Founding GTM

Founding GTM

Location: Seattle, WA or San Francisco, CA (Hybrid/In-Person)

Compensation: Competitive base + uncapped commission + meaningful equity (OTE starting around $250K with flexibility for exceptional candidates)

About the Opportunity

We're partnering with a venture-backed, early-stage AI startup that is redefining how modern organizations operate. With a small but experienced founding team, the company is at an exciting inflection point and is looking to make its first commercial hire.

This is a unique opportunity to join before a formal sales organization exists and help build the go-to-market function from the ground up. You'll work directly alongside the CEO to shape the company's commercial strategy, engage early customers, and establish the foundation for long-term growth.

The founders have successfully built and scaled high-growth software businesses and are looking for someone who shares their entrepreneurial mindset, enjoys solving complex problems, and is excited to build rather than inherit.

The Role

As the Founding GTM hire, you'll play a critical role in establishing the company's sales motion. This is a hands-on position that blends strategic thinking with execution. You'll be responsible for generating pipeline, engaging prospective customers, refining messaging, and partnering with the CEO to close early enterprise opportunities.

In the beginning, you'll operate as a true builder—creating processes, testing approaches, and helping define what great looks like. As the company grows, there will be opportunities to expand your responsibilities into sales leadership or broader business leadership based on your strengths and the needs of the business.

What You'll Do

• Build and execute outbound prospecting strategies to generate qualified pipeline.
• Partner directly with the CEO on customer meetings, enterprise sales cycles, and strategic opportunities.
• Help transition the business from founder-led sales to a scalable go-to-market motion.
• Develop and refine sales messaging, positioning, and outreach strategies.
• Build repeatable processes, playbooks, and best practices as the commercial function evolves.
• Serve as the voice of the customer by sharing market insights and influencing product direction.
• Work cross-functionally with the founding team to improve customer experience and accelerate growth.
• Leverage AI tools and modern workflows to maximize productivity and create operational leverage.

 

What We're Looking For

We're less concerned with title and more interested in someone who has demonstrated a builder mentality.

You may have experience as:

• A founding Account Executive or one of the first sales hires at a startup.
• An early-stage seller who helped build a company's commercial engine.
• A sales leader who wants to return to an individual contributor role to build something from the ground up.
• An entrepreneurial seller who thrives in ambiguity and enjoys creating structure where none exists.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience selling complex B2B SaaS, AI, or enterprise technology solutions.
• Proven ability to generate your own pipeline through outbound prospecting and relationship building.
• Experience working directly with founders or executive leadership in an early-stage environment.
• Comfortable wearing multiple hats and contributing beyond traditional sales responsibilities.
• Strong executive presence with the ability to engage senior decision-makers.
• Curious, resourceful, and highly coachable.
• Excited to work collaboratively and spend meaningful time with the founding team in person.

You'll Thrive Here If You...

• Prefer building over maintaining.
• Enjoy operating in fast-moving, high-ownership environments.
• Are energized by solving problems without a predefined playbook.
• Naturally seek leverage through AI, automation, and modern productivity tools.
• Want to make a measurable impact on a company's trajectory—not just your quota.

Why This Opportunity?

It's rare to join a company this early with experienced founders who have successfully built and scaled high-growth technology businesses before. You'll have a seat at the table from day one, influence how the company goes to market, and play a meaningful role in shaping its future.

If you're looking for a traditional sales role with established territories, SDR support, and mature processes, this probably isn't the right fit.

If you're excited by ownership, collaboration with founders, and the opportunity to build something exceptional from the ground up, we'd love to connect.

Who is Rainier Recruiting? 

Rainier Recruiting is a boutique, award winning national staffing agency and executive search firm. Using an approach that “treats every candidate like an executive search”, we offer positions in contract-to-hire, Full-Time, and executive search. Named the #1 Best Workplace in Washington State in 2022, recognized as a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing firm, and identified as a top recruitment firm by multiple business journals, Rainier Recruiting is fast becoming a respected company. We are no longer the “best recruiters you have never heard of”. Rainier Recruiting is also proud to share our clients have a 93% repeat business rate. Rainier Recruiting is an equal opportunity employer and service provider and does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, gender, gender identity, national origin, citizenship status, sexual orientation, disability, political affiliation or belief, or any other protected class. We are committed to the principles of Equal Opportunity Employment and are dedicated to making employment decisions based on merit and value, for ourselves, our client companies, and for the candidates we represent. We engage in socially conscious business practices and believe that diverse, equitable, inclusive, and non-biased talent and recruitment processes are foundational to the success of every organization that we partner with.