What 200 founders told us about their first sales hire
Original survey data on the first sales hire at early-stage companies: who they hired, what they got wrong, and what they would do differently.
Press passNo. 0002Co-founder & Head of Product
at Pipeline Metrics. Sales forecasting, pipeline analytics and what we learn selling to our own team first.
Austin, United StatesMember since Apr 2026
aqvil.com/@callum-ashford
In Callum’s words
Before Pipeline Metrics I ran sales operations at two B2B SaaS companies. We build forecasting and pipeline tools, and we ship almost nothing we have not first tested on our own sales team.
On Aqvil since Apr 26, 2026 · Austin, United States
Original survey data on the first sales hire at early-stage companies: who they hired, what they got wrong, and what they would do differently.
Conversion rate by stage looks simple. Most teams calculate it in a way that hides exactly the problem it should reveal.
We built a lead scoring model, sold it as a core feature, and shut it off eight months later. Here is what replaced it.
Not a machine learning model. A basic weighted-stage calculation that outperformed manual forecasts for two straight quarters.
A conversation with our own VP of Sales about a compensation change that felt risky and paid off in an unexpected way.