Top 10 Mistakes New CROs Make in Their First Week

The Gist

• Jason Lemkin highlights common pitfalls for new CROs and VP Sales
• Mistake #1: Not knowing the product cold before starting
• Mistake #2: Starting too late and not prepping before Day 1
• Mistake #3: Insisting on doing things their way without adapting

• New CROs often fail by not doing enough diligence on fit for their skills and not listening to enough calls before starting.
• Many VPs of Sales start behind by trying to learn the product on the fly instead of preparing before their first day.
• New sales leaders often make the mistake of immediately changing existing processes without first understanding what's already working.
• Successful VPs of Sales bring trusted reps with them quickly to hit the ground running.
• The best VPs of Sales do some outbound in their first week to start building pipeline and industry connections.
• VPs of Sales must learn to demo the product in Week 1 or risk never truly understanding it.

• Start preparing before Day 1 by listening to calls, reviewing materials, and setting up systems.
• Understand and respect existing sales processes before making changes.
• Bring trusted reps with you or identify strong performers quickly to accelerate success.
• Learn to demo the product in Week 1 to gain credibility and deeper product knowledge.

• 40%-50% (Percentage of revenue from agencies and partners for companies like Shopify and HubSpot.)
• 90% (Revenue from SMBs for some companies, suggesting the need to learn that motion first.)