# You'll Know If Your Sales VP Isn't Working Out Within 30 Days What a great sales leader must achieve in the first 30 days and the red flags to watch for. - **Source:** [SaaStr](https://www.saastr.com) - **Published:** 2022-06-19 - **Topic:** [Sales & BD](https://brifing.si/c/sales) - **Original article:** - **On Brifing:** https://brifing.si/s/0c0b1fcb-b1df-4026-9e17-981ab2c5128d ## A Mission-Critical Role Hiring a VP of Sales is one of the most crucial decisions for SaaS companies. While the right hire can accelerate growth exponentially, a wrong choice can lead to months of setbacks. Statistics show many first-time sales VPs don't last 12 months. ## The 30-Day Rule Seasoned SaaS entrepreneurs claim you can gauge a sales VP's potential within the first 30 days. Two critical tests exist during this period: bringing in at least 1-2 star salespeople and removing the worst performer from the team. ## Test #1: Team Building Great sales VPs immediately start talent hunting. Those who fail to recruit at least 1-2 top performers in the first 30 days rarely succeed long-term. Top VPs often bring talented salespeople with them when joining. ## Test #2: Cutting the Weakest Link Keeping underperformers in early stages wastes precious leads. Good VPs remove the weakest salesperson within 30 days. Those who say 'we need every warm body' usually fail - they can't afford to lose poor performers, while great VPs don't need them. ## Revenue Growth in 90 Days You should see tangible revenue growth within 90 days (one sales cycle). Effective VPs immediately optimize existing systems. By the end of one cycle, you should observe more closed deals and a stronger pipeline. ## Cost of a Bad Hire A wrong sales VP costs more than just lost revenue - it means missed opportunities. Secondary impact losses can reach 6x direct losses. A bad team and lack of direction can set companies back for months. ## Acting Quickly If data shows a bad hire, act fast. The 'give them more time' approach rarely works - statistics show only 0.239% turn things around. Top performers deliver results almost immediately. ## Sources covering this story - https://www.saastr.com/if-your-vp-sales-isnt-going-to-work-out-youll-know-in-30-days/ — --- _Summary written by Brifing from the original reporting. Copyright in the original article belongs to its publisher; read the full piece at the link above._