Dear startups, stop hiring VPs of Sales in APAC.
Regards,
VPs of Sales.
You’ve secured funding, established your presence in the USand Europe, and now you're eyeing APAC for expansion. Naturally, you hire a VP of Sales, expecting them to be a coach/player, add a few support roles, and wait for success. Six months in, progress is minimal. A year later, with only a few leads, your board questions the APAC investment. Soon, APAC gets cut for being "not worth it."
We know, the APAC is appealing on paper with its high population, growth,and stability. But it's different from the US or EU - there are traps!
Appealing on the outside, tough on the inside: the largest economies, China, Japan, and India, are hard to penetrate due to local preferences, cultural/language barriers, and fierce competition. Australia is easier but small in scale, and ASEAN markets, with the exception of Singapore, are less developed.
You think you've cracked it open, but not really: APAC's wildly varied cultures, development stages, and business practices make it hard to replicate success. Unlike the US or EU, there’s no unified cultural, legal, or language frameworks. Success in one country doesn't mean success in another
The initial investments are easy, until you stall: hiring a VP of Sales expecting them to handle both strategy and hands-on sales won’t yield the best ROI. The roles of VP and account manager are mutually exclusive, making the hire poor at both.
So what’s a startup to do? Consider one of the following:
Bullish Approach: if markets are solid and you can afford it, hire a full team (VP, salespeople, channel person, marketing/BD) in 2-3 countries. Expect minimal revenue in year one and some traction in year two.
Cautious Approach: experiment with the market by hiring an account manager for each country, managed remotely by HQ. Strategize for 1-2years with lower investment and risk. Eventually, hire a VP or promote aneffective AM for the role
Hybrid Approach: use a fractional leader for strategicinput a few days a week. This gives you the best of both worlds: keeps costs down and resources fit for purpose.
What have I missed? Share your thoughts in the comments.
