Jukes

Account Executive

Start Up Enterprise AE or Mid Market AE at Established Public Org?

Hello war room,

I'm currently interviewing for 4 orgs, two of them are Enterprise AEs for a start up with backed VC. The other two are public companies with well established base salaries for Mid Market.

I haven't yet interviewed but they are all lined up this week, I'm curious to see what other peoples preferences might be and also any pointers for questions I can ask them. I'm definitely going to bring up runway for the start ups.

All pointers/questions to ask them are welcomed!

🗣 Interviewing

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Gasty

Notable Contributor

War Room Community Manager

𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐢𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐀
Also, 4 interviews in the same week?

TennisandSales

Politicker

Head Of Sales

aggressive for sure!

Jukes

Valued Contributor

Account Executive

My current role is MM/Enterprise however I'm being paid pennies on the dollar as a SMB/Level 1 AE (My mistake for taking on an AE level as a BDR) so I'm really trying to push the value for what I'm worth. Currently living alone in one of the most expensive cities in the world.

GreenSide

Politicker

Sales manager

I’d want to understand how they each define enterprise and midmarket and how long each line size has been that way. I’ve seen orgs change line sizes yearly. I’ve also seen enterprise mean 250+ employees while another org midmarket covered all the way up to 5k employees.

I think there’s likely to be more differences between startup vs established. You’ll need to dive into those and determine what you would be happy with. Startup is also fairly vague. Series A is much different than Series F.

All that said, recruiters and hiring managers are often idiots and don’t look past titles so having Enterprise can’t hurt.

How’s that for a non-answer?!? Read between the lines and I’m saying we need more info.

TennisandSales

Politicker

Head Of Sales

😂😂😂 great answer!
I do agree that having the ENT title can actually help even if the job is not qute enterprise because every company defines it differently.

I would add to this that you need to know what you can and can't deal with. How much support will you need, how much do you need to have market share already or brand recognition.

this is hard to know but going to the start up you may not have any of that and that could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on your personality. there is no wrong answer.

boredAnti

Tycoon

That One Guy

This is too funny

Jukes

Valued Contributor

Account Executive

On the job board the the recruiter gave me, they said I would be selling into "Enterprise Accounts" for the start ups. I'll definitely reiterate and ask them what they consider Enterprise. They are both (Startups) is Series A.

jefe

Arsonist

🍁

What's your experience - have you been mid-market, have you just been SMB?

It really depends on the org, and what you're looking for.

Plus, as @GreenSidesaid, the definitions can vary wildly from one company to the other.

Jukes

Valued Contributor

Account Executive

MM/Enterprise is my experience. My book of business ranges heavily, I just built out a quote with multiple lines on 3 year w/ ARR over 150K if that paints a picture of what I'm working with.

jefe

Arsonist

🍁

It does. But your other responses were a bit more helpful.

Based on where you are and your needs, I'd go MM at an established org - be secure and hone your skills further.

thetopperformer

Executive

Enterprise Account Executive

We have various AE levels at my company. 6 for the "Corporate Enterprise" section, and probably 4 for Enterprise.

This year was a bit of an A/B test for me and a buddy of mine. He went over as an Enterprise 2, and I am Corporate Enterprise 6. I actually have a slightly bigger base than him, and get paid more on deals, but he gets paid on the whole bag, while I can only sell 3/4s. I also got more options than he did (it was discretionary).

The funny thing is that I am ahead now and debating on if I would even want to move over to Enterprise if I can make more where I'm at.

Oh, it also depends on your accounts, account size/spend, # of employees, deal cycle, etc... As an AE 6, I cover accounts that are Enterprise in size, as they are $1 Billion + in revenue, and usually >10k Employees anyways.

Jukes

Valued Contributor

Account Executive

Thanks for your insight, it's definitely still a crossroad to be honest. I'm going to be strategic with this after dealing with it. I think if the Startups can present a clear path of direction and sales process, who we sell to, size, etc. It'd help with peace of mind. Do you think I should be transparent with the interviews and let them know I'm being interviewed elsewhere too?

CuriousFox

WR Officer

🦊

What product do you like better?

Jukes

Valued Contributor

Account Executive

Ideally I see myself selling into the MM positions better. More backing, and solidified sales process and no need to worry about runaway/uncertainties of start up orgs; but also the upside of joining a start up (one of the companies founders sold their previous start up to a really big tech company) so I feel like they know their shit I'd be able to make a splash in sales.

TennisandSales

Politicker

Head Of Sales

How far into your career are you? how do you like to learn?

If you go public company there is a good chance they will have an established sales processes and methodology that you can learn and follow. this can really help you as your career progresses because people WANT AE's that have a plan they can follow.

if you want to figure it all our on your own, than the startup would be the way to go. But if you join the start up you cant quit in 6 months because they dont know what they are doing. that should be a given.

Jukes

Valued Contributor

Account Executive

I'm definitely leaning more towards the MM position as it's public and RepVue scores them relatively higher than most openings. I don't want to shy away from Enterprise though mainly because exposure to Enterprise at my age (Low 20s) is super valuable. I've already been wearing multiple hats in my current role and I don't think the transition would be any different tbh.

SaaS1

Strategic Account Executive

As has been said, it depends on your preferences, and how you perceive the opportunities during the interview process. That said, if you're in your early 20s, I'd highly recommend gaining some Sales chops at an established org as a MM AE, especially if the startups are Series A. Chance of failure (even if not your fault) is WAY high compared to the likelihood of you becoming a "founding sales member" there and ever have your RSUs/Options mean anything.

DungeonsNDemos

Big Shot

Rolling 20's all day

My first question is how much experience do you have? If you're in enterprise now, why would you step down?
If you're not, are you looking for stability? or are you looking to take a bigger risk going to a start up?

Jukes

Valued Contributor

Account Executive

Honestly, because of the current state I'm living in, MM with higher base at a public company sounds more appealing to me. I live alone in one of the most expensive cities in the world and I'm barely getting by with my current base. My commish is literally my disposable income; the MM Salary is double my base and would be life changing at the moment.

Less than a year of MM/Enterprise experience btw.

someoneinsales

Tycoon

Director of Sales

ENT AE at a startup might look promising and have a higher base, but it could take a while to make comish on top. Figure out how practical the quota is to reach to see if the OTE is reachable.

MM at a well oiled machine might have lower base, but the ability to over exceed and make more in comish might be more probable.

You have to figure out what you want out of this next role. Do you want higher base in a more volatile start up world or do you want to hit OTE and show success at closing and hitting numbers.