Head of Sales
A Head of Sales runs a company's sales team and owns the number that team is expected to hit. In startups this is usually the first senior sales hire, brought in once founder-led selling has produced repeatable wins and the founders can no longer close every deal themselves. The title sits next to VP of Sales, Sales Director, Chief Revenue Officer, and Sales Lead, and the one a company picks reveals the stage and scope of the role.Head of Sales vs VP of Sales
The two titles overlap, but they signal different things.
Head of Sales is deliberately level-agnostic. It says this person runs sales without pinning them to a specific rung of the org chart. Startups reach for it when the scope is still forming, or when the leader is a player-coach who still carries a bag. It also leaves room to hire a more senior executive above the role later, which a VP title would block.
VP of Sales signals an executive seat. It implies a built-out org with management layers underneath and a place on the leadership team. A VP owns the forecast at the board level and gets measured on whether the company hits plan.
| Dimension | Head of Sales | VP of Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Typical stage | Seed to early Series A | Series A and later |
| Team underneath | 1-5 reps, often flat | Managers and multiple teams |
| Still sells directly | Often, as player-coach | Rarely |
| Reports to | CEO or founder | CEO or CRO |
| On leadership team | Sometimes | Usually |
What the role owns
Title aside, the person leading sales owns a shared set of responsibilities: pipeline generation targets, quota setting, comp plan design, rep hiring and ramp, and forecast accuracy. The difference between a Head of Sales and a VP is altitude. A Head of Sales at a seed-stage company runs discovery calls and writes the first playbook while managing a few reps directly. A VP at Series C manages a leadership tier and rarely touches an individual deal.
One responsibility does not change with the title: this person owns the forecast. Early on they lean on pipeline coverage, the ratio of open pipeline to target, as a health check. ORM sees most customers run around 3.5x coverage, inside a 3-5x range. Coverage is an input, though, not the forecast itself. A team can sit at 4x and still miss when that pipeline is aged and concentrated in a few large deals that close for less than their recorded value.
When startups use each title
- Seed, 1-3 reps, founder still selling: Head of Sales or Sales Lead. The work is hands-on and the org is too small for a VP. - Series A or B, a real team forming: either works. Some companies post "Head of Sales" to attract an operator and "VP of Sales" to attract a scaler, since senior candidates often want the VP line on their resume. - Scaling org with management layers: VP of Sales or CRO. The function now needs an executive rather than a builder.
Title inflation is the trap. Give your first rep-manager a VP title and you cap your ability to hire above them, and you set comp expectations you may not be able to meet. Start the title lower and raise it as the scope grows.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a Head of Sales and a VP of Sales?
Head of Sales and VP of Sales both lead the sales team, but the titles signal different scope. Head of Sales is level-agnostic and common at seed stage, often for a player-coach who still sells. VP of Sales signals an executive seat with management layers underneath and a place on the leadership team. Startups use Head of Sales to leave room to hire a VP or CRO above the role later.
When should a startup hire a Head of Sales?
Hire a Head of Sales once founder-led selling has produced a handful of repeatable wins and the founders can no longer run every deal. That is usually late seed or early Series A, with one to three reps to manage. If you are still searching for product-market fit, a Head of Sales will not fix that, and the hire tends to churn.
Does a Head of Sales carry a quota?
At early stage, yes. The first Head of Sales is typically a player-coach who carries an individual quota while managing a small team and writing the first playbook. As the org grows and management layers form, the role moves off an individual number and onto team quota and forecast ownership.
Who does a Head of Sales report to?
Almost always the CEO or founder at early stage, since sales is the company's direct line to revenue. In a larger org that has a Chief Revenue Officer, the Head of Sales reports to the CRO alongside the marketing and customer success leaders.
Put these metrics to work
ORM builds custom revenue forecast models that turn concepts like head of sales into prescriptive action for your team.
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