On the lighter side of things , we ask the industry experts what makes them tick . . . .

If I didn ’ t say meeting my wife in the industry , she would probably kill me ! However , my most memorable achievement was a couple of years ago and in my previous role . We decided to enter a team in the 100km Ghurkha Challenge , where entrants are tasked to walk 100km across the South Downs , in under 30 hours . It ’ s fair to say I probably wasn ’ t in the peak of fitness when I signed up , but I trained hard and completed it in under 26 hours . Mentally and physically , I pushed myself through barriers I didn ’ t know existed and learned a lot about what I could achieve when working hard on a new goal or ambition .

What first made you think of a career in technology ?

Back in the mid-90s , a friend I had worked with some years before called me out of the blue and told me about a vacancy at a well-known peripheral ’ s distributor . Up until that point technology hadn ’ t really featured in my career plan but the role and the company sounded really interesting . I went for an interview with the CEO and got the role of Account Manager , working directly with customers to build relationships and solve their pain points . Very quickly it became obvious to me how fast-paced the technology sector is and how the speed

innovation enables businesses to better serve their customers . That ultimately made me realise that this is where I want to be .

What style of management philosophy do you employ with your current position ?

I don ’ t believe that micromanagement or management by data delivers positive outcomes . Often , businesses get too tied up with the detail and miss the simple ethos of any sales organisation – to build relationships , solve customer problems and to generate revenue .

I believe the best way to create an effective team who perform consistently is to make sure you surround yourself with ambitious people , empower them and trust them to do their job . You need to understand people ’ s strengths and play to them , while helping them develop their skills and expertise further .

You need to understand people ’ s strengths and play to them , while helping them develop their skills and expertise further .

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