30-60-90 day plan for VPs of sales

A 30-60-90 day plan for a new VP of sales should test the forecast against what actually closes, build a capacity model that shows whether the team as staffed can hit the number, and diagnose the compensation plan and territories in the first 60 days, then present a sales plan for the next period by day 90. The VP owns the system that every sales manager works inside, so the plan is about forecast method, hiring and ramp, pay, coverage and handoffs, not about coaching one team. Commission plans have legal requirements in some states, as of October 2026, which makes comp changes a planned, documented step rather than a quick fix.

This plan is for a CEO, CRO or founder hiring a VP of sales who leads several sales managers. For a first-line manager leading one team of reps, the 30-60-90 day plan for sales managers is the better fit; for the executive listening tour, see the 30-60-90 day plan for executives.

What does a VP of sales own that a sales manager does not?

The 30-60-90 day plan

30-60-90 day plan — [Name], VP of Sales, [company]
Reports to: [CEO / CRO]    Start date: [date]
Teams: [N] managers, [N] AEs, [N] SDRs, [N] sales engineers
Annual target: [amount]    Quarter ends: [date]
CRM: [system]    Comp plan period: [calendar / fiscal year]

DAYS 1-30 — Test the forecast; learn the system
Goals:
- One-to-one with every sales manager; skip-levels with a sample
  of reps in each segment
- Listen to [N] recorded calls per team; join [N] late-stage deals
- Inspect every deal above [amount] with its owner and manager
- Rebuild last quarter's forecast deal by deal and compare it with
  what closed
- Read the comp plan, the signed plan documents, the territory map
  and the stage definitions
- Build a capacity model: ramped and ramping reps, quota, historical
  productivity, attrition, open roles
Deliverables by day 30:
- Forecast accuracy review for the last 2-4 quarters
- Capacity model showing the gap to the annual target

DAYS 31-60 — Set the operating rhythm; agree the handoffs
Goals:
- Run a weekly forecast call with all managers using one method
  and one set of stage exit criteria
- Agree lead definitions and response times with marketing, and
  the handoff to customer success, in writing
- Review discount approvals and the deal desk with finance
- Diagnose the comp plan: attainment spread, payout cost, behavior
  it rewards; draft changes for the next period
- Start hiring for gaps the capacity model shows
Deliverables by day 60:
- Commit and best case submitted to the CEO with deal-level reasoning
- Written agreements with marketing and customer success

DAYS 61-90 — Present the plan for next period
Goals:
- Call the quarter within an agreed range of actual
- Present the sales plan: capacity and hiring, territories and
  segments, comp plan changes, forecast method, targets
- Make the first manager-level people decision with evidence
Deliverables by day 90:
- Sales plan reviewed by the CEO and CFO
- Quarter-end forecast accuracy, explained deal by deal

Check-ins: weekly with [manager]; day 30, 60 and 90 reviews.

How should a new VP of sales handle the comp plan?

The comp plan drives more rep behavior than any meeting, and changing it carelessly costs trust fast. Diagnose it in the first 60 days: how attainment is spread across reps, what the plan costs at different attainment levels, which behaviors it rewards (new logos, multi-year terms, discount discipline), and how often disputes come up. Propose changes for the next plan period, not mid-period.

Some states regulate how commission plans are documented. As of October 2026:

• California: Labor Code section 2751 requires commission agreements with employees working in California to be in writing and to set out how commissions are calculated and paid; the employer must give each employee a signed copy and obtain a signed receipt.
• New York: Labor Law section 191 requires the agreed terms for commission salespersons to be in writing, signed by the employer and the salesperson, kept for at least three years, and to describe how commissions are calculated, including how often a recoverable draw is reconciled. It also sets payment timing for commissions.

Other states have their own wage payment rules. Have HR and employment counsel review any plan change before it is announced; this is not legal advice.

What does a capacity model look like?

The capacity model answers one question: can the team as staffed, with realistic ramp and attrition, reach the target? The figures below are invented to show the arithmetic only.

Use the company's own history for productivity, ramp time and attrition. A model built on the last company's numbers usually overstates capacity.

Which numbers should a new VP of sales baseline?

What does "on track" look like at day 30, 60 and 90?

A filled example

How should a CEO use this plan in the final interview?

Give VP of sales finalists the same brief: target, team structure, segments, last four quarters' results and one known problem. The guide on how to evaluate a 30-60-90 day plan in an interview explains the brief and a scoring rubric, and the interview scorecard for sales roles helps keep the panel on the same competencies. A strong plan tests the forecast before promising a number, builds capacity from the company's own data, and treats comp changes as a next-period decision. Questions that test it:

• "Our forecast missed by a wide margin last quarter. What would you look at first?"
• "How would you work out whether our target is achievable with the team we have?"
• "The best rep says the comp plan is unfair. What do you do in your first month?"
• "Marketing says sales ignores their leads; sales says the leads are poor. How do you settle it?"

What should the CEO ask at the 30, 60 and 90-day check-ins?

• Day 30: How far off has our forecast been, and why? What is the capacity gap?
• Day 60: Which manager is strongest and which needs help? What did the comp review show?
• Day 90: How close did the quarter land to your call? What do you need approved for next period?

What the CEO owes a new VP of sales

• A target set with the capacity model in view, or an honest statement that it is a stretch.
• Finance and sales operations support for the capacity model and comp diagnosis.
• Authority over territories, stage definitions and hiring within the agreed plan.
• A shared definition of the handoffs with marketing and customer success, backed by their leaders.

Common mistakes

• Promising a number before testing the forecast. The first commit becomes the VP's credibility.
• Importing the last company's playbook. A process built for a different deal size or buyer rarely fits.
• Changing comp mid-period. It damages trust, and where state law requires written commission agreements, a changed plan has to meet those writing and signature rules again.
• Hiring ahead of the plan. Reps hired without territories or pipeline ramp slowly and leave.

Adapting the plan

• First VP at a founder-led company: the founder has been the sales process; spend days 1-30 writing down how deals actually close before hiring managers.
• Enterprise sales: fewer, larger deals make the forecast lumpy; inspect every deal in the quarter personally, and work closely with the sales engineers (the 30-60-90 day plan for sales engineers shows their ramp).
• High-velocity or inside sales: weight the baseline toward activity, conversion by stage and ramp cohorts.

The 30-60-90 day plan for account executives shows the ramp the capacity model assumes for new reps, and the general 30-60-90 day plan template for new hires covers the structure for any role.