Cosmic Partners

The failure rate of CROs is high. Why? A lot of the time the wrong hire is made. Hiring for these roles is really tough. There are so many variables and you need to know what you are looking for. Often founders don’t know who they need, when they need them, and the level of experience that person needs. And good candidates can end up in the wrong roles. At Cosmic Partners, we use our experience to mitigate that failure rate. We use our experience to push back and properly consult around what the ideal profile should look like and put together a package that will attract the best profiles. We recently worked with Paul and Pete from StudentCrowd to find them their 1st CRO. I can’t wait to hear about the impact this hire will have over the coming months!

"You bring a level of understanding of what's required in a CRO or a VP Sales role that comes from having actually done the job yourself." Thank you, John Wilkinson. We recently helped John find a new role as the CRO at StudentCrowd. And we asked him about his experience working with us. John talked about the benefit of our deep understanding of the CRO/VP Sales roles because of our own experience in these roles. This resulted in a better hiring experience with precise questioning, candidate credibility assessment, and streamlined process alignment. John explained that our detailed discovery process with StudentCrowd gave us the in-depth knowledge to identify the ideal candidate profile. Which John fit perfectly! Thanks, John. A pleasure to work with.

I love helping people find new roles. It so rewarding. Especially when I see their LinkedIn profile updated. Congrats on your new role Benjamin, it was a pleasure working with you. You are joining Panther Software at a very exciting time! Looking forward to hearing all the success stories.

A founder asked me to find them 2 SDRs. I said no. Which is something I find myself doing a lot. And something that I know no one else would do (especially when running a recruitment company...) But here is the thing: They didn't need more pipeline. They had a conversion issue. They have LOTS of leads coming through inbound and partnerships. Adding more to the top of funnel would have made this worse. The founder needed more help to convert deals, she needed help with creating and running a proper sales process. So I helped her. Spent hours changing how she sells and it's already working. You don't always need more. Net new pipeline is expensive. Sometimes you need to do more with what you have!

Partnerships are a key part of GTM. Many often underinvest here. So it was a pleasure to recently work with Quin again to help them with this role. Congrats Daniel Redman, it was a lovely working with you to help you find your new role. You have joined QUIN Audience Engine at a very exciting time. Looking forward to hearing about all the new partnerships you build!

Every week I speak to hundreds of candidates. All looking for new roles. The biggest reason they are in the market is due to a lack of progression. And most of these people are working at early stage tech companies. They were sold the dream during the interview process. The thing is the moment you put a timeframe on something that is what people expect: The SDRs are told they could be an AE in 6 months. The AEs are told they could be a HoS in 6 months. The HoS are told they will be a CRO in 6 months. The reality is it's impossible to timestamp progression at an early stage company. The moment these expectations are lowered, people start to look around. And churn is very expensive! I think it's important to really set clear expectations around what growth looks like at the hiring stage. I always use my domain experience to set candidates expectations to mitigate the misalignment. So... My advice: Hiring managers - give a longer timeframe to buy you more time! Candidates - probe hard around the data to back up the timings!

Make AEs your first sales hires, not SDRs. I’m often asked what the 1st sales team should look like. Do you hire founding SDRs or founding AEs? I recently asked Ben Miller what he thinks. Here is what he shared: You should hire x2 AEs as your founding sales team. You need people who can do everything. And you need AEs who can build their own pipeline. Hiring the 2 at once ensures you still have momentum if 1 doesn’t work out. But you need to hire the right kind of AE. You need to find the balance between someone that can execute very complex sales processes and deliver revenue, with someone that has the flexibility and dynamism you need in a startup environment. So if you are looking to transition from founder-led sales make sure you nail that 1st AE hire!

New US based AE role. Focused on an exciting vertical. Our client is a market leading solution providing a SaaS intelligence platform, marketing and consultancy services into high-tech industries such as Quantum, Space and Climate verticals. With proven success in selling into the Quantum vertical. The business is now looking to replicate the success by bringing in an entrepreneurial Account Executive to spear-heard their latest vertical - Space. I'd love to hear from you if you have: - At least 3 years of strong closing experience in a complex deal environment - Carried a quota of £500k+ - A strong track record of performance against quota - Sold ACVs over £60k+ opportunities with a 3 month + deal cycle - High aptitude for learning and have experience in a technical sales environment - Been trained in known sales frameworks such as MEDDICC, Challenger or SPIN It would be a huge bonus if you have worked in / sold to Space companies and / or have a STEM degree in a relevant field. DM me if this sounds like you or apply here: https://lnkd.in/ekZWmsfR

Senior SDRs. This one is for you. I'm looking to speak to SDRs for a new role we are working on. Our client operates in the quantum, space, meta and sustainability verticals. They help bring attention to new cutting-edge technologies and provide up to date market information to investors, innovators and government bodies. With proven success through a Commercial Director working in the Quantum vertical, it is now time to bring in an experienced SDR to support new business development efforts. So... I'd love to hear from you if you have: - 18 months + experience of booking highly qualified meetings - Experience working in a start-up environment. - A strong track record of achievements against quota in previous companies. - A high aptitude to learn technical concepts, either proven through education or previous work experience. Drop me a DM or apply here: https://lnkd.in/edq95YsZ

I've got an exciting new AE role. In a very interesting industry! Our client is a market leading solution providing a SaaS intelligence platform. They offer marketing and consultancy services into high-tech industries such as Quantum, Space and Climate verticals. The business is now looking to replicate the success by bringing in an entrepreneurial Account Executive to spear-heard their latest vertical - Climate. I would love to hear from you if you have: - At least 3 years of strong closing experience in a complex deal environment - Experience carrying a quota of £500k+ - Sold £60k+ ACV opportunities with a 3 month + deal cycle - Used frameworks such as MEDDICC, Challenger or SPIN. - Run complex deal processes, including the requirement for multi-stakeholder engagement. Drop me a DM or apply here if this sounds like you: https://lnkd.in/eDD48bAk