Edward Mandla

Executive Search | Board Director | Helping founders & global tech hire CROs, COOs, Country Leaders in Australia. Mandlason Search.

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

💰 The $200K+ Base Sales Hire Mistake.
Part One: Hunger vs. Comfort

The only thing worse than paying peanuts… is paying fortunes to the wrong person.
(1/7)
#startup #founder #SaaS #Leadership #Hiring

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

Full article: https://t.co/5ItV3PhvlA

Next week: Stage Fit. Follow for Part Two.
(7/7)
#startup #founder #SaaS #Leadership #hiring

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

💰 The $200K+ Base Sales Hire Mistake.
Part One: Hunger vs. Comfort

The only thing worse than paying peanuts… is paying fortunes to the wrong person.
(1/7)
#startup #founder #SaaS #Leadership #Hiring

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

One 65-year-old candidate told HR:

“God blessed me with 3 young daughters. I’ll be paying school fees till I’m 80. Now tell me about your commission accelerators.”

He still holds the record for the biggest deal in that company.
(6/7)

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

What I struggled with? Reps who were comfortable.

They’d delay meetings, respond slowly, blame marketing. Smart people — but no urgency.
(5/7)

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

As a sales manager, I used to take reps to car dealerships or mortgage brokers. Why?

To tie them to their projected commissions. A financial noose drives prospecting and pipeline.
(4/7)

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

When a rep’s base salary covers their whole lifestyle — rent, mortgage, school fees — commission feels like a bonus.

And comfort dulls the edge.
(3/7)

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

Too many founders churn through sales hires. They think:

“If I just pay a huge base, they’ll deliver.”
Truth? A $200K+ base doesn’t guarantee results.
(2/7)

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

Poor integration is the silent killer of sales success.
Great integration is what turns good salespeople into growth catalysts.
I unpack both sides — and how to fix it — in my full Medium piece:
👉 https://t.co/YOYSTmGvb3

#SalesLeadership #Startups #B2Bsales

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

I just published The Silent Killer of Sales Success: Poor Integration https://t.co/GOnWnYDuSv

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

I’ve seen founders lose patience at month 3… only to realise their sales cycle is 9 months.
And I’ve seen reps carried for 18 months without closing a single deal.
Both destroy momentum. Getting ramp-up right is a balancing act.

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

I just published Why Your New Sales Hire Hasn’t Closed Yet (and When They Should) https://t.co/kMe0vVn3Hv

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

Most founders either cut sales hires too early — or give them far too long.
The key is aligning ramp-up expectations with your real sales cycle.
⏱️ What ramp-up timeline do you set for your sales team?

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

💡 In scale-ups, the first eye roll in a sales meeting isn’t harmless.
It’s the moment people start asking:
Could this company have been far more successful if the founder had the courage to let go?

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

I just published The Eye Roll in a Scale-Up Tech Company https://t.co/gTWuAUjiDj

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

Founders often protect loyal but ineffective salespeople.
The exec team sees it.
The board sees it.
And when the eye rolls start around the forecast table…
…it’s no longer about the deals. It’s about confidence in the founder.

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

I just published Your Engineers Build. Your Salespeople Sell. You Don’t Hire or Lead Them the Same Way. https://t.co/5hw1rjTbCA

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

Resumes aren’t dead.
But they’ve stopped being useful on their own.
Founders & execs don’t need polish. They need proof of execution.

Here’s what’s actually replacing resumes in tech hiring 👇
https://t.co/C84lsKXI8h

#startups #SaaS #hiring #GTM

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

Startups don’t die from lack of capital.
They die from the wrong first exec hire.
How founders get it wrong—and how to avoid it:
👉 https://t.co/QeWWzxB6ZQ

#startups #founders #executivesearch #SaaS #leadership

[Edward Mandla @EdwardMandla]

@jasonlk Founders, it's time to move beyond excuses. Focus on your strengths—typically product development—and bring in top-tier sales and marketing talent to drive execution.