The Battle for Cyber Security Sales Talent: What Founders Need to Know

The cyber security sales market has flipped - and founders who don’t adapt will lose out. Today’s top Account Executives are fielding 3–5 offers at once, drawn to well-funded vendors offering inflated bases and aggressive GTM plans. Meanwhile, hiring cycles have doubled, rejection rates are rising, and the talent pool hasn’t kept pace with the surge in funded cyber startups. In a market saturated with over 4,000 vendors, simply claiming you’re “building the next generation” isn’t enough - AEs are scrutinising founder credibility, pipeline math, product-market fit, and equity structure before they say yes..

The founders who win are the ones who move faster, tell a sharper story, compete on mission and ownership (not just base salary), and hire for technical credibility, ambiguity tolerance, and true pipeline-building mindset. Our latest report breaks down the compensation benchmarks, profile traits, and practical steps required to secure high-impact sales talent in today’s market. Download the full report to understand what’s changed - and how to build a GTM team that actually wins.