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DH

Dan Hockenmaier

06/27/19

@ Y Combinator

Most companies can go longer without a VP of Marketing than they think, as there are not many experienced team builders who fit the VP Marketing profile.

Video

YC

Advice on Organizing and Running Growth Teams from Dan Hockenmaier and Gustaf Alströmer

@ Y Combinator

Advice on Organizing and Running Growth Teams from Dan Hockenmaier and Gustaf Alströmer

06/27/19

Related Takeaways

DH

Dan Hockenmaier

06/27/19

@ Y Combinator

Hiring the perfect VP of Marketing is tough; it's often better to disaggregate the responsibilities and hire individual people for specific challenges instead.

GA

Gustaf Alströmer

06/27/19

@ Y Combinator

I often see companies getting pressured to hire a VP of Marketing too soon, which can lead to misalignment in growth strategies if the foundational work isn't established first.

VK

Vinod Khosla

01/09/19

@ Y Combinator

When hiring, focus on how a VP of Marketing can improve the quality of your VP of Engineering; this nonlinear thinking is essential.

ND

Nicolas Dessaigne

11/27/24

@ Y Combinator

Founders should lead marketing efforts for as long as possible, as traditional marketers often lack the understanding of developer personas and can alienate the audience.

RH

Raaz Herzberg

11/17/24

@ Lenny's Podcast

It's challenging to succeed in a marketing role without a deep connection to the product and the founding team.

MS

Michael Seibel

03/03/22

@ Y Combinator

Many founders mistakenly believe they need to find co-founders with extensive experience, such as a marketing expert or a CTO who has managed large teams, to ensure rapid growth.

YS

Yotam Segev

05/09/25

@ The Logan Bartlett Show

I learned that hiring a VP of sales won't solve your problems; as a founder, you must be deeply involved in driving the go-to-market strategy.

YC

Y Combinator Cast

11/23/24

@ Y Combinator

Having an engineer manage marketing efforts can be more effective than hiring traditional marketing executives, as they can leverage their technical skills to optimize campaigns.

ac

a16z crypto Cast

05/30/25

@ a16z crypto

The right time to hire a full-time marketing person is no later than six months before the product launch to avoid promoting something that doesn't exist yet.