Sometimes I get asked questions about what my day is like as Head of Sales and Marketing, so I thought best way to really answer those questions is to write a blog about it and explain how my typical day works.
This Thursday morning, I stayed over in Grays in Essex and I have an early meeting at 9 am with a client. Breakfast at 8 am means that I am up at 7, and as luck would have it, I have some positive emails from my colleague in our subsidiary in Mauritius.
There, our client, 20 Degres Sud, has decided to go ahead with a proposal for some additional work. A quick conversation over breakfast ensures all is in place and a plan for delivery of the work is confirmed before I’ve left the hotel.
After breakfast, a quick 15-minute drive to the client’s office, making sure I have time to have a black coffee – it keeps me going during my busy day! The meeting starts with confirmation that we are the chosen reseller to look after all the subsidiaries in Germany, Poland, France, Denmark, Spain and The Netherlands. I have been working on this proposal since November and this is the final signature.
A quick change in the numbers and refining final details means that after the hour meeting, I am able to amend the proposal and re-send whilst I am at their offices. I check that we will get the signed order by end of play before I make my way out of the door.
Before I leave, I say good luck to the Financial Manager, who is retiring after 15 years with the organisation and then let the new Financial Manager know I am leaving. We go over a few queries and a quick discussion takes place about the ongoing project of automating purchase orders sent to the hauliers.
In order to give the client the right answer, I have to speak to Ian Poyser, our Operations Director, who is also Project Manager on the case, to run him through the scenario. After a 30-minute call, we manage to find a way forward and the information is passed to the client.
By now, it’s 1pm and time for lunch and a quick check of my phone. With around 25 emails and five needing urgent attention, I decide to pick up a takeaway at the nearby McDonalds.
15 minutes later, I’ve got a burger and another black coffee and I’m on the M25. However, I didn’t realise is that I cannot really eat and drive, so even the best-laid plans sometimes don’t go well! I have to wait until the next stop – South Mimms -where I can enjoy my burger.
A phone call comes through on my handsfree – a lady working at the UK subsidiary of a US company has found us through our marketing efforts on our website for the Making Tax Digital add-on (HRMC’s new portal for tax return submissions for VAT registered businesses).
During our chat, I discover that her company is using Dynamics NAV 2009, the only practical option we can offer her is the add-on. We talk for 30 minutes, and at the end of it I confirm that I will send a proposal to her as soon as I get back to the desk.
The dashboard clock says 3 pm, so I have to make a quick decision: either go back to the office or go straight home and get working on that MTD proposal. I reach home by 4 pm, and get onto the MTD quote.
By 5:45 I get confirmation the new client will go ahead, and by 6 pm the earlier proposal has all been signed up and agreed. I decide to get all the necessary admin done for creating the job, such as the invoicing instructions, and copy the Project Manager, my accounts department and the planning department so they’re all up to speed.
7 pm marks the end of the day and time for some dinner. I’m pleased to have completed another varied, productive day and to have £45k worth of orders signed. Not bad for a day’s work!