Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
April 10, 2025
Most companies still hire Commercial leaders based on instinct.But the right Commercial leader isn’t just a good hire—they’re the one who drives the growth that venture capital and private equity investors are counting on.
Without growth, nothing else matters. The capital is wasted. The opportunity is lost. And that simply can’t happen.
In early-stage venture capital or private equity–funded Life Sciences companies, this role often defines the trajectory of the business—driving revenue, building the team, expanding into new markets, and delivering on growth expectations.
But far too often, companies rely on instinct and resume credentials alone to make this hire.
And that’s where it goes wrong.
Most hiring decisions for Commercial roles still hinge on two things:
✔️ A strong track record elsewhere
✔️ A good interview
That may sound reasonable—but experience doesn’t always translate, and interviews can be misleading.
The Commercial leader who scaled one company may struggle in a different business model. The candidate who interviews well might lack the ability to coach, lead, and build a team.
What looks good on paper isn’t always what drives results in a different organization.
At Alder Brooks, we believe recruiting Commercial leadership should be approached with the same rigor as any other business-critical process.
That means building a Success Profile before launching the search.
A Success Profile is a structured way to define exactly what success looks like in your company—and to evaluate candidates against that profile rather than relying solely on gut instinct.
It’s not guesswork. It’s pattern recognition and precision.
Here’s how to build a Success Profile that actually works.
Every business is different. But the best Success Profiles identify and align five key areas:
1️⃣ Outcomes – What business results must this leader deliver?
2️⃣ Traits – What personal qualities will help them thrive here?
3️⃣ Competencies – What learned skills will they need?
4️⃣ Behaviors – How will they lead and collaborate?
5️⃣ Drivers – What motivates them?
When these areas are clearly defined, they become a blueprint—not only for evaluating candidates, but for aligning the executive team on what “great” actually looks like.
Once the Success Profile is in place, the goal is to benchmark every candidate against it—objectively and thoroughly.
✔️ Ask performance-based and scenario-based questions
✔️ Assess how they’ve led in past roles, not just what they did
✔️ Score alignment across each factor (1–10) to reduce bias and open the door to more diverse, high-performing leaders
✔️ Dig into reference checks to validate leadership impact—especially from direct reports
Here’s how to benchmark candidates with structure, not guesswork.
A structured approach doesn’t eliminate judgment, but it raises the bar and improves the odds of making the right decision.
Every company talks about culture. But the real question is: how do things actually get done here?
Does success require cross-functional buy-in, or is it a fast-moving, autonomous environment?
Is there a collaborative leadership style, or more top-down decision-making?
The best Commercial leaders don’t just match values—they match the way your company operates.
Too many companies ask polished, theoretical questions in final interviews—and walk away with no real sense of how the candidate will lead under pressure.
A better approach: present real-life scenarios.
Ask how they’d respond if the team is underperforming in Q2.
Walk through how they’d build a go-to-market plan in an expansion market segment.
Have them outline their 90-day plan for recruiting, coaching, and scaling a commercial team.
You’ll learn more in those conversations than in any résumé review.
The right Commercial leader can change the trajectory of a company.
They coach stronger teams, build better pipelines, close faster, and unlock growth others can’t.
But only if they fit your organization — not just on paper, but in the way they lead and execute.
A structured hiring process isn’t bureaucracy — it’s your best lever for growth.
And in a market where every hire matters, structure wins over instinct every time.
Mike Mosunic
Co-Founder & CEO, Alder Brooks
Alder Brooks is the only executive search firm focused exclusively on recruiting Commercial leadership in Life Sciences:
Tools, Diagnostics, Devices, Therapeutics, and Infusion.
We help CEOs and investors recruit Chief Commercial Officers, Vice Presidents of Sales, and Marketing executives who deliver oversized growth.
If you're looking for a Life Sciences executive recruiter who understands the stakes — we're the recruiting firm built for that challenge.
Save Time. Grow.™
