April 2016 | San Francisco, CA
As I wrapped up my time at SmartBear, my expectations were sky high for what the next chapter in my life and career would look like. SmartBear had provided so much opportunity through the years I was frankly a bit skeptical that I would find anything as rewarding as the last eight years had been. I started by writing down all the factors I’d be looking for in my next role. After a few brainstorming sessions I decided on the following themes to narrow my focus:
People: The most important piece to my sustained success at SmartBear were the people I had alongside me. I needed to know that my next team would be made up of driven, intelligent people who knew how to work hard and enjoy themselves along the way.
Career Growth: I am passionate about the chance to learn and grow everyday, both in life and my work. For my next job I wanted to take the lessons learned in my previous roles and see if I could apply them to a new early stage startup, with a chance to take on greater responsibility in the company.
Market Opportunity: Everyone knows joining a startup is risky business. For every Uber, Twitter or Hubspot there are thousands of companies that begin and fail before anyone knows what happened. If I could find a company that was building a disruptive technology in a fast growing market this would give me more of a fighting chance.
Location: I would move anywhere for the right opportunity, however my preference was to land in California and still have the chance to travel the globe as the job dictated.
I felt that if I could find a company that had people with shared values, offered the right career growth with a large market to go after, and in an ideal location, I would be extremely satisfied. With these priorities laid out I am thrilled to announce I’ve joined Altocloud as the founding VP of Sales. And here is why:
People: I first crossed paths with Barry O’Sullivan (co-founder and CEO) at a startup event in Ireland two years ago. He was giving a talk on entrepreneurship as well as announcing the new startup he was building. I had landed in town the week prior about to set out on my journey of building SmartBear’s new European HQ. As Barry and I got to know each other I was also able to meet several of his first hires. What I found the more I got to know the team was they were a bunch of hard working, talented people that were also having a great time together. Check.
Career Growth: At some point last year Barry mentioned his plans of adding a VP of Sales in the spring of 2016 to drive growth and scale the business. This person would own the customer funnel, drive demand generation, build sales teams in Silicon Valley and Galway, and help sharpen product market fit. This was exactly the type of challenge I was looking for in my next role. Check, check.
Market Opportunity: Altocloud’s technology helps businesses engage with their customers at the right time, via the right channel, improving the customer experience and increasing online conversions. This type of product falls under the “mar-tech” umbrella, a massive and hyper competitive space but a market that most analysts say is still in its early days of growth and transformation. Check, check, check.
Location: Did I mention I get to live in San Francisco and travel back to Galway, one of my favorite places on the planet? Check, check, check, check.
2016 has gotten off to a great start. I had the chance to travel SE Asia with a childhood best friend, got back on tour across the US with an old friend I’ve yet to meet (Bruuuce), and spent a month on the beach with Mom and her vivacious 85-pound Bernese Mountain dog, Coach. But the fun is just beginning for this year. I can’t wait to get cracking with the team at Altocloud, and if you are an up and coming sales pro looking for your next gig in Silicon Valley or Ireland, let’s talk!
-MLK
lifeofmlkdotcom 