Practical, no-fluff thinking on hiring go-to-market talent, building GTM strategy, entering new markets and scaling technology companies. New posts most weeks.
It isn't cost of living. US venture-backed companies pay for quality without haggling because investors are pushing for speed. Why offers outside the US lose on speed, not comp.
Read article17% tax against 30%, a two-week work pass against a four-month one, and a timezone that bridges Tokyo to Mumbai against one that doesn't. Tax, visa speed, termination cost and timezone reach compared.
Read article12 to 24 month sales cycles, a ¥30M visa threshold and 72% of IT talent inside system integrators. The entity, hiring and selling sequence that works for SaaS in Japan.
Read articleH-1B now carries a $100,000 fee for new petitions filed outside the US. The visa and entity sequence that actually works for an APAC-to-US expansion, and who your first hire should be.
Read articleThe trigger is time, not revenue: split once AEs spend 30%+ of the week prospecting instead of closing. The right ratio, the cost of splitting too early, and what a clean handoff actually requires.
Read articleFractional CRO engagements cost 25 to 40% of a full-time hire and skip the ramp, but the model breaks down past a predictable ARR crossover. Where fractional wins, where it stops working, and how to convert one into the real hire.
Read articleA documented 90-day plan lifts new sales leader success from 29% to 71%. The exact days 1-30, 31-60 and 61-90 structure, what to measure, and where onboarding fails.
Read articleMost VP of Sales interviews test confidence, not competence. The five questions that actually predict performance, a live pipeline review exercise, and the red flags that should end the process early.
Read articleOne SDR hire validates your outbound motion. The next two or three should never be hired the same way. Why the pod model beats sequential hiring once the playbook is proven, and why it backfires before that.
Read articleMost enterprise AE interviews test who tells the best story. The process that predicts performance uses a live discovery role-play, a deal walkthrough, and a multi-threading check instead.
Read articleHire order beats hiring speed. Why the founding AE comes first, when a VP of Sales actually earns the title, and the 12-month clock on getting it backwards.
Read articleThe trigger isn't a revenue number, it's repeatability. The signals, the failure clock when you hire too early, and what to do while you wait.
Read articleThe real math on a mis-hire, from $150K at SDR level to $2M at VP of Sales, and the multiplier most boards get wrong.
Read articleThe scope test, the ARR thresholds, and the $200K to $2M cost of hiring the title without the authority.
Read articleUS, UK and APAC pay bands, the 75/25 base-to-variable shift, and why benchmarking on all-industry averages loses you the candidate.
Read articleBase, OTE and equity for first-in-country leaders across Japan, Singapore, Korea, Australia and ASEAN, and why the published averages will get your offer rejected.
Read articlePay mix, commission rates and quota multiples by role, plus why the three numbers are locked together and most plans break in year two.
Read articleBase, OTE and pay mix for the US, UK, Singapore and Sydney, plus why most SDR comp plans are priced against a fantasy attainment rate.
Read articleBase, OTE, equity and quota multiples by funding stage, plus why the base-to-variable split has to change by region. Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo and Seoul included.
Read articleBase, OTE, equity and quota benchmarks for the first revenue hire, plus why a 60/40 split beats 50/50 at this stage. US, UK and APAC data.
Read articleBase, OTE and equity benchmarks by funding stage, the premium factors, and regional differences across the US, UK and APAC.
Read articleThe realistic revenue thresholds, the readiness signals that matter, and why premature CRO hires churn at 15 months across 561+ GTM placements.
Read articleThe real readiness signals, the player-coach profile that works, and the transition plan that doesn't blow up your business.
Read articleThe three market-entry strategies that work for sub-$10M ARR AI startups, the hiring sequence, and the real 18-month costs.
Read articlePartnerships over hires, fractional leadership, vertical wedges and remote-first teams: cracking the US without burning $2M.
Read articleA week-by-week sequence from market selection to first-motion launch, and the hiring trigger that stops you hiring too early.
Read articleRepeatability, channel economics, forecast discipline and a believable NRR story, plus the red flags that quietly kill rounds.
Read articleWhen to start with a country lead, when a local AE is smarter, and why the wrong order costs you two quarters.
Read articleWhere acquisition cost actually leaks, and the targeting, handoff and velocity fixes that move the number without cutting spend.
Read articleThe roles to hire in order, when to layer in management and RevOps, and the org design mistakes that stall revenue teams.
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