Job searching is difficult, especially if it’s your first job out of college! Folks often get bogged down by which role, which industry, and which company… but for this week’s Apprentice of the Week, the best word to describe her transition to tech sales is… natural.
As a daughter of two salespeople, Noelani Obermeyer says she always knew sales was a path she could follow. “My dad and mom met when they were in a sales program at Xerox. I knew about sales as a career path at a young age, but I didn’t fully decide to pursue it until I found myself making career decisions.”
When she came across NameCoach, the choice became obvious to her. The general mission and how it got started resonated with her so deeply. In terms of who she was as a person and her life experiences, it sounded like a beautiful match.
NameCoach makes it easier to build personal connections by eliminating name mispronunciation in higher education and professional settings. “Our company was founded because someone’s name was mispronounced at graduation, which easily could have been my experience, too.”
Noelani reflects on her time as an Apprentice and notes that she had great training from her Director supplemented by sales segmentation training from her Vendition coach. Where she’d be learning from her Director how something worked, her sales coach would then ask her to apply the learning, do it in real time, and give live feedback. “Vendition’s on-the-job training is extremely applicable and effective as supplemental training. I like to learn the fundamentals, apply it and get it done with my Coach there to provide feedback and assurance.”
Her willingness to learn, test things out, and iterate on the process has paid off: in January she moved onto new responsibilities with a promotion to Events as a Customer Success Manager. With virtual graduations around the corner, this role carries new weight to Noelani. “Obviously the state of the world is changing every single day, and this role is a different kind of rewarding.”
Noelani’s advice to SDRs starting out:
- You have to be fearless. “Even having an outgoing personality, you’ll find that you have to push yourself past your comfort zone and put on your game face.”
- Organize your day. “I’ve always thrived on structure, and in college having practice, classes, time to make lunch, it helped me stay focused. Do the same with your work day: give yourself structure.”