You need a senior sales leader, and you are not sure whether the title should be Director of Sales or VP of Sales. It feels like a small decision. It is not, because the title sets expectations on both sides of the hiring table before anyone has talked about the actual work.
We help medical device and dental companies make this call. Below is where we draw the line, and what tends to go wrong when the level is chosen by title alone.
What goes wrong when a company hires at the wrong level
A title can create expectations that do not reflect the real scope of the role, the company's resources or its compensation budget. A VP title may attract people whose income expectations and experience are not aligned with what the organization needs. We recently worked with a small organization that had a VP of Sales in mind, reporting to the president. We took the time to understand the internal team, the resources available and what the company expected from the hire. Then we recommended a Director of Sales instead.
The role carried meaningful leadership responsibility: hiring, coaching, sales execution, customer enablement and developing a multi-year sales strategy. But the scope and the organizational structure supported a director appointment, and that is the title we recommended.
We then ran a salary survey specific to the industry, region and required skills, so the compensation was set against the market and not a guess. From there we identified strong candidates who had a record of helping organizations of a similar size grow with comparable resources and infrastructure. The client ended up with a choice of people who understood both the industry and the environment they would be joining.
Where we draw the line between a director and a VP
This is our own view, and it comes from our recruiting experience. The distinction depends on the scope of the role, the decision-making authority it carries and the contribution expected from it. Team size matters, but it does not settle the question on its own.
A director can have real strategic responsibility. In the example above, the director would hire and coach representatives, lead execution and help develop the sales strategy. We would expect that person to own the sales forecast and be accountable for the team's performance.
We would consider a VP when the company needs broader executive ownership of the sales function. That means:
- setting the commercial direction;
- determining the organizational structure and the investment behind it;
- leading sales managers or several teams; and
- presenting the commercial strategy and forecast to the board, which may also support a VP appointment.
Before recommending a title, we look at the actual responsibilities and at the leadership already in place. If the president and the rest of the senior team are still shaping the company's direction, the immediate need may be a leader who can build the team and turn that direction into sales results. That is a director's job.
Does a revenue point or company stage change the answer?
We do not use a revenue milestone to decide. In the case above, our recommendation came from assessing the company's growth plans, its leadership structure, its resources and the capabilities it needed, supported by the salary survey. A plan to grow the sales team does not by itself mean a VP is required.
We would revisit the level as the business changes. If the role grows into leading several sales managers, owning the wider commercial plan and making executive decisions about markets, structure and investment, a VP appointment may become the right fit.
Questions to settle before you pick a title
- What will this person own: execution of a plan, or the plan itself?
- Who sets commercial direction today, and will that change with this hire?
- Will this leader manage representatives, or sales managers who manage representatives?
- Who presents the sales forecast to the board?
- What can the company realistically pay, based on a survey of the industry, region and skills required?
If the answers point in different directions, the scope probably needs more definition before the search starts.
What to do next
If you are weighing the two levels, we can review the scope with you and tell you which one we would recommend and why. You can read how we approach executive search for medical device and dental companies, see what each Director of Sales and VP of Sales role typically covers, or book a hiring consult to talk through your situation.