Pros
I spent a life changing year supporting the growth of this incredible Data & Email startup. From PreSales to Tech support to office building to Sales operation territory creation and data analytics this role pushed me to learn and put my hand to almost everything that made the company pulse and I couldn't be more grateful for the support and guidance I was given during that time.
PROs were
- International Exec Team (Hydey,Wayne,Helen,ChrisB) for their honesty, strength and guidance. Because of the startup nature there would be times you'd be rallied to arms and supporting or owning projects outside of your comfort zone, but they would ALWAYS be available to support and guide you through if you needed it. I feel like I've been given a Masters degree in Business worth of experience and knowledge by being exposed to it and I couldn't be more thankful.
- The Products! Within PreSales we are frontline selling the virtues and nothing makes that more enjoyable to do that knowing the Products are the best in class. Turning up to some calls to find the customer already enthusing about what they are going to do with DemandTools or how they are going to smash their next big email campaign lights you up!
- The Team & Culture! One thing that this Covid-19 timeframe has shown me is when chaos swirls you immediately reach out to those closest to you, friends and family to find comfort, build strength and rally stronger. That is exactly what Validity has been like through the whirlwind of startup life. There have been chaotic days of things changing and unexpected hiccups, but the Team we have and the family like unit we became in the face of such challenges made it incredible to come in to the office. This also extended to the US office who made me feel so connected even though we had thousands of miles between us. Peter, John, Stuart, Elaine, Don and so many others would give me time and energy to solve problems and discuss ideas!
- The Freedom! Like no other role I've had before Validity gave me the ability to stretch my wings and fly into new skills and challenges. The most important part however was the fact that it was completely ok to fail (and I did!) and then learn from that and get better. There was no greater proof point to this than when after a year I was giving the option to completely change my career choice and develop into an internal Analytics role.
- The package (Money basically) - I know I know it shouldn't be the major factor in your job choice however it's absolutely one of them and I was really fortunate to have such a good base salary and commission structure!
Cons
Only real Con for me was being quite a way out of Central London for an office location :) But you quickly realise you can start clearing through your backlog of unread books when faced with the Metropolitan line, did always get a seat though :)
