Celebrating Women In Tech Sales - Today and Every Day

As the world celebrates International Women’s Day, tech industry statistics still show that only 25 percent of sales roles in tech firms are filled by women. Much has been written and said this week about why that is and what can be done to change it, and my blog post today doesn’t have much additional value to add to those important conversations.

As a tech sales professional for more than two decades, though, what I’d like to share is that the women I’ve worked with in tech sales have been some of the most effective colleagues I’ve had, and they’ve been some of the most appreciated and influential for my own professional development.

My introduction to the world of tech sales was as a solutions engineer for a very small, California-based dot-com in the late 90s. I was hired in Chicago alongside Cindy Bromelmeier – who was the million-dollar-plus quota carrier for the region. Together we were the only employees in thirteen of the nearest Midwestern states. Working with Cindy each day was an intensive, practical lesson in all things Solution Selling, and it built the foundational sales methodology that I’ve relied on for the rest of my career. She patiently worked with me until we honed our processes to consistently beat quota, and we then build a team of eight sellers and engineers around us who followed the same formula to success.

When we ultimately were acquired by Vignette and I made the switch to carrying a quota of my own, Barbara Swanson was the colleague who knew what the transition would entail – and charted a course for me which made it a successful one.

In that role, I was paired with a sales engineer who I was fortunate enough to work with for the next six years. Karen Piszczek’s ability to translate the most technical concepts to prospects in a way that made them want to purchase the solution was a key reason we became the top-performing team in the region- an accomplishment we repeated when I was able to convince her to leave Vignette and come join me in new jobs at LexisNexis. She remains at the top of the list of folks I recommend any time I hear someone in need of a fantastic SE.

At LexisNexis, Karen and I worked for the inspirational Jean Bright – an accomplished executive with experience in such a wide range of situations that she is still one of the first mentors I call for advice on my most difficult challenges - even a dozen years after we’ve moved on from the organization.

Donna Koppensteiner was an executive who trusted me with one of my first big teams to manage, and her bold, dynamic leadership style is one that informed a lot of who I would become as a leader in my own right.

I’ve since expanded my career focus to lead “SMarketing functions” – a concept that I was first introduced to by Andrea Brody. She’s an amazing global leader who taught me how the traditional sales and marketing divide can be overcome through a new way of collaboration between the organizations.

While we’ve both moved on to different roles today (and I get to partner with killer marketer Lori Christiansen to bring SMarketing to my current CRO role), I’m thrilled to report that Andrea is the CMO for another company held by the same PE firm, and that I am still able to help her teach our common Board members what true SMarketing is all about.

Today, I’ve managed upwards of a thousand salespeople – and there are way too many accomplished women in those teams to name individually. In my current company, though, I’m proud to report that we are beating the industry averages on gender equality: 58% of our account management roles are filled by women – and they also are filling 33% of our sales management and VP-level positions. Motus’ women were 45% more likely to exceed their quota than their male counterparts in 2019. Chief among them is Valerie Myer – who was the highest revenue producer of anyone on any team last year.

As #IWD2020 invites us to celebrate #EveryWoman and their contributions to the world, I struggle to wrap my mind around the work we still have to do to eliminate gender bias in the workplace and achieve real equality globally. But in my small slice of the tech sales world, I know that I am a better professional because of the women I’ve been fortunate enough to work with – and who have shown me what real excellence looks like. To them, I can simply say thank you. You’re amazing, and deserve to be celebrated today and every day.

#EachForEqual #WomenInTech #Diversity