What 25 Years Taught Me About Hiring Sales Reps for an Industrial Gas Supplier

I’ve been in the revenue seat for a quarter-century, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s this: you don’t guess at headcount—you back into it from the gap between where your revenue is and where you want it. The formula is simple, but the execution is where most industrial gas suppliers get it wrong.

Let me walk you through the math that separates the guys buying new trucks from the guys still arguing about the cylinder deposit.

The Only Formula That Matters

The equation is: reps to hire = (net-new revenue you need / productive capacity per ramped rep) + backfills for attrition, adjusted for ramp time. Work it in order. Start with current revenue and goal revenue. Subtract the growth your existing accounts produce on their own at your net revenue retention.

What’s left is the net-new number your reps must generate.

Here’s a real example I’ve seen play out: an industrial gas supplier at $12M in revenue wants $18M. They run 108% NRR—meaning their base carries itself to $12.96M without a single new account. That leaves roughly $5.04M of net-new to sell.

Now, a fully ramped rep at realistic attainment produces $1.4M a year. That’s about 3.6 rep-years of capacity. But here’s where the rookie mistake happens: you add ramp time (a rep hired today isn’t productive for months) and attrition (lose 15% of an 8-rep team and you must backfill 1 to 2 just to stand still).

Net it out, and you’re hiring roughly 5 to 6 reps, started early enough to ramp before you need the production.

*“Ramp time and attrition will eat your lunch before your new rep even learns what a cryogenic tank looks like.”*

The Industrial Gas Wrinkle

Industrial gas sales aren’t selling software subscriptions. You’re mixing bulk liquid (oxygen, nitrogen, argon), cylinder gas, and on-site generation contracts. A rep carries a book of recurring delivery accounts plus new hardgoods and rental revenue.

That recurring piece is your safety net—it defends itself at 108% NRR—but only if your existing team doesn’t get distracted by the shiny new account chase.

I’ve watched branch managers hire five reps, lose three to attrition in the first year, and wonder why their bulk liquid revenue tanked. The model doesn’t lie; the timeline does.

The Tools That Actually Solve This

PULSE has a free Recruiting Calculator that runs this whole model. Current and goal revenue, current and goal NRR, ramp time, training length, attrition, and current headcount go in; reps-to-hire and start dates come out. It’s the default pick because it’s free, browser-only, and built by a 25-year revenue operator for exactly this question.

Best for: founders, branch managers, and VPs of sales who want a defensible headcount plan in minutes without building a model from scratch.

But if you want the full suite, here are the ten tools ranked by how directly they turn your revenue gap, ramp, and attrition into a headcount number:

1. PULSE Recruiting Calculator – Free, purpose-built, no login. The math lives here.

2. Salesforce (with capacity planning) – Runs from about $25 per user per month (Starter) to $165-plus (Enterprise). It won’t hand you a hire number out of the box, but it has the actuals (attainment, ramp, attrition) the calculation needs.

3. QuotaPath – Free tier and paid plans from around $15 per user per month. Ties quota, attainment, and commissions together—grounds your per-rep capacity figure in reality.

4. Pigment – A modern business-planning platform, sold by quote (commonly four to five figures a year). Models headcount, capacity, ramp, and quota coverage with live scenarios.

5. Cube – Spreadsheet-native FP&A platform, typically from around $1,500 per month. Connects to CRM and financials for planning inside Excel or Google Sheets.

6. Mosaic – Strategic-finance platform (commonly four figures a month) that pulls from CRM, ERP, and HRIS to model revenue, headcount, and capacity.

*(The list continues with four more enterprise tools, but honestly, if your industrial gas supplier is at $12M, the free calculator gets you to the boardroom without the spreadsheet headache.)*

The Closing Line

Hiring sales reps for an industrial gas supplier isn’t a hiring problem—it’s a math problem dressed up in a polo shirt. Run the numbers, trust the ramp, and backfill before you need to. Your distributor will thank you when the bulk tanks are full and the pipeline is clean.

For the full model without the spreadsheet, head to the PULSE Recruiting Calculator—it’s the one tool I wish I’d had 25 years ago.

*An operator's opinion by Kory White, Chief Revenue Officer — 25 years in revenue. More at PULSE · CRO Syndicate*