Day In The Life of an AWS Builder: Training & Certification - Business Development Manager Natalie Thompson

Title and AWS team:

Business Development Manager with AWS Training & Certification.

Tell us about yourself.

I wear a lot of hats these days. I am a wife, mother, daughter, sister, mentor, coach, training specialist, salesperson, volunteer, women in IT advocate, and the list goes on. I come from a great family and was lucky to learn skills about the importance of being a well-rounded, hard-working, compassionate person from the time I could walk. After completing my bachelor’s degree from Miami University, my first job was as an inside salesperson for various software lines. It was here that I met my husband of 14 years and ultimately made contacts that would lead me to AWS. I spent the next decade at Xerox, selling technology and services to customers all over the US and starting a family. Our son is 10 and twin daughters are 8. In late 2019, I decided it was time for a change. Through networking with an old co-worker, I came upon my current role as a Business Development Manager for AWS Training and Certification. Over the years at AWS, my team and customers have changed, but I still find new challenges in this position nearly 5 years later. When I’m not at work, I enjoy reading, traveling, hosting get-together for our family and friends, heading up the social committee for our community, cheering on my kids at various activities, and rooting for all the Cleveland sports teams.

What is your superpower?

I am a glass half full person inside and out and have been told my superpower is keeping myself and others calm under pressure. I process a lot internally and love making a to-do list, so I can come into a stressful situation prepared, keep a level head, and expect to succeed.

Who is your inspiration?

My parents are each an inspiration to me. My dad had a successful career, was a fun and motivating sales leader, and retired with lifelong friendships. From him, I learned business acumen about treating customers and co-workers with respect, and that trust is hard to earn, but easy to break. One of my favorite sayings from my dad is that “success is contagious.” Being successful means doing work you’re proud of, keeping a positive attitude, and passing on best practices ultimately creates an atmosphere to make others successful. My mom inspires me by her lifetime of doing for others, volunteering her time and expertise to help family, friends, or strangers, and teaching my sister and I that women can do anything! I have inherited this trait in my desire to mentor new hires and college grads, promote and lead Women in IT sessions, be an Amazon Day One Champion, a volunteer in my community, and host events at our home. Like my mom, I have a hard time saying no when they’re asking for volunteers, but ultimately this trait has helped me try new things and meet wonderful people along the way.

What does your typical day look like - morning/noon/afternoon?

My day as a working mom of 3 elementary-aged kids starts at 6am. I like to spend the first hour of my day reading, drinking coffee, and cleaning up my inbox before the chaos of getting the kids off to school. I start work at 8am by preparing for upcoming meetings, responding to emails, and checking-in with customers. A typical day involves calls with my external customers (AMER healthcare customers), internal customers (AWS Field Sales Teams), and internal syncs with my training team. I meet with customers daily, learn about their business, create training plans, and help them meet their goals by upskill their staff on the AWS Cloud. I finish my workday at 5pm and spend the evening having family dinner and chauffeuring kids around to sports and other after school activities.

Tell us about your role.

I work closely with our customers to understand their goals and create tailored training proposals that will drive adoption and usage of AWS services. I am engaged in all phases of the education sales cycle, including identifying, qualifying and recommending the education solution for each customer. I am engaged with the AWS field sales and partner teams, often working together on the customer’s cloud roadmap, aligning services to needed skill sets. I am also responsible for building and maintaining a pipeline of training opportunities, providing regular forecasts and business reviews to leadership.

What do you like most about working for AWS? Do you have any inspiring moments?

My best moments at AWS are when I get to evangelize the long-term benefits of training our customers and inspiring women/youth into a role in IT. The favorites that come to mind are when I was a panelist for “Women in IT – Importance of Certification” at a Fortune 100 insurance company, and when I led an initiative to help train 100 women to become certified AWS Cloud Practitioners at a Fortune 500 financial organization. Both programs focused on diversity and promoting employees from within, giving women the tools to successfully progress in their career or move into better paying positions in IT. I love that my job at AWS allows me to make a difference, and my leadership supports these efforts that are often outside of my day-to-day work.

What is your favorite leadership principle and why?

Earn Trust is my favorite leadership principle, because listening attentively and treating others with respect is how I live my life. Make no mistake, it takes time and effort to build rapport and trust. But once customers know you listen to what they’re saying and act as their advocate, you have earned the right to have a seat at the table. As an Amazonian, I feel confident raising concerns about internal processes to leadership and helping raise the bar, because I have invested in earning that trust along the way.

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