Founding GTM Lead
About the Role
This is a founding commercial role at an early-stage AI/ML startup, sitting directly alongside the CEO and COO to build the go-to-market engine from scratch. You will own the full sales pipeline, from first discovery call through close, while also laying the foundation for a high-performing commercial team. The role matters because you are not just filling a quota, you are defining how this company sells and who it sells to.
What You'll Do
Define and execute the go-to-market strategy, owning pipeline targets and the end-to-end sales process.
Partner with founders on enterprise customer conversations, leading calls with industrial decision-makers across Europe.
Build enterprise-grade sales materials including decks, business cases, and ROI models tailored to each stakeholder.
Optimize the funnel across discovery, qualification, demo, and close by identifying bottlenecks and running conversion experiments.
Represent the company at customer sites, trade fairs, and industry forums across Europe.
Run deals with structured discipline (MEDDIC/MEDDPICC), maintaining clarity on status, next steps, and blockers at all times.
Refine the ideal customer profile week over week based on field signals, adjusting for industry, company size, persona, and pain point.
Turn customer wins into reusable proof points: case studies, references, testimonials, and joint go-to-market plays.
Hire and develop the founding commercial team, including first Account Executives, setting performance standards and running deal reviews.
What We're Looking For
1 to 3 years of hands-on experience closing ARR in B2B or enterprise software sales, consulting, or an equivalent role with direct quota responsibility.
Demonstrated ability to design and execute outbound sales processes from scratch, with measurable conversion outcomes.
Fluency in industrial enterprise sales dynamics: procurement cycles, budget timing, and multi-stakeholder sign-off.
Experience running complex, multi-stakeholder sales cycles end-to-end with documented deal progression discipline.
Track record selling or building GTM for emerging or category-defining products where market positioning required co-creation with buyers.
Experience recruiting, onboarding, and developing commercial talent with high performance standards.
Background as a first commercial hire at a scaleup, an ex-founder, or a management consultant with hands-on execution experience is a strong plus.
Native German proficiency and professional English at C1 or above, comfortable in both investor-grade and industrial buyer conversations.
AI-native mindset with comfort in ambiguity and a builder's mentality.
Location
On-site in Berlin, Germany. Visa sponsorship is not available.