The appointment owns
The founding lead runs discovery and sales personally, tests one repeatable route to pipeline and documents the decisions before recruiting a team.
permanent hiring brief
Hire a Founding GTM Lead
Hire a Founding GTM Lead: appoint the first owner of a repeatable go-to-market motion after founders have learned who buys and why.
Brief us on this role →Founding GTM Lead briefChoose a part of the brief
Part 01 / 04
Known buyer
Record the customer segment and buying problem already evidenced by founder conversations.
Part 02 / 04
First motion
Choose the channel and sales steps the lead must test before hiring a larger team.
Part 03 / 04
Founder handoff
Name which customer conversations remain with founders and which move to the lead.
Part 04 / 04
Learning record
Require a usable account, objection and conversion record rather than activity volume alone.
Hire a Founding GTM Lead: what must the role own?
Record the customer segment and buying problem already evidenced by founder conversations.
Known buyerRecord the customer segment and buying problem already evidenced by founder conversations.
First motionChoose the channel and sales steps the lead must test before hiring a larger team.
Founder handoffName which customer conversations remain with founders and which move to the lead.
Learning recordRequire a usable account, objection and conversion record rather than activity volume alone.
Role reference: Stage 2 Capital: guide to hiring your first GTM leader. The practitioner guide distinguishes a first commercial leader who can build a repeatable motion from a later manager of an established team. Use the actual company stage to set the remit.
What changes when the Founding GTM Lead is permanent?
The founding lead tests and documents a motion, often selling personally. A head of GTM manages a broader established function. The founders must still own product direction, financing and the customer promise.
permanentChoose a part of the brief
Part 01 / 04
Seat
Describe the continuing role, reporting line and decisions the appointment will own.
Part 02 / 04
Search
Set the evidence and assessment criteria before comparing candidates.
Part 03 / 04
Offer
Confirm employment terms, authority and any conditions before the offer is accepted.
Part 04 / 04
Induction
Arrange access, introductions and a clear first assignment.
How would this work in a real brief?
The hiring decision becomes clearer when the work and its boundary are written down together.
Illustrative brief · a founder-led software company
Founders have won early customers through direct conversations, but no one can yet repeat how a qualified account reaches a signed deal.
The founding lead runs discovery and sales personally, tests one repeatable route to pipeline and documents the decisions before recruiting a team.
Another owner retains
Founders retain product positioning and promises that change the roadmap; the lead owns the commercial experiment and its evidence.
How should you assess Founding GTM Lead candidates?
Put the same work and evidence in front of each candidate before comparing answers.
The evidenceChoose a part of the brief
Part 01 / 04
First ten accounts
Ask candidates how they would select and learn from a small first account set.
Part 02 / 04
Hands-on proof
Request an example where they sold before they hired a team.
Part 03 / 04
Failed hypothesis
Ask what they stopped doing when customer evidence contradicted the plan.
Part 04 / 04
Founder boundary
Test how they would disagree with a founder about target segment or pricing.
Acas recommends a consistent, fair selection process: choosing who to interview.
Does this hiring pattern fit the work?
Test the amount of the week, the expected end and the continuity needed before writing the contract.
The working pattern · permanent
A permanent Founding GTM LeadAn employee holds a continuing full-time seat. Assess the long-term remit, reporting line and induction plan.
What must happen before the Founding GTM Lead starts?
Share real customer notes, lost deals and product limits.
A clear startChoose a part of the brief
Part 01 / 04
Evidence
Share real customer notes, lost deals and product limits.
Part 02 / 04
Mandate
Agree the first motion to test and what counts as learning.
Part 03 / 04
Authority
Define pricing, promise and hiring decisions the lead can take.
Part 04 / 04
Review
Review quality of qualified conversations and recorded learning before scale.
- 1
Evidence
Share real customer notes, lost deals and product limits.
- 2
Mandate
Agree the first motion to test and what counts as learning.
- 3
Authority
Define pricing, promise and hiring decisions the lead can take.
- 4
Review
Review quality of qualified conversations and recorded learning before scale.
A useful Founding GTM Lead brief names the decision, the working pattern and the evidence before it names a candidate.
What should the brief say?
Hire a Founding GTM Lead begins with known buyer, a stated working pattern and the evidence you will ask every candidate to show.
15 minutes · video or phone
Brief us on a Founding GTM Lead
Tell us what the role must own, how it will work and when it must start.
- 01A brief built around the decisions and working pattern.
- 02A shortlist of 3–5 with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
- 03Five-stage vetting before a candidate reaches you.
Pick a day that suits · live availability
