Temp-to-perm
When the company needs pipeline now and is not ready to bet a full-time hire on an unproven profile. The operator runs the motion. The company decides, with evidence, whether to keep the person or change the seat.
The bench seat still needs an ICP, inspection, and a path to convert. Without those, a temporary operator just delays the same miss.
A recorded Darwinian case: at Nooks, a bench operator ran early sales execution and became a permanent hire as the company reached its first $2M ARR. The sequence is bench, then hire.
The situation
- The company needs pipeline now and is not sure what seller profile will hold.
- The last full-time sales hire failed for reasons nobody can name cleanly.
- The founder wants a read on the seat before opening a permanent requisition.