James Christman is the top-performing new Account Executive at Teradata, the leading hybrid cloud analytics software provider that leverages data to uncover real-time intelligence, at scale. James is truly a unique guest as he credits much of his success to what he learned when he attended the Sales Success Summit. James is an expert in networking and places great value on developing and cultivating relationships. James is also a gifted prospector with a talent for making his sales opportunities count. He is a curious, forward-thinking salesperson who always had an eye to the horizon to anticipate what’s next.
In this episode, James talks about the impact that the Sales Success Summit had on his sales career. He identifies three keys that he attributes to his success. First, he credits his customer-centric attitude. Second, he stresses the importance of networking both internally and externally. His key to successful networking lies in being authentic and following up with sales leads and prospects. Lastly, James places a tremendous amount of value on focusing on accretive business values.
James discusses the strategies he utilized to set himself up for early success in his sales career. He shares, in detail, the approach he took to immersing himself within his organization and sales team so that he would have confidence and understand the full sales cycle. From exploring and obtaining leads and making senior-level connections to mapping out his account relationships and understanding his industry, James was able to become a top performer, exceeding his sales quotas. Finally, James gives actionable advice to those attending the Sales Success Summit for the first time. He breaks down the concept of ‘hero-making’ and stresses the importance of assisting clients to become heroes within their own organizations.
What We Covered:
00:24 – Scott takes a moment to thank today’s sponsor, Vidyard Go Video
00:40 – Scott Ingram welcomes back to the podcast, James Christman
00:57 – The top three things James attributes to his success as a sales leader
03:21 – How James and Scott initially met
07:42 – Scott takes a moment to thank his sponsor, Vidyard Go Video, once more
08:37 – How the relationships James made at the Sales Success Summit led to a role in Teradata
09:45 – James’ role at Teradata
11:52 – James’ approach to internal and external networking
15:34 – The specific strategy behind James’ networking
21:28 – James speaks to his ability to manage up within Teradata
25:05 – The Board Room Story
28:43 – How James set himself up for early success
33:26 – James lists the podcasts he listens to that focus on procurement
35:13 – The value James placed on learning about procurement
38:10 – James shares what he’s looking forward to most about the Sales Success Summit
43:38 – James’ advice to those attending the Sales Success Summit
46:25 – The concept of ‘hero-making’
47:26 – James’ actionable challenge to the audience
Read the full transcript & show notes →
Tweetables:
“I get validation on this fact all the time. And, you hit it right on the head, which is ‘Reach out and have a conversation, both internally and externally.’” (17:33)
“Walk in the front door. Don’t walk in the back door or the door that your company typically walks in. Start at the top.” (21:56)
“It’s [Sales Success Summit] a couple days of really intense, incredible sales aptitude in folks that are coming in.” (43:55)
Links Mentioned:
[email protected]
Sales Success Stories Podcast
2019 Sales Success Summit
James Christman on LinkedIn