How I Broke Into VC From Sales With Liam Mulcahy, Operating Partner @ Kleiner Perkins
Vibescaling Podcast
Being Told 'No' and Turning It Around
Liam recounts Carlos saying no, his creative cardboard cutout response, and persistence paying off.
Episode Description:
Liam Mulcahy is an Operating Partner at Kleiner Perkins, where he leads go-to-market strategy for their portfolio companies from Series A through C.
Before Kleiner, Liam was an early member of the GTM ops team at Unusual Ventures where he served as the first sales rep for 26+ portfolio companies simultaneously, building their GTM motions from zero.
He cut his teeth at MongoDB pre and post-IPO, where he went from being told "we don't think you can cut it" to becoming a top performer and sales leader.
Liam is one of the most thoughtful and intelligent voices on zero-to-one sales, career strategy, and what it actually takes to break into venture capital from an operating background.
Discussed in this episode:
- The cardboard cutout Hail Mary that landed Liam his job at MongoDB
- Why you should treat interviewing like a sales deal
- The "MBA in sales" - why MongoDB's training was more valuable than business school
- Cold calling the Midas List to break into VC without an MBA
- How Kleiner Perkins rebuilt their operating team with peak-career subject matter experts
- Why a signed contract is now your best competitive differentiator
- The three rings of outbound: warm network, lukewarm, and ice cold
- Step-by-step guide to breaking into VC from a sales background
- "Effort is free" - why some people are stuck in third gear
- What Liam would tell someone who says "I want your job" & how to break into VC from sales
Episode Timestamps:
(00:00) Liam's Journey: From D1 Track Athlete to Kleiner Perkins Operating Partner
(06:00) Why Advertising Taught Him Sales (Without Realizing It)
(10:00) The Tim Ferriss Books That Sparked the Startup Bug
(14:00) What Made MongoDB's Interview Process Hard (In A Good Way)
(18:00) The Cardboard Cutout That Changed Everything
(24:00) Treat Your Interview Like a Deal: Getting Feedback After Rejection
(31:00) Dealing With Imposter Syndrome
(36:00) "If You're Going to Do Something, Do It Well" - The Flashcard QBR Story
(40:00) Why Liam Didn't Want to Be a CRO
(45:00) Cold Calling the Midas List to Break Into VC
(50:00) How Kleiner Uniquely Positions The VC Operating Model
(57:00) Why a Signed Contract is Your Best Competitive Moat
(62:00) How to Actually Break Into VC (Step by Step)
About The Vibescaling Podcast:
The Vibescaling Podcast interviews GTM leaders and investors at top AI startups and early-stage companies.
Every week, host Chris Balestras, partner @ Vibescaling (an advisory, recruiting, investing, & media firm for seed through series C AI-natives & SaaS startups) sits down with GTM operators from the fastest-growing AI natives and SaaS companies to break down what's actually working in go-to-market today.
No fluff, no theory - just honest, tactical insights from people in the trenches building the next generation of AI breakouts.
About Vibescaling:
Vibescaling is an advisory, recruiting, media, & investing firm for seed through series C AI-natives & fast-growing SaaS startups scaling from 0 to $100M ARR.
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