How a VP of Sales at $1B+ Tech Company Scales Revenue Without Adding Headcount

Most sales leaders think scaling means hiring.

Wrong.

Scaling means iterating faster than your competition.

I just sat down with Jessica Stacpoole (VP of Sales at MVF, a $1B+ marketing tech company) and she broke down exactly how she's built multiple go-to-market motions from scratch while keeping her team lean.

Here's what separates winners from losers.

Leaders underestimate the ability to pivot. It kills them.

Jessica told me the #1 thing her peers get wrong: staying too committed to the original plan.

"You spend time researching, project managing, creating the perfect go-to-market strategy. Day one, it works. But over time, you realize the original strategy—the product, the pitch, the funnel… might not be optimal. Being able to look back and be self-critical at every stage is what separates you."

The problem? Internal politics. You communicated the plan. People are invested. Pivoting feels like admitting failure.

"For me, failing fast and pivoting to the next thing is way more important than staying on a journey just because you communicated it internally."

Transparency at every level. Daily huddles. Weekly leadership. Monthly board.

Jessica runs a tight communication cadence:

- Daily huddles with core stakeholders (campaigns, product, sales) to discuss priorities, roadblocks, client feedback

- Weekly leadership meetings to align on pivots and get real-time feedback

- Monthly board presentations to show wins, threats, and request resources

"It's transparent communication and feedback. Everyone knows what's going on. We pivot together."

The result? She's not shooting from the hip. Every stakeholder is aligned. Every pivot is supported.

Two-way feedback in pipeline reviews. Reps own the conversation.

Here's where Jessica blew my mind.

Most managers run pipeline reviews as interrogations: "How are you performing this week? Why didn't you hit your number?"

Jessica flips it.

"I always start with: How have I performed for you this week? What do I need to do differently next week to help you achieve your goal?"

She lets the rep lead the entire conversation. They present their pipeline. They own their performance. They give HER feedback.

"It creates ownership. They're not just a number hitting quota. They're part of something bigger."

And when she actually implements their feedback? Trust skyrockets. Middle performers move up. Bottom performers start climbing.

Market feedback drives everything. They pivoted from upsell to new business in 6 weeks.

Jessica launched a top-of-funnel brand awareness product thinking it would upsell existing clients (increase conversion rates on bottom-of-funnel leads).

The market told her she was wrong.

Clients started saying: "Your content is showing up in AI overviews. It's getting us listed in LLMs. We need THIS even without your other products."

Jessica didn't ignore it. She gathered more data. Went to conferences. Talked to more clients. Built a business case.

Then pivoted the entire motion from upsell to new business. Now they're building an SDR team to go after a massive TAM.

Why deals stall: You sold a product, not a solution to their pain.

Jessica's take on deal slippage: qualification breakdown.

"If you've gone through discovery and created a solid business case—shown them the implication of solving their pain—you'll always be able to push on that pain point. But if you sold them something shiny? They'll shift it to the back of the queue."

Classic SPIN selling. Link the pain to the highest business priorities. Show the cost of inaction. Make it urgent.

How to double revenue without adding headcount: Know your exact ICP.

If her CEO said "double revenue, no new resources," here's what Jessica would do:

Go back to every successful campaign. Understand WHY they worked. Identify the exact characteristics of those clients.

"What are the parameters that made this product successful? Which clients should we target so every conversation is more likely to convert?"

Focus all limited resources on the exact ICP. Make every conversation count.

Bottom line:

Scaling isn't about headcount. It's about iteration speed.

Transparent communication. Tight feedback loops. Market-driven pivots. Two-way accountability.

The leaders who master this build unstoppable revenue engines.

Your move.