Congratulations to the 2021
IES Premier Sales Employers!
About the Guide
Companies are challenged with acquiring, motivating, retaining and elevating top-tier sales talent more than ever.
In the Premier Sales Employer guide, the IES recognizes companies that are doing great things to make themselves exceptional.
We’re excited to see sales leaders and companies that are developing a workforce environment to attract, motivate and retain top-tier sales talent.
The costs of losing a high-quality performer can be extreme and the challenges of bringing on new talent are exorbitant.
The pdf version of this guide quarterly and the website updates will be on-going.
If your company is a premier sales employer, apply now. If you’re a sales professional looking for an excellent place to work, consider the companies in the guide.
About the Designation
There is no charge for companies to apply to become an IES Premier Sales Employer. There is no charge to be placed in the guide or to display the badge once a company achieves “IES Premier Sales Employer” status. The IES is uniquely positioned to recognize companies that are exceptional for salespeople to work.
Any company can apply for the IES Premier Sales Employer designation. Once the IES has confirmed that the 10-question application form has been completely filled out, it will be sent to a 3-person judging committee. The judges will review each of the 10 questions, with the applying company’s name hidden,and score each question 1 to 10. If the score is above 70%, the company will be invited to accept this designation and be included on the web site and in the guide.
The annual pdf guide will be published on November 15. It will be updated quarterly on an on-going basis to recognize new companies that achieve this designation. Designations will be acknowledged for the year. For example, the 2020 designation will start in November 2020 and continue through November 2021. Companies need to reapply each year to maintain Premier Sales Employer status
DELL
Contact: Milo Speranzo
Email: Milo.Speranzo@dell.com
Website: www.dell.com
Phone: 724.205.1560
HANOVER RESEARCH
General Inquires: info@hanoverresearch.com
Recruiting Inquires: careers@hanoverresearch.com
Website: www.hanoverresearch.com
Phone: 202-559-0050
AKAMAI
Contact: Chelsey Musante
Email: cmusante@akamai.com
Website: www.akamai.com
Phone: 617-274-7210
KERI SHULL TEAM
Email: contact@kerishullteam.com
Website: www.kerishullteam.com
Phone: 703-952-7653
CARAHSOFT
Contact: Kathy Kelly
Email: Kathy.Kelly@carahsoft.com
Website: www.carahsoft.com/careers
Phone: 703-871-8603
JG WENTWORTH
Contact: Gary R. Milwit
Email: GMilwit@jgwentworth.com
Website: www.jgwentworth.com
Office: (301) 347-4462
Cell: (301) 367-2622
CVENT
Contact: Alexis Richardson
Email: ARichardson@cvent.com
Phone: 703-663-2871
LIST SOME OF THE MARKETING ACTIVITIES YOUR COMPANY DOES TO SUPPORT SALES.
Our Marketing engine is one of the biggest reasons Cvent Sales reps can achieve professionally aggressive targets. Cvent has established itself as a dominant thought leader in Event Technology space, which generates sales leads through smart digital marketing and content distribution.
In 2020, we moved both our US and European users’ conferences to a virtual format, with the US based event drawing over 43,000 people in our newly launched Virtual Attendee Hub solution.
Also new this year, Cvent launched a FREE training and certification program for anyone wanting to get certified on Cvent solutions. While this was initially designed to help support peers in the event industry, it has resulted in a new lead flow channel for the sales team.
The other category of marketing support is Sales Enablement, which includes tools provided to sales reps once a “lead” has raised their hand. Examples include ROI calculators, case studies, video testimonials, and collateral to help advance conversations.
DESCRIBE YOUR SALES CULTURE.
Our culture is high energy, engaged, and competitive. It sets the tone for the overall company culture. A big differentiator is all sales managers are regularly involved in deals; non-sales leaders such as our General Counsel and CISO get involved in security calls; senior tech leadership join calls to talk about the product roadmap; sales VPs add a senior voice; our CEO will engage regularly with top customers.
Another aspect of the sales culture is giving everyone a voice where people can give honest feedback and assessment on product, challenges, leadership, and of course countless successes.
Cvent is a sales-centric culture. Best of all, the majority of Cvent sales reps achieve their annual quota versus the 20% benchmark in the software industry. As a result, we have a lot of tenured (5+ years) sales reps in the company and reps make money.
DESCRIBE SOME OF YOUR COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT (CHARITY, POSITIVE PRESS IN THE COMMUNITY).
One of our most popular programs is called Cvent Gives Back, which provides volunteer and donation opportunities throughout the year. Our employees have come together to assemble donations for families, animals, and children in need of assistance. In the summer of 2018, we held our first ever Hour of Code event where we taught introductory coding to children to promote interest in STEM fields for school-aged children.
We also offer two benefits to increase our positive community impact through volunteer hours and participation in fundraising activities. If an employee participates in a volunteer event that includes physical activity, Cvent donates up to $200 to the organization or cause to recognize and reward the dual benefits of community involvement and physical health. Half of the donation comes from our CEO’s personal foundation for charity. Employees have the opportunity to earn 1 day of PTO to volunteer per year by first volunteering personal time.
In May, 2020, our Founder and CEO, Reggie Aggarwal, pledged his own money to create an Employee Relief Fund to provide financial assistance for employees and their families who have been adversely affected by COVID-19. As an organization, Cvent has a long history of helping those in need through various Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives and goodwill campaigns around the world.
DATASITE
Visit www.datasite.com to join our team.
WHY IS YOUR COMPANY A GREAT PLACE TO WORK FOR SALES PROFESSIONALS?
Datasite® is a leading SaaS-technology provider for the M&A industry, empowering dealmakers around the world with the tools they need to succeed across the entire deal lifecycle.
Datasite provides extensive opportunities for sellers to develop, excel and be rewarded for their achievements, including robust selling territories, an uncapped commission plan, and other incentives, such as Accelerator Club, a three-day event that celebrates top performers. There is also opportunity for professional advancement and global mobility.
Over the last five years, Datasite has built a rapidly growing customer base, increasing its revenue by close to 30% in 2019, as it facilitated nearly 10,000 deals. This impressive growth has continued throughout the global pandemic, particularly regarding new unit acquisition. Recently, Datasite surpassed 1,000 new units in a single month for the first time ever, representing 21% year-over-year growth.
Datasite’s sales organization is a recognized leader. In 2020, the company received a Gold Stevie Award for Sales Team of the Year and placed #3 on Selling Power’s annual list ‘50 Best Companies to Sell For.’
DESCRIBE YOUR SALES CULTURE.
Datasite has a high-performance sales culture that is committed to ensuring every seller is successful. The company achieves its results through cross-functional collaboration, purposeful investments, recognition, and strong leadership.
Cross functional collaboration begins with Datasite’s culturally diverse and multi-experienced sales team and a focus on winning through a team-selling approach. Best practices are shared regularly to drive organizational and individual seller success. Sellers also have the unique opportunity to share customer feedback and contribute directly to product development. In the past year, the sales team has played an integral role in both launching and bringing to market the company’s three new, game-changing products.
Datasite’s purposeful investments include a rewards framework rooted in incentives, including uncapped commission plans, frequent global and regional sales performance incentive funds (SPIFFs) and celebratory events for top performers. Sellers are further recognized in company-wide communications, seller spotlights, and in Sellers’ Success, a quarterly newsletter celebrating seller accomplishments.
Datasite’s strong leadership and agile responsiveness to changing market conditions has been key to its sales team’s success. Following onset of the pandemic, the sales leadership team quickly and effectively pivoted its sale strategy to adapt to the marketplace and needs of its valued clients. Additionally, sellers creatively developed new ways to stay connected with clients.
DESCRIBE YOUR SALES ON-BOARDING AND ONGOING TRAINING.
Making new sellers an integral part of the Datasite team is a top priority. From the beginning, they are equipped with the training and tools be in the field, successfully selling as quickly as possible.
To get started, sellers participate in a sales onboarding program that includes insights into Datasite’s buyers and industry use cases, robust product and selling accreditation programs, video content, e-learning and facilitated live training sessions.
As they move beyond onboarding, Datasite further supports its sellers with tools such as a dedicated sales portal, which connects sellers to additional training, content, and tools. The portal houses curated content and assets to educate and drive daily interactions on how the company’s value proposition aligns with its customers, and why customers continue to select Datasite to conduct M&A deals. The portal also provides access to a customer relationship management (CRM) tool with scored and ranked accounts and contacts to direct selling efforts.
RED HAT
Opportunities are open.
Apply now: www.redhat.com/en/jobs
WHY IS YOUR COMPANY A GREAT PLACE TO WORK FOR SALES PROFESSIONALS?
Sales professionals at any company have a passion for helping their customers solve problems. At Red Hat, this passion is fulfilled by connecting the opensource development model, one of today’s most powerful sources of technological innovation, with more than 25 years of experience providing enterprise software subscriptions and tailored professional service to help customers transform their businesses. From on-premise infrastructure to modern, cloud-native application development, Red Hat’s vision of open hybrid cloud positions our sales professionals at the center point between customer challenges and innovative technological solutions. It is a powerful motivational force for our sales teams to know that whatever comes next in this fast-paced world of technological development, Red Hat’s stewardship of opensource development and leadership in hybrid cloud enterprise software will position us to help our customers to thrive.
WHAT RECOGNITION PROGRAMS DO YOU HAVE, BOTH BIG AND SMALL?
Working at Red Hat is not a zero-sum game. You can’t succeed and move up at Red Hat all by yourself. Red Hat is a meritocracy where merit is earned by how well you help others succeed. We succeed as an opensource technology company when we create more opensource winners. And we succeed as individuals when we help create more winners within our ranks.
DESCRIBE YOUR SALES CULTURE.
At Red Hat our corporate culture is pervasive and doesn’t stop where sales starts. We are at our best when we live our values—freedom, courage, commitment, and accountability—in balance. Our sales culture focuses on fostering diverse and inclusive environments, knowing that the best answers can come from anywhere in the company. Trust-based conflict leads to commitment and accountability, both supporting industry leading performance of 70 quarters of consecutive revenue growth.
Supported by our desire to help customers solve their most complex IT challenges, our customers often describe Red Hat sales professionals as markedly different than many of our competitors. Our training and enablement programs align our Sales team to be well prepared, connected, and focused on understanding our customers’ challenges before making recommendations or seeking commitment to act. Sales knows Red Hat’s future depends on their ability to form meaningful, trust-based relationships with our customers and partners.
Managers are trained to focus on the connection between professional development and high performance. We have an annual internal goal of having 100% of our sales force complete annual professional development planning. We reward high performers through monetary and other rewards programs, and we work lesser performing professionals to help them strengthen their approach to successful customer engagement.
JK MOVING
Contact: Vince Burruano
Email: vince.burruano@jkmoving.com
Phone: 703-260-3099
WHY IS YOUR COMPANY A GREAT PLACE TO WORK FOR SALES PROFESSIONALS?
JK operates under a set of 7 core values:
1. It’s My Job
2. Be Caring and Courteous
3. Have Moxie!
4. Together We Succeed
5. Commit to Growth
6. Connect the Dots
7. The Bottom Line
These values speak not only to how we do business but how we treat each other. This genuine care and concern are not only for the success of the organization as a whole, but for the success of our peers and teammates. By living these core values every day, our organization is welcoming and encourages personal, professional, and financial growth.
DESCRIBE YOUR SALES ON-BOARDING AND ONGOING TRAINING.
JK offers a comprehensive onboarding and continuous learning program to ensure that every new team member is given the opportunity to do their best. During the first 30-days there is an orientation period that involves meeting and working with various senior sales professionals and getting exposure to the different groups in the business. New sales professionals are provided with information for both individual and group learning engagements.
Once a new team member is up to speed, and confident enough in their abilities to begin working independently, the learning experience continues. JK utilizes both internal and external resources to promote continuous learning for personal and professional development. JK also engages a team of outside consultants that design special course material to present during learning events.
The development of our team members at all levels of the organization is a critical part of our success and represents a significant investment each year. We believe that investing in our people is the best way to ensure our future success.
DESCRIBE SOME OF YOUR COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT (CHARITY, POSITIVE PRESS IN THE COMMUNITY).
At JK, we live by the core values of care of respect – which, to us, means giving back to each other and the communities we live and work in – whether these communities are in our backyards or across the globe. We never want to lose sight of what matters most. Through donations, in-kind service, and volunteering, we support direct services to people in need, accessible education for people of all ages and backgrounds, and assistance to U.S. service members, military families, veterans, and first responders.
Recognizing that hunger was a real need in Loudoun County, VA and surrounding areas, JK Moving Services launched the JK Community Farm in 2018 to help those struggling with food insecurity, including children, senior citizens, families, and individuals in need. Located in Purcellville, VA, the 150-acre Farm is a 501(c)(3) that provides organic fruit, vegetables, and protein to area hunger relief programs and shelters.
JK Moving Services partnered with the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy to protect an 87-acre parcel of land in northern Loudoun County. JK purchased the property in 2018 with the intent to place it into conservation easement to protect from development in perpetuity. The Land Trust of Virginia, based in Middleburg, executed the easement for the property, which will be known as JK Wildlife Sanctuary.
JK is committed to sustainable, green moving practices, evident by the over 4.5M pounds (Yes, that number is correct and one we’re very proud of!) of excess JK prevented from going to the landfill in 2019! We deploy numerous strategies and processes that support sustainability.
KERI SHULL TEAM
Email: contact@kerishullteam.com
Phone: 703-952-7653
WHAT RECOGNITION PROGRAMS DO YOU HAVE, BOTH BIG AND SMALL?
We love to celebrate our wins! We have incentive programs for all of our departments in which they have to hit their monthly goals to achieve. At the end of each year, each department creates a board of difference incentives they want to win and they set their monthly goal with leadership. Some examples of incentives are concerts, airline tickets, spa days, etc. We also do small shout-outs in every single weekly team meeting. This year we are doing a “Win a Benz” contest. Every referral of a candidate a team member sends in, team members are entered in a drawing we will pull at our end of year holiday party. Each referral counts as one entry. The winner will receive a leased car of their choice & get $500 per month paid toward it for 3 years. It has been amazing for recruiting. We also take a big trip each year as a team if we hit our annual sales goal for 2 nights, all expenses paid. Trips in the past have included Miami, which was a blast!
LIST SOME OF THE MARKETING ACTIVITIES YOUR COMPANY DOES TO SUPPORT SALES.
Our company has a 12+ person marketing team that includes SEO, webmasters, videographers, photographers, designers and social media managers. The depth and diversity of our marketing team provides agents with robust lead generation and unique opportunities for personal branding, such as producing professional video content. Our marketing team trains our salespeople to leverage social media, email and text marketing to best convert their sphere, get more referrals and become dynamic content creators. Our marketing team goes over the exciting, current efforts they’re working on and relays it to the group in weekly staff meetings.
DESCRIBE YOUR SALES ON-BOARDING AND ONGOING TRAINING. HOW DO YOU INVEST IN SALES TRAINING EXTERNAL AND/OR INTERNAL?
Our sales onboarding is top-notch. Each agent is well prepared before even arriving on Day 1 so they can get kick started into joining our team. We have created a new system in which all of our training is housed online as well as administered in-person, so agents can always refer back to anything along the way! As a team, we meet weekly as an entire sales team for role playing and specialized training sessions based on position. All salespeople are reimbursed up to $2000 for annual enrichment and career growth.
DELL
Contact: Milo Speranzo
Email: milo.speranzo@dell.com
Phone: 724-205-1560
WHY IS YOUR COMPANY A GREAT PLACE TO WORK FOR SALES PROFESSIONALS?
Here at Dell Technologies, inspiring team members is one of the four pillars of our strategy. Our People Philosophy is based on a commitment to enable all of our team members to be their best and do their best work through achievement, balance, and connection.
Just as we push the boundaries of technology to help our customers, we push the boundaries within our workplace to support our people – every single day. Our Culture Code complements this commitment to our people as the foundation for everything we do—defining who we are, what we believe in and how we work and lead. We are a diverse team with unique perspectives, united in our purpose, our strategy and our culture. We’re driven by ambition and the power of technology to drive human progress, and unwavering in our commitment to equality, trust and advocacy for one another.
LIST SOME OF THE MARKETING ACTIVITIES YOUR COMPANY DOES TO SUPPORT SALES.
Ingrained in the Dell Technologies brand and personality is its customer commitment. This dedication and partnership is a central driver in its marketing strategy, allowing smart marketing efforts to directly support and align with the sales process and sales team needs.
For example, the federal marketing team was central in developing and standing up the Dell Global Recovery Center of Excellence, an essential interlock between all Dell stakeholders including marketing, government affairs, communications, sales, operations and legal, to help customers respond to the pandemic. As the country was recovering, business decision makers, not traditional IT decision makers, were making more procurement decisions in a bubble. Marketing immediately refocused to target this audience and redeveloped market messaging to help IT decision makers engage and guide members of their own organizations who were receiving stimulus dollars.
To further support the customer and the sales team, marketing implemented four new advocacy programs to bring IT decision makers in contact with the business decision makers at their organizations. These advocacy programs supported grant writing support, policy reviews and technical scoping.
Ultimately this strategy supported sales in a significant way, increasing leads by over 300%, launching over 1,000 new relationships and positioned Dell as one of the top 10 companies serving government in response to COVID-19. These efforts led to a record first half pipeline increase of 45% year over year.
WHAT MAKES YOUR OFFICE A FUN & FULFILLING WORK ENVIRONMENT FOR SALES?
We work hard and play hard and believe that people are the key to winning. We believe in putting customers first, winning together, innovation, results and integrity.
This mentality drives numerous programs that illustrate our culture. Quarterly all hands calls are designed to celebrate service anniversaries, recognize achievement and keep teams focus on how they play a role in driving performance and achievement to business priorities. Teams host monthly get togethers to have fun and provide a sense of community and collaboration. For example, they may play trivia and other games to continue to drive our people-first culture, especially during COVID-19 where connection is ever more critical.
We also have 13 employee resource groups of which many of our team members belong to designed to drive networking, collaboration and community as part of the Connection pillar of our People Strategy.
J.G. WENTWORTH
Contact: Gary Milwit
Email: gmilwit@jgwentworth.com
Office: 301-347-4462
Cell: 301-367-2622
WHY IS YOUR COMPANY A GREAT PLACE TO WORK FOR SALES PROFESSIONALS?
The Company has built a state-of-the-Art Coaching and Training Center that is equipped with video huddle rooms and Always on Video Conferencing technology for remote coaching and training held in as many as four locations at the same time. The Company contracted with Brainshark and created a new sales readiness and continuous learning platform. In just three months the team has produced over 100 training courses and have on-boarded 54 new sales reps, and deployed Brainshark’s Machine Learning Coaching Platform for both in the on-boarding process as well as for its veteran sales reps. The Company has implemented a Leadership development program for all seven of their Sales Directors. Each Director has completed at least 50 sessions each over the past seven months. Last month the Company launched a new product and opened its fourth office. With offices in Chesterbrook, PA, Radnor, PA, Rockville, MD and Tempe, AZ the company investment in its sales teams is essential to its success. The challenges of 2020 allowed our teams to grow, do things we never thought were possible, and our sales teams thrived despite all the turmoil of Covid-19. We were able to use tools that enabled us to communicate faster, and without having to sit near each other. We on-boarded close to 300 new sales reps in 2020 and build a new division of the company to profitability in under one year. The Debt Settlement Division launched under the JG Wentworth brand in December of 2019. In December of 2019 we enrolled 34 customers in our program. October’s enrollments exceeded 650 new customers and November is on pace to surpass 700 new customers. We are a sales and marketing company and our Senior Team knows and respects those who work the front lines.
DESCRIBE YOUR SALES CULTURE
Fast paced, Directors sit on the floor, VP works on the floor with no office, huge training program, never boring and never easy. It is called work for a reason but working is fun when lots of people are smiling and enjoying making good things happen for other people. We work in an open environment and everyone is involved knows that the support of sales is how we support the company and our customers. Sales Reps, Sales Managers, Sales Directors, Sales Executives account for nearly 67% of the company’s employees. This year we have on-boarded 275 new sales Reps through November. From March all onboarding was done 100% remote. Reps who completed on-boarding in Q3 2020 and had at least one full month on a sales team obtained 105% of their target quotas.
DESCRIBE SOME OF YOUR COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT (CHARITY, POSITIVE PRESS IN THE COMMUNITY).
JG Wentworth is a charter member of the Christo Rey Program The company offers scholarships for college age students https://www.jgwentworth.com/structured-settlements/scholarship/
Annual supporter for adoption of pets in the greater Philadelphia area.
HR HANOVER
General Inquiries: info@hanoverresearch.com
Recruiting Inquiries: careers@hanoverresearch.com
Phone: 202-559-0050
WHY IS YOUR COMPANY A GREAT PLACE TO WORK FOR SALES PROFESSIONALS?
Hanover has twice been named one of Washington Business Journal’s 50 Fastest Growing Companies in the Washington, D.C. area and the 2nd Fastest Growing Firm in the market research industry worldwide. Through the work of our sales teams, including business development and account management personnel, Hanover Research has been recognized by the American Marketing Association’s Gold Report as a Top 50 Market Research Firm each year since 2015.
Beyond the company’s success as an attractor to top sales professionals, there are four pillars that make Hanover a key destination for top sales and account management talent.
• A culture of meritocracy, recognition, and opportunity for advancement
• A constant organization-wide focus on training and development
• An unlimited compensation structure that rewards top performers
• The ability to make an impact
DESCRIBE YOUR SALES ON-BOARDING AND ONGOING TRAINING. HOW DO YOU INVEST IN SALES TRAINING EXTERNAL AND/OR INTERNAL?
Recognized by the Institute for Excellence in Sales as the winner of the “Excellence in Sales Training” category in 2019, Hanover offers a robust sales training program. This commitment to training starts with a 120-day onboarding program that combines classroom training, live and recorded call reviews, extensive role plays, and a tested signoff process. Hanover continues to educate team members with access to on-demand online training sessions, monthly classroom continued development sessions, access to outside training experts, and participation in outside professional development programs.
Hanover invests in extensive internal resources devoted to development and training with both a Learning and Development team under its human resources function and a Sales Training team under the sales function that focuses primarily on building current sales skills and introducing team members to new techniques that further their effectiveness as expert communicators and consultants for their clients. Beyond the ongoing training and development these teams provide, their work culminates in two-day training kickoffs for the entire department twice a year.
In addition to internal resources, Hanover regularly provides sales teams with outside development opportunities. These include monthly speaking sessions from experts in the sales industry (The Institute for Excellence in Sales), yearly conferences (Sandler Sales Training), management training workshops (emotional intelligence workshops, transitioning from contributor to manager), as well as access to on-demand training resources such as Coursera for less traditional sales skills (Project management, etc.).
HOW DO YOU COMPENSATE IN GENERAL? (COMMISSION VS. BASE, ETC.) DO YOU OFFER SALES INCENTIVE PROGRAMS?
1. Salary – Hanover has conducted extensive market research to set some of the most appealing pay scales in the northeast. Entry-level sales associates enter the company at one of the highest base salaries for college graduates in the DC region and earn a salary increase with each promotion.
2. Commissions – Hanover’s variable pay is based upon a percentage of the sales attained by quarter. That percentage increases with each tier of goal attainment achieved. In other words, the more you sell, the higher the percentage of that deal you take home in commission. The total monetary value of these commissions is unlimited and there is no cap based or maximum commission threshold.
3. Incentives – Hanover offers too many incentives to list here, but the most critical are the firm-builder, pacing incentives, multi-year incentives, average price point incentives, and an all-expense paid trip.
AKAMAI
Contact: Barb McAteer
Email: bmcateer@akamai.com
Phone: 650-740-1058
LIST SOME OF THE MARKETING ACTIVITIES YOUR COMPANY DOES TO SUPPORT SALES.
Digital demand generation engine – comprehensive marketing campaigns that attract and engage customers and prospects through digital channels from our website, paid and social media, content syndication, webinars, virtual events, email, and more. Lead qualification through a Sales Development Representative team who qualifies leads and passes them along to the sales team.
Field marketing team in region to support local sales teams with regionalized tactics.
Analytics – Predictive and intent data to understand what accounts are engaging with us digitally indicating they are getting ready to buy and which topics they are interested in
PRIME – Product & industry Marketing & Enablement.
Integrated sales plays, messaging guides, competitive updates & battlecards
Industry Marketing providing Customer Insights, Industry Trends, Vertical Competitive Landscape Analysis & event support
Sales Coaching & Enablement providing standard enablement through the FY for all sellers and pre-sales teams augmented with Sales Coaching Sessions Product Technical Learning.
Analyst relations and PR team that works to get Akamai well positioned in key influential analyst reports, and in the press so that material can be used by sales in the closing process.
DESCRIBE YOUR SALES ON-BOARDING AND ONGOING TRAINING.
Akamai has a continuous learner journey for all Sales and Pre-Sales team members. Our Onboarding begins when the offer is sent & includes pre-boarding introductory sessions as well as assigned mentors for new hires, followed by pre scheduled monthly/quarterly/annual training & enablement which is augmented with Sales Coaching.
Ongoing training is reinforced through monthly set engagements with targeted agendas–product updates, sales clinics, workshops, and designated space to address current needs from the field.
In addition to our sales onboarding and ongoing training, we offer continued development through our Next Generation Leaders (NGL) program. This year-long intensive experience for individual sales contributors is nomination-driven based on contribution and recognition as leaders within Akamai and beyond. NGLs participate in external monthly leadership development training and internal roundtable discussions, increase business empowerment and exposure through leading corporate initiatives, and take part in mentorship and coaching relationships.
We are engaged with an external coaching partner to provide performance mindset training. Sales managers participate in a personalized 1:1 coaching relationship, group sessions, and have access to a digital learning and coaching platform.
We use a blended learning approach that combines instructor-led and on-demand training materials with on-the-job activities such as one-on-one conversations and meeting attendance. The onboarding program is broken into measurable, trackable 30-day segments with regular manager check-ins and mentor coaching. Throughout the program, new hires participate in a specialized messaging board, where they can connect with each other to share information and learnings, and Coffee Chats, where they get to meet with different leaders and employees from around the company. Finally, all new hires are given a digital workbook to track their progress and learning and to use as a resource for later questions.
WHAT SALES ENRICHMENT TECHNOLOGIES ARE AVAILABLE TO YOUR SALES PROFESSIONALS?
Akamai sets up new sellers with a new laptop device, a mobile phone plan, use of the latest tools to get the job done; which includes, but is not limited to SFDC, Quip for Account Planning, and productivity tools such as LinkedIn Sales Navigator, WebEx video conference services to name a few.
CARASOFT
Contact: Kathy Kelly
Email: kathy.kelly@carahsoft.com
Phone: 703-871-8603
WHY IS YOUR COMPANY A GREAT PLACE TO WORK FOR SALES PROFESSIONALS?
Carahsoft offers sales professionals many opportunities to develop a career in public sector IT market. The company’s employees get the opportunity to work side-by-side with leading IT manufacturers while learning the nuances of the government contracting space. In addition, Carahsoft sources the majority of its sales professionals from recent college graduates, creating an energetic atmosphere across teams, and all leadership permissions are promoted from within. As a top-performing and award-winning sales and marketing company, Carahsoft focuses on delivering value to its customers every day while achieving and exceeding its sales goals. This focus means that sales teams enjoy unrivaled support and a clear sense of purpose and recognition by all levels of leadership.
WHAT ARE SOME SELECT BENEFITS, SUCH AS HEALTH AND WELLNESS PROGRAMS, YOUR COMPANY OFFERS?
The culture is geared to rewarding hard work and ingenuity across the spectrum. One of Carahsoft’s greatest benefits is that all employees—not just the top sales people– who join Carahsoft before mid-July each year are able to take part in the annual company trip to a resort destination, regardless of seniority or role. In addition, employees are awarded one-week all expenses covered trips to destinations of their choosing every four years that they work at Carahsoft.
The company also offers a robust healthcare plan in addition to supplementary employee wellness resources, and all employees are eligible to join the company’s 401K plan, which includes employer matching. This is offered on top of annual traditions and gifts. For example, every holiday season, Carahsoft coordinates Pie Days so that each of its 1,700 employees may enjoy a pie from a local bakery with their families at the holidays.
DESCRIBE YOUR SALES ON-BOARDING AND ONGOING TRAINING.
Carahsoft’s core values center on heavy investment in its people from Day 1. The dedicated training team has built out a robust new hire training program at the corporate level, including basic courses delivered during a candidate’s first weeks, a foundational inside sales training program starting the third month, and regular Business Foundations programs to build higher-level understanding of the organization and its values. In addition, each sales professional will receive team-specific trainings to learn the processes for successful collaboration among their teammates and best practices for their business units. Many sales reps also receive demos and certifications from their assigned partner companies to build proficiency in the solutions they are selling and to better address their government and public sector customers’ needs. Finally, Carahsoft offers weekly in-house training opportunities that are open to all experience levels to support team members’ professional development.
