Member-only story
The Case For Firing Your Underperforming VP When You’re Raising Money
I was really excited when “Tom” joined us as VP of Sales. Tom had come highly recommended from two of our board members that had previously worked with Tom.
The rest of the board met with Tom and they were all enthusiastically thumbs up. I couldn’t wait for Tom to join us. We were just about to raise our next round of funding, and having Tom onboard would complete the executive team.
Tom came into the office that first day around 9AM. I met with him, and Tom told me, “Brett, I’m playing hurt. I have a condition in my knees, so I can’t fly.”
Tom had played college football, and, as a result, he had bad knees. Maybe I should have asked Tom, “Why didn’t you tell me this during the interview process?” But I didn’t because we were in the honeymoon phase of our relationship where you assume everything will work out.
More importantly, Tom’s lack of openness should have been a red flag.
I told Tom that he should heal up. My feeling was it was more important that Tom to be okay for the fight ahead than him having to immediately travel. Besides, there were plenty of customers in the Bay Area that Tom could visit.
