Gtm Recruiting

GTM Recruiting

Overview

Posting a job is 20% of recruiting. Sourcing, closing, and negotiating are the other 80%. Top GTM talent is passive — employed, comp-aware (RepVue), and comparing your offer to three others. The mistake: generic LinkedIn blast with hidden OTE, then surprise when the candidate ghosts after verbal yes.

This skill is the recruiting execution layer: active outreach, recruiter partners, offer construction, negotiation scripts, and inclusive hiring that builds diversity of thought — not token hires. JDs and comp math → gtm-role-descriptions. Interviews → hiring-by-role. Posting channels → job-posting-strategy.

When to Use

• "How do I recruit passive AEs?"
• "Negotiate offer with sales candidate"
• "Work with Betts / contingency recruiter"
• "Close candidate who's comparing offers"
• "Diversity hiring for sales team"
• "Outreach template for SDR recruit"
• "What to include in sales offer letter"
• "Candidate wants higher OTE"

Do not use for legal offer letter compliance alone — employment-compliance. Do not use for firing/PIP — gtm-leadership.

Authoritative Foundations

• Betts Recruiting. GTM-only search firm. Comp Engine (real-time GTM comp data). Rules: unicorn/first AE may need +20% above target band; match or beat employed candidate's current comp when poaching. Retained or contingency (~20–30% first-year base). Source: bettsrecruiting.com
• It's Destiny Recruiting (Destiny Brandt). Boutique GTM headhunter (pre-seed–Series B). Diversity of thought — standardized scorecards and talent matrix; works with leaders who run inclusive culture, not tokenization by race/gender. Video-led passive outreach. Source: itsdestinyrecruiting.com
• Bridge Group / RepVue. Candidates benchmark your OTE against attainment data. Offers below market or with unreachable quota lose on accept rate.
• Roberge + re:Work. Same structured scorecard for every candidate; backchannel refs; work sample — reduces bias and improves hit rate.

Recruiting Stack (Load Order)

1. gtm-role-descriptions — JD + comp template + org placement
2. gtm-recruiting (this skill) — source, close, negotiate
3. hiring-by-role — interview + scorecard
4. employment-compliance — offer letter, classification
5. gtm-leadership — onboarding expectations, manager readiness

Step-by-Step: Active Recruiting

Phase 1 — Define the Search

Search brief (1 page): motion (SMB/enterprise), ACV band, attainment floor (e.g. ≥100% 2 of last 4Q), culture non-negotiables, comp range, why now.

Phase 2 — Sourcing Mix

Passive outreach: templates/sourcing-outreach.md — personalized, short, one clear ask (15-min call). Never attach JD wall of text in DM #1.

Phase 3 — Recruiter Partnership Models

Full comparison: references/recruiter-partners.md.

Agency rules: Exclusive vs non-exclusive in writing; fee trigger (hire date); replacement guarantee; who owns candidate experience.

Phase 4 — Interview → Close Pipeline

Outreach → Screen (numbers) → Work sample → Panel scorecard → References (backchannel) → Offer

• Screen: "Last 4 quarters: quota, attainment %, deal size" — non-negotiable for sales
• Close window: 48–72h from verbal yes to written offer — slow lose rate
• References: 1 manager + 2 direct reports/peers for leaders (gtm-leadership)

Phase 5 — Offer Construction

Use role template from gtm-role-descriptions/templates/comp-plan-*.md.

Offer package must include in writing (templates/offer-package-checklist.md):

Betts rules for competitive offers:

• First AE / unicorn: budget +10–20% above target band
• Poaching employed rep: understand current OTE — lateral moves need story (equity, role, growth)
• Geo: remote bands documented — no bait-and-switch

Phase 6 — Negotiation

Founders: Load founder-comp-playbook first — payroll % ARR check, offer walkthrough template, negotiation scripts when cash is constrained.

Employer side — references/offer-negotiation.md:

Candidate side script: templates/candidate-negotiation-script.md — data-anchored, total package focus, never ultimatum first message.

Walk-away signals: Won't share attainment data; demands 2× market with no proof; misaligned motion (enterprise rep for SMB PLG).

Inclusive GTM Recruiting (It's Destiny Model)

Not tokenization — hiring by race/gender checkbox without culture and scorecard rigor. Diversity of thought: varied backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives with same performance bar.

Full guide: references/inclusive-recruiting.md. Template: templates/inclusive-interview-scorecard.md.

Partner filter (Destiny): Only work with sales leaders committed to inclusive culture + structured process — aligns with Roberge traits and re:Work structured interviews.

Output Format

Run scripts/check-output.py on recruiting plans.

Quality Check

• Comp range published before heavy sourcing
• Structured scorecard used for every finalist
• Full comp plan in writing before candidate decides
• Quota:OTE ratio shown (~5:1)
• Backchannel references for leaders
• Inclusive practices — scorecard not "gut feel"
• 48–72h offer turnaround after verbal yes
• employment-compliance on offer letter

Common Pitfalls

1. Post and pray. Zero outbound. Fix: 70% sourcing / 30% inbound.
2. Hidden comp. Candidate discovers gap on RepVue. Fix: publish range in JD.
3. Negotiate base only. Ignore quota reachability. Fix: total package math.
4. Token diversity hire. Lower bar. Fix: same scorecard; diversity of thought.
5. Slow offer. Candidate takes competing offer. Fix: pre-draft comp before finals.
6. Recruiter misalignment. No exclusive terms. Fix: written fee + guarantee.

Execution Artifacts

• references/framework-notes.md — Framework index and authority routing
• templates/output-template.md — Primary deliverable shell
• scripts/check-output.py — Validates recruiting deliverables
• references/recruiter-partners.md — Betts, It's Destiny, when to use each
• references/offer-negotiation.md — Employer + candidate negotiation playbook
• references/inclusive-recruiting.md — Destiny model + re:Work alignment
• templates/sourcing-outreach.md — Passive candidate messages
• templates/offer-package-checklist.md — Written offer requirements
• templates/candidate-negotiation-script.md — Candidate-side negotiation
• templates/inclusive-interview-scorecard.md — Bias-resistant scorecard
• hiring-by-role → interviewer-questions-gtm, candidate-questions-to-ask, interview-experts
• revenue-team-onboarding → onboarding-questions (post-hire)
• gtm-leadership → resignation-playbook (attrition learnings)

Related Skills

• gtm-role-descriptions — JDs, comp templates, benchmarks
• job-posting-strategy — Where to post and distribute
• hiring-by-role — Interview design and role scorecards
• gtm-leadership — Hire decision, manager readiness
• sales-team-building — Hire sequence by ARR
• employment-compliance — Offer letters, legal
• hiring-agencies — Outbound agencies (not headhunters)