Should You Hire a CRO Before You Have a Product?

I was listening to a podcast episode over the weekend and there was a discussion on whether to hire a CRO pre-product which got me thinking… what are the pros and cons of hiring a CRO pre-product?

Theoretically, it sounds like a very smart idea, however, the reality can quite often be it’s a touch premature.

At pre-product stage, there’s still a lot going on, for example, you’re still validating the problem, refining your MVP as well as searching for repeatable revenue. In reality, your “revenue engine” doesn’t properly exist, or at least it might do on paper… So, pull this altogether and even the very best CROs would struggle to add and/or create value without something to scale!

It’s not all doom and gloom though as there can be scenarios where it can work.

✅ A CRO can bring a commercial discipline and/or focus to the business at an early stage which has the effect of ensuring that product decisions are anchored in customer pain points and not just “on paper” assumptions.

✅ They can help pressure test pricing, packaging, and messaging before launch.

✅ For founding teams which are have a heavy engineering or technical focus, a CRO can bring a customer voice to the table and its associated credibility with investors.

But the downsides and risks are there too…

❌ A results-driven CRO will get frustrated with no product as that means there are no deals to chase and close.

❌ A CRO can be an expensive hire when the focus should be on extending the runway with every dollar in the pot.

❌ CROs thrive with structure and process but, quite often early-stage teams are a hive of experimentation as such, the outcome of these two diametrically opposed positions can bring some cultural tension.

What’s the takeaway from all this? 👉 Don’t hire a permanent CRO to help you find product-market fit. Hire a CRO once you’ve proven it.

However, before that point, there are other options to consider which will bring their own benefits:

• Adding a commercially minded founder to the founding team to lead sales.

• A fractional CRO who sets GTM strategy but does not have the full-time burn on your cash.

Once you have repeatable revenue, well defined ICPs as well as a working GTM direction, at this point, that’s when the right CRO will put the after burners on what’s already working.

Simply put, the very best CROs don’t create product-market fit… they scale it.