Dear SaaStr: How Do I Get a Job as a First Time VP of Sales?
If you’re aiming to land a VP of Sales role, you need to position yourself as someone who can deliver results and scale a team.
"The biggest mistakes CROs and VPs of Sales make when they take a new role." with @kylecnorton
1⃣ Too stubborn
2⃣ Need love space
3⃣ Do better diligence pic.twitter.com/yBGqYpQKfN— Jason ✨👾SaaStr 2025 is May 13-15✨ Lemkin (@jasonlk) January 20, 2025
Here’s how to approach it:
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Prove you can own a number. Companies want to see that you’ve consistently hit or exceeded quotas in your past roles. If you’ve never owned a number before, you’re not ready for a VP role. Focus on roles where you can demonstrate this first—like being a top-performing AE or Sales Manager.
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Show you can recruit. A VP of Sales’ #1 job is building a team. Be ready to talk about who you’ve hired, how you’ve developed them, and how they’ve performed. If you don’t have a track record of recruiting and managing top talent, it’s going to be tough to convince a company you’re ready for this role.
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Highlight your ability to scale. Companies hiring a VP of Sales are usually looking to grow from 10M+ ARR. You need to show that you’ve been part of that journey before. If you haven’t, focus on roles at earlier-stage companies where you can gain that experience.
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Network like crazy. Most VP of Sales hires happen through referrals. Start building relationships with founders, VCs, and other sales leaders in your industry. Attend events, join communities like SaaStr, and make yourself known. Founders often pre-recruit for months before making a hire, so you want to be on their radar early.
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Be ready to sell yourself. In interviews, you’ll need to demonstrate that you can sell the company’s product better than anyone else. Founders want to see that you can close deals yourself, not just manage a team. Practice pitching their product as if you’re already on the team.
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Bring your “A-team.” The best VP of Sales candidates have a few top-performing reps who would follow them to a new company. If you can say, “I’ve got two rockstar AEs who would join me here,” that’s a huge advantage. It shows you’re not just a leader but a magnet for talent.
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Be patient but persistent. Great VP of Sales roles don’t come up every day, and companies take their time to hire. Keep building your skills, expanding your network, and positioning yourself as the obvious choice when the right opportunity comes along.
- Don’t make it all about yourself. Too many VP of Sales and CRO candidates these days come in hot and the first question is about comp and equity. Of course that matters, but a founder CEO is first going to be looking for someone they trust and want to go into battle with every day. If it’s all transactional, and all about the money, you’ll lose most of the great earlier-stage opportunities.
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