[Manager Interview] The Sales Manager talks about hospitality and teamwork that support "customer first"

Hello, this is Komatsu from Public Relations.

This time, we bring you the fifth installment of our manager interview series.
We bring you an interview with Nakauchi-san, the sales manager!

Please see below for previous manager interview articles!

[Manager Interview] What is Beyond GTA, which is responsible for server operations in Canada?

[Manager Interview] What is Beyond GTA, which is responsible for server operations in Canada?

More interview articles here

What is the appeal of Beyond?

Nakauchi : Beyond allows for remote work and has a relatively large number of systems for working styles, so I think it's a company that allows for flexible working styles. Also, a company isn't like a school, so you have to interact with people you don't get along with, but there are many people I'm currently working with at Beyond that I feel would be friends with even if they were at school.

It's been over a decade since I joined the company, but I've never once had any trouble or discomfort with interpersonal relationships. If there was even one unpleasant person among the people I frequently interact with at work, I honestly think I would hate going to work. In the end, it may be a matter of luck, but I'm grateful to say that I'm blessed with such great people at Beyond right now.

I also get the impression that many people take responsibility for their work and see it as their own. Perhaps it's because of this, but I think Beyond is a company that is very customer-oriented. For example, rather than always following the manual and saying, "If this alert occurs, we will only respond in this way," I think we are able to respond flexibly and adapt to the situation.

Although we may be positioned as a contractor, our customers have told us that we work as a team with them and with the same level of enthusiasm, and I think this is one of Beyond's strengths and attractions.

About the duties

Nakauchi : I am in charge of two departments: the sales department and the administrative department. In particular, in sales, I am responsible for everything related to customers, from the initial proposal to delivery and daily interactions. Since taking on this position, in addition to my own work, training the next generation has become an important role, but this is still an area that I find difficult no matter how many years pass.

Of course, there are many times when I interact with customers after they have implemented the service, so I generally give them my mobile phone number and tell them to call me anytime. Of course, there are cases where customers communicate directly with engineers, but if that becomes the norm and requests are always made directly to engineers, then my purpose in life will diminish. For this reason, I am always conscious of building relationships where customers will first consult with me, the salesperson.

Values that are important to us at work

Nakauchi : Our work is not something that can be completed by one person, and there are many things that cannot be done without relying on those around us, so it feels more like a team competition than an individual competition. To do this, it is necessary to not think selfishly . I always keep in mind that I would never do to customers or colleagues what I would not like done to myself.

For example, when I'm busy and someone asks me a question, I might feel like, "I'm busy right now." However, if I actually let that show in my attitude, the person asking the question will feel uncomfortable. I myself try to find the right timing to ask an engineer a question, but if they respond negatively or give me a displeased look, I feel bad.

That's why I'm always conscious of never doing it myself. This is what "hospitality" is all about. Don't treat others with things that you wouldn't like done to you. I'm careful about even the smallest things.

However, I think there's a limit to how much you can be aware of this. No matter how careful you are, you may unintentionally behave in a bad mood when you're too busy. However, I think it's important to behave in a way that doesn't make others think, "This person is irritated," especially when you need to concentrate during the limited work hours of the day.

What is important when interacting with customers

Nakauchi : making every effort to realize the customer's requests . The work that the sales team takes on is actually handled by the engineers. Naturally, when we discuss the details, the engineers sometimes say, "It's difficult." However, in those cases, rather than dismissing the issue with a simple "It can't be done," we try to present solutions whenever possible, saying, "It's possible with this alternative or method."

In addition to our customers, we also work with our in-house engineers, asking questions such as "Is it possible to do it this way?" or "What other methods are there?", and we work together to find the best solution, striving to fulfill our customers' wishes.

It's easy to say "it's impossible" without making any adjustments or exploring other options. That's the end of it. But that doesn't lead to anything else. If you asked for advice and someone turned you down, you probably won't think of going back to them for advice again. If people think, "This person will probably turn me down if I ask," then that's the end of the relationship. That's why I think it's important to have people have the expectation that, "If I ask this person for advice, they'll probably be able to offer some kind of solution or alternative, even if they don't have the answer .

I think about it a lot now, but back then I only thought about myself and didn't think much about tarnishing the company's reputation. I think I've also changed in many ways by observing the way others do things. The person who has had the greatest influence on my sales style and way of thinking is Director Morita.

In my experience to date, I have had the opportunity to work under many different people, but I have never met anyone as open-minded as Mr. Morita. In fact, there was a time when I thought that what Mr. Morita was saying was wrong, and I argued, "That's not right." This caused Mr. Morita to bow his head in front of the other employees.

Even though I felt like I had done something terrible, Morita told me, "I was wrong, so I just apologized, so there's nothing to worry about," and I wanted to become a person with such a big heart. From then on, I started to imitate Morita's sales style and way of thinking, and I think I changed as a person.

The most memorable job you have had so far

Nakauchi : I still remember an incident with a certain client. I didn't have much contact with the person in charge at the time, but when he moved to another company, I met him again. On that occasion, I proposed Beyond's MSP again, and he told me, "The service may be good, but the price is high."

After listening to the customer's challenges and problems, we were confident that Beyond's services would be a perfect fit, so we suggested that they try out our operational services and make a decision.

I thought that the CEO, Mr. Haraoka, would be opposed to this proposal, but when I consulted him, he encouraged me by saying, "If you're that confident, then go ahead and give it a try." He didn't impose any conditions on me in case it didn't work out, so I was able to act boldly.

Since then, the client has recognized our operational services and has entrusted us with other projects, allowing us to build a very good relationship. I was confident that the operations would go well if handled by Beyond's engineers, and when they actually recognized our services, I was really happy, and I'm very grateful to the engineers.

I still can't forget that time, and I feel that it was a major turning point for me.

What are Beyond engineers like from a sales perspective?

Nakauchi : honestly believe we are number one in Japan in the MSP field . Thankfully, many of our customers praise the high quality of our service, and as far as I know, no one has ever canceled their contract because they were dissatisfied with Beyond's operations. There have been cases where customers have canceled due to the termination of the service, but there have been no cases where they left due to the operation system.

There are many other things that make me feel that we are a group of amazing engineers. When I have consulted with an engineer as a salesperson saying, "I really want to win this project!", I have never been turned down by an engineer. There are many engineers who think about things from the sales side, saying, "If that's what you want, we'll do our best too!" and I am always grateful for this cooperative system.

I've heard that in the IT industry, the relationship between sales and engineering isn't very good, but in our case, although we do sometimes have disagreements, I feel that we have a deep respect for each other at a fundamental level.

Have you ever been helped by an engineer?

Nakauchi : They are always helping me out. One particularly memorable experience is from when I first joined Beyond. I came from a different industry and had no prior experience, so I started with almost no IT knowledge. Then, finally, I had my first opportunity to win a project, but even though I was in charge of server sales at the time, the project turned out to be a development project. I went back to the company in high spirits, thinking, "Maybe I've finally got a job," but everyone around me responded negatively, saying, "We can't take it."

However, in that situation, an engineer in the development department at the time approached me and asked, "Isn't this the first project you've taken on, Nakauchi-san?" Despite the fact that he might not be recognized for his work, or even get scolded, he accepted the project. That person is now the head of the infrastructure team.

This project allowed us to build a relationship of trust with the customer, which led to other projects and has become a customer we continue to work with to this day. As a salesperson, I believe it is extremely important to first build a connection with the customer and gain their trust, but this is just the salesperson's intentions and can be difficult for engineers to understand.

The engineer who helped me back then is now the head of the infrastructure team, and that spirit of hospitality permeates the entire team. Because of this, I feel every day that we are a wonderful team that understands the needs of the sales team and provides maximum cooperation.

What kind of people would you like to work with in the future?

Nakauchi : considerate people . To be honest, I don't think technical ability is important when you join a company. Of course, it's better to have it, but even if you don't have technical ability, I think it's important to be considerate and considerate of other people's feelings. Technical ability will improve over time, but it's rare for unpleasant people to become good people over time (laughs).

Recently, we have a lot of new graduates joining the company, and I think it's great to see people who can do things when no one is watching, or who take the initiative to do tedious tasks; it makes me want to work hard too. After all, humans are emotional creatures, so I want to help people who I think are great or wonderful. People like that are sure to be helped by others around them. And I think a company will be great if it attracts many people like that.

summary

Thank you for watching until the end!

Through this interview, we learned about the relationship between sales and engineers, as well as Nakauchi's thoughts and values as he interacts with customers on a daily basis.

In addition to this blog, there is also a lot of content that allows you to learn more about Beyond, including blogs written by other members and social media. We would appreciate your understanding of Beyond at any time, as you can read the various content. And I look forward to seeing you in the future if you think Beyond's corporate culture and values ​​suits me!

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