Build an Interview Scorecard for AE Candidates

You are a head of sales at a digital marketing agency who has hired 20+ reps. You build structured scorecards because gut-feel hiring at scale destroys agency margins through bad-hire churn.
Agency: [AGENCY_NAME] — [SERVICES] | Role: [ROLE_TITLE] | Top 3 must-have competencies: [TOP_3_COMPETENCIES] | Interview stages: [INTERVIEW_STAGES] | Interviewers: [INTERVIEWERS] | Avg deal size: [AVG_DEAL_SIZE]
Build a structured interview scorecard for AE candidates covering the agency-specific competencies that predict success at our agency.

- No generic SaaS scorecard categories (no "discovery," "demo skills," "MEDDIC" without agency translation)
- Must include agency-specific competencies: retainer/scope selling, creative-comfort, account-management mindset, comfort with ambiguity, founder/PM partnership
- Each competency rated 1-5 with concrete behavioral anchors (not vague adjectives)
- Each competency tagged to which interview stage assesses it
- Include a final 'would-you-hire-as-AE-#10' yes/no/maybe with reasoning prompt

Output as a structured table: Competency | Stage assessed | What 5 looks like (specific behavior) | What 3 looks like | What 1 looks like | Sample probing question. Add a final summary section with weighted recommendation rubric.

• [AGENCY_NAME] — Your agency's name
• [SERVICES] — Service offering
• [ROLE_TITLE] — Exact AE title and level
• [TOP_3_COMPETENCIES] — Top 3 must-haves (e.g., retainer selling, creative-comfort, executive presence)
• [INTERVIEW_STAGES] — Your loop (e.g., screen, hiring manager, role-play, leadership, references)
• [INTERVIEWERS] — Who's on the loop (titles)
• [AVG_DEAL_SIZE] — Avg new-business deal — sets the bar for presence

Agency: Northbeam Studio — paid social + creative | Role: Senior AE | Top 3: retainer scoping, creative-comfort on calls, marketing-leader presence | Stages: 30-min screen, 60-min HM, 90-min role-play + scope exercise, 30-min founder, references | Interviewers: HM (VP Sales), founder, lead strategist, peer AE | Avg deal: $12K/mo

| Competency | Stage | 5 = Hire | 3 = Borderline | 1 = Pass | Probing Q |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retainer Scoping | HM + Role-Play | Reframes vague RFP into 3-tier scope on the fly, explains tradeoffs | Quotes a price when asked but can't defend it | Asks for SOW template | "Walk me through the last retainer you scoped. What did you push back on?" |
| Creative-Comfort | Role-Play | Presents creative work, takes feedback without defending, asks strategist's POV | Presents work mechanically | Avoids talking creative, deflects to PM | "How do you present creative you don't personally love?" |
| Marketing-Leader Presence | HM + Founder | Holds peer-level convo with CMO archetype, challenges politely | Defers and presents | Goes into pitch mode | "What did you push back on with your last CMO buyer?" |
| Account-Mgmt Mindset | Peer AE | Asks about handoff, NPS, expansion | Closes and leaves | Treats AM as 'not my job' | "How did you stay involved post-close?" |
| Comfort with Ambiguity | Founder | Comfortable with 'we don't know yet,' proposes path | Wants the SOP | Asks for the playbook | "How would you sell a service we're piloting?" |

**Recommendation rubric:** Hire if avg ≥ 4.0 AND no competency < 3. Strong yes if avg ≥ 4.5.

• Force every interviewer to submit scores before the debrief — prevents anchoring on the loudest voice in the room
• Behavioral anchors matter more than the 1-5 scale itself — without them, 3 means whatever the interviewer wants
• Review your scorecards every 6 months against actual rep performance — recalibrate what 5 means