Seismic RVP Sales FS Case Study

Seismic partnered with Oakstone International to fill a mission-critical RVP Sales role for Financial Services in EMEA after internal sourcing stalled. Oakstone engaged 40–50 enterprise FS sales leaders within 3 weeks, navigating a competitive market and securing the top candidate ahead of competing offers.

The search was completed from briefing to signed contract in three weeks, delivering a field-led, coaching-focused enterprise sales leader with deep Financial Services expertise and strong cultural alignment.

About Seismic

Search Background

Requirements

Oakstone’s Approach & Solution

Search Challenges

Search Results

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About Seismic

Seismic is the leading global sales and marketing enablement solution, improving close rates and delivering larger deals for sales while increasing marketing’s impact on the bottom line. Large enterprises use Seismic to increase sales productivity through the automatic distribution of relevant information and personalised content to reps for any buyer interaction. Powerful content controls and visibility into usage ensure brand integrity and reduce risk. Seismic’s machine learning and analytics capabilities continuously improve the entire enablement process for large enterprises, increasing the ROI of sales content and tying it directly to revenue. Headquartered in San Diego and with more than 300 employees worldwide, Seismic is privately held by its executive team and investment firms General Atlantic, JMI Equity, and Jackson Square Ventures.

Search Background

Oakstone International had previously worked with Seismic to help build its GTM team in EMEA.

Seismic had not required external hiring support for some time due to reduced hiring needs and effective internal sourcing; however, they had been having challenges finding an RVP Sales Financial Services.

Oakstone placed James Palmer into Seismic in 2022, being promoted to GM EMEA in 2025. James and Seismic secured budget approval specifically to enlist Oakstone to resolve this strategically critical hire.

Requirements

• A hands-on first-line sales leader who actively supports deals in the field.

• Experience selling large, complex software solutions into major financial services accounts.

• Strong Financial Services domain knowledge and repeatable success in enterprise SaaS.

• Ability to operate in London 2–3 days per week.

• A leader focused on coaching, developing, and improving the existing team rather than restructuring it.

• Someone capable of maximising a well-performing and well-tenured team.

Oakstone's Approach & Solution

Oakstone executed a focused search, targeting leaders with deep enterprise Financial Services experience and hands-on, deal-led sales leadership capability. The team mapped candidates across financial services software vendors, fintech scale-ups and enterprise application providers selling into banks, insurers and asset managers, focusing on individuals with experience navigating long, regulated sales cycles and managing multi-stakeholder, complex SaaS deals.

Search Challenges

• The role had seen two hires in five years, creating mild market hesitation about its stability.

• The market for FS-focused enterprise SaaS leaders is competitive and consolidated.

• The preferred candidate had verbally accepted another offer, so Seismic needed to move with precision and speed.

Search Results

Over 40–50 targeted conversations took place within 2 – 3 weeks.

• Initial interviews with James Palmer

• Second stage interviews with the North America VP of Sales, Financial Services

• Final meetings with the COO, CRO and Head of Talent.

Although several strong profiles emerged, the primary candidate stood out for his blend of FS expertise, complex solution-selling background, and field-focused coaching approach, prompting Oakstone to coordinate an accelerated, multi-stakeholder interview process to secure him before he accepted another offer.

The successful hire had deep financial services expertise, a coaching-oriented, people-first leadership approach and a strong background in complex solution selling. He also had cultural alignment with Seismic’s established and well-respected leadership team

The entire search process took just three weeks from briefing to signed contract.

• What is an RVP Sales role in Financial Services?

  An RVP Sales in Financial Services is responsible for leading enterprise sales teams selling complex software solutions into banks, insurers, and asset managers. The role typically combines hands-on deal leadership, strategic account oversight, and coaching first-line managers in highly regulated environments.

• What experience is critical for an RVP Sales selling into Financial Services?

  Critical experience includes selling complex SaaS or enterprise software into regulated Financial Services organisations, managing multi-stakeholder buying groups, navigating procurement and compliance processes, and leading teams through long, high-value sales cycles.

• Why use an executive search firm for senior SaaS sales leadership roles?

  Executive search firms provide access to passive, high-performing sales leaders who are not actively applying for roles. They are then able to qualify these people before introducing them to hiring managers. This ensures hiring managers are not inundated with profiles and only receive profiles which are a good fir for the position and company. For senior SaaS sales leadership positions, this approach ensures speed, discretion, market mapping, and the ability to secure top candidates ahead of competing offers.