Dear SaaStr: How Can I Become a Better VP of Sales?
Being a great VP of Sales is about balancing leadership, strategy, and execution. You’re not just managing a team—you’re driving revenue, building scalable processes, and ensuring alignment across the company.
Here’s how you can level up:
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Own Hiring and Coaching
Your two most critical responsibilities are hiring top talent and making your team better. Don’t delegate these. Be hands-on in sourcing, interviewing, and onboarding. Build a coaching culture—your A-players will thrive on it, and your B-players will improve. If your calendar doesn’t have time blocked for hiring and coaching, you’re not prioritizing the right things. -
Be Data-Driven, But Stay in the Trenches. You Gotta Keep Selling Yourself.
Dashboards are great, but they don’t replace being in the field. Listen to sales calls, review deals, and stay close to the action. Literally be in every deal that matters. Yourself. You need to know what’s working and what’s not—firsthand. If you’re not actively involved in the sales process for at least all key deals, you’ll lose touch with reality, and your team will notice. VP of Sales isn’t a “process” job, at least not until at least $20m-$30m ARR for SMBs, and maybe $40m-$50m ARR for enterprise. Or later. -
Set Clear, Achievable Goals. For Your Team. And With the CEO.
Your team needs clarity. Define clear targets for pipeline, bookings, and activity metrics. Break these down by rep and ensure everyone knows what’s expected. But don’t just set goals—help your team hit them. Jump into deals when needed, and be a resource, not just a manager. -
Align with Product and Marketing. And Be a True Product Expert.
Sales doesn’t operate in a vacuum. Meet regularly with the VP of Product to ensure the roadmap aligns with customer needs. Collaborate with marketing to ensure you’re getting the right leads and that messaging resonates. Misalignment here will kill your pipeline. And be an expert in both. Especially the product. -
Lead by Example. You Gotta Close Yourself. Not Just Watch and “Manage”.
The best VPs of Sales are still great salespeople. Jump on calls, close deals, and show your team how it’s done. If your team doesn’t believe you can sell, they won’t respect your leadership. You don’t have to carry a full quota, but you need to stay sharp. -
Don’t Hide from Misses. This is Way, Way, Way too Common.
If the team misses a target, own it. Analyze what went wrong, communicate transparently, and adjust. Great VPs of Sales don’t make excuses—they solve problems. And they give you a heads-up on a miss before anyone sees it. Your team will respect you more if you’re honest and proactive about addressing issues. -
Build for Scale
As you grow, your role shifts from being in the weeds to building scalable systems. Invest in tools, processes, and playbooks that enable your team to succeed without you micromanaging. But don’t rush this—focus on nailing the basics first. -
Be Relentless About Pipeline
Pipeline solves everything. If you don’t have 3x pipeline coverage, you’re already behind. Push your team to prospect, qualify, and build pipeline constantly. And don’t just rely on inbound—outbound is critical, especially in the early stages.
And much more here:
