Driving Demand: Leading Sales and Marketing in a Mission-Led Company

Client Overview

Our client is a high-growth, PE-backed behavioral health services provider supporting children and adults across the U.S. With over 50 years of experience, they offer outcome-based services like outpatient therapy, autism services, and supported housing. Their mission is to help organizations promote mental health awareness and support employees through accessible care solutions.

Founded in response to government initiatives to privatize human services, the company is now one of the largest providers in the space and is targeting aggressive expansion through innovative, employer-facing products.

The Challenge / Mandate

Our client was looking to add a high-EQ, entrepreneurial thinker to its leadership team. Their ideal VP of Sales and Marketing would be action-oriented, hands-on, and capable of closing deals while managing and growing a sales organization.

This individual would lead sales for an employer-focused product offering, driving both new and existing account growth. The mandate included aggressive sales targets, leadership of a team comprising four sales reps and one director of marketing, and the development of new distribution strategies in collaboration with marketing. Experience selling into HR departments and working with benefits brokers was strongly preferred.

The client needed a leader with a stellar sales record, the ability to manage marketing efforts alongside sales, and a consultative approach to employer engagement.

Search Strategy

We focused on candidates with 10+ years of experience in B2B enterprise sales—particularly those with a proven track record of selling benefits or services into HR leaders. The ideal candidate was outgoing, polished, and well-networked, with an entrepreneurial mindset and the ability to thrive in a high-growth, resource-constrained environment.

Our search prioritized professionals with both sales and marketing leadership experience, an aptitude for strategic thinking, and a willingness to build processes from the ground up. Strong written and verbal communication skills were essential, as was an ability to build credibility with senior stakeholders. We gave preference to those with prior experience in the healthcare, wellness, or employee benefits sectors.

The Placement

We presented several strong candidates throughout the search. The finalist selected had a compelling track record of B2B sales and business development, particularly in adjacent healthcare and HR-focused industries.

He was a polished and outgoing communicator with a strong network and deep expertise in engaging senior stakeholders. His background included sales leadership roles at multiple growth-stage companies, as well as experience overseeing both sales and marketing strategy.

In previous roles, he had successfully led teams to exceed growth targets, built scalable go-to-market strategies, and developed lasting relationships with enterprise clients—making him the ideal leader to scale our client’s employer-focused offerings.

The Outcome

The new VP of Sales and Marketing quickly began building a robust sales pipeline and refining go-to-market strategies in collaboration with internal teams. He brought structure and rigor to the sales process, implemented more consistent messaging and outreach, and worked closely with marketing to ensure alignment between brand and business development.

His leadership energized the team, established new performance benchmarks, and positioned the company to meet its ambitious growth targets in the HR and employer benefits space.