistake I See Founders Make When They Hire Their First VP of Sales
Джейсон Лемкин (SaaStr) разбирает главную ошибку основателей при найме первого VP of Sales: примерно 66% фаундеров отходят от продаж, наняв такого руководителя, и в 95% случаев это бьёт по бизнесу. По его опыту, почти всегда любой, кроме самого выдающегося первого VP of Sales, проваливается, если основатель уходит из продаж — ведь именно CEO лучший демонстратор, знает, что реально работает, и клиенты обожают общаться с фаундером. Лемкин советует нанимать VP of Sales, только когда уже есть 2 реальных продавца, выполняющих план, и вся ранняя команда — гуру продукта. Он часто видит, как Pretty Good VP of Sales нанимают на $1–4M ARR, после чего CEO переключается на другое, и продажи не просто стагнируют, а падают. Вывод: наняв VP of Sales, вы не возвращаете себе время — вы тратите его на более ценные части процесса (крупные сделки, отношения, сложные вопросы), но объём вложенного в продажи времени должен оставаться прежним.
The #1 Mistake I See Founders Make When They Hire Their First VP of Sales
by | Blog Posts, Early, Sales, Sales
I'd say about 66% of founders step back from sales when they hire a VP of Sales
95% of the time, it backfires
You don't get that time back. You just use it in different parts of the sales process.
— Jason ✨👾SaaStr.Ai✨ Lemkin (@jasonlk) May 27, 2026
So much of classic SaaStr content is on getting that first VP of Sales hire right. Getting it wrong so often sets you back a year, and burns half your cash.
But the reality is many of you will hire a Pretty Good First VP of Sales. Just not a truly, truly great one. And that can be fine either for a while, or if they grow into a great one, forever.
And then I see the same mistake again, and again, and again. A founder hires a Pretty Good First VP of Sales. And just … exits sales.
They didn’t love doing founder-led sales. Or they want to get back to doing product. Or they think they are sort of done with this.
I can tell you almost 100% of the time, any but the very, very best first VPs of Sales fail if the founder steps out of sales.
Why?
So again and again, I see a Pretty Good VP of Sales hired at $1m, $2m, $3m, $4m ARR. And the CEO is off to the next thing. And sales — decline. They don’t even flatten, they decline. Because you’ve lost your best asset on the sales team. Sometimes, if you hire a VP of Sales that was already a customer / user, they already know a lot. And the very, very best do figure it out. But otherwise, it’s the Titanic if the founder exits sales.
"Never, ever hire a VP of Sales until you have 2 individual sales reps really closing. Hitting quota.
And that early sales team? They all have to be product gurus." with @lennysan pic.twitter.com/yBf2mAfwg9
— Jason ✨👾SaaStr.Ai✨ Lemkin (@jasonlk) December 21, 2024
As CEO, assume you never get that time back just because you hired a VP of Sales. You always have to put the same amount of time into sales. No matter how great a VP of Sales you hire. It’s just, what you do with your time in sales should change
You shouldn’t have to send contracts out, or do routine follow-up. The VP of Sales will make sure that all happens. But you still have to put as much time into sales. Just in more valuable parts of the process. In the middle of sales, and just in bigger deals, and smoothing over issues. And building relationships. But not stepping out, or putting in less time overall.
Exit sales, and watch sales fall. I can almost guarantee it, unless you truly hire the best of the best. And most of us don’t.
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