VelocityEHS Leadership & Management

Tell us about your journey into sales management. What specific roles, networking opportunities and/or projects helped you get to where you are in your career today?

I can link my development that got me into my role today to a few things. First and foremost, I was fortunate enough to work for a manager and director who believed in me and pushed me to reach my potential as an individual contributor, which unlocked opportunities for vertical experience. The second and equally important factor was our associate sales manager program. This program allowed for a group of us to get involved in different workstreams and connect with folks in other departments whom we traditionally wouldn’t have interacted with. This program not only gave me the experience to step into a management role but instilled a feeling of camaraderie and connection with my peers that we all still carry today, with many of us currently in management roles.

What advice, skills or best practices do you find most valuable in sales? How do those skills translate into sales management?

Be resilient and trust the process. If you’re in sales, you are no stranger to the highs and lows of the job, but in the face of adversity or rejection, you need to power through with a framework and plan for success. If you’re stuck in a position on a deal, work with your manager. As a sales manager, you will encounter those tricky situations more than before because you will be supporting a team faced with new and unique challenges that need to be solved to help your customers. If you can build that muscle before you move into a management role, you will be able to roll your sleeves up and lead by example for your group.

What is your top advice for sales professionals interested in breaking into sales management?

My top advice for sales professionals who want to get into management is to find role models and mentors at your organization and align yourself with them, connect with them and pick their brains. Building strong relationships like these have helped me see different viewpoints, learn new strategies and tactics and ultimately level myself up as a more well-rounded professional.

What hallmark of good management stands out at your company — and how is it reinforced?

For me, great management starts with creating a psychologically safe environment. You have to intentionally build a space where people feel comfortable speaking up, asking questions and challenging ideas without worrying about how it’ll land. At VelocityEHS, that comes down to trust and transparency.

We’ve adopted the saying “clear is kind.” To me, that means giving people clarity around expectations, goals and feedback so they always know where they stand and what success looks like. Feedback is shared often and in the moment, not saved for annual performance reviews. Being clear is a way of showing respect, building trust and keeping people focused on what really matters.

When managers take the time to explain the “why” behind decisions, invite feedback both ways and follow through on what they hear, it builds real trust. That’s when people feel safe to take risks, speak honestly and push for better results because they know that if they make a mistake, they’ll be supported, not blamed.

Which forum or ritual keeps expectations and priorities clear for the team?

Clarity is something we create through consistent rhythm and communication. Every Monday, our CRO leads a huddle with the revenue organization to align on what’s most important for the week ahead. Even when the priorities stay the same, it’s valuable to pause and make sure everyone is moving in the same direction.

At the team level, I take those broader themes and pull through the information that’s most relevant for my group. In our local meetings, I focus on what matters most for our team based on where we are in the quarter, the challenges we’re seeing in the field and the opportunities gaining momentum. My goal is to keep the team focused on what will make the biggest impact that week.

In our one-on-ones the focus shifts to individual ownership and accountability. My goal is to give each sales professional on my team the tools to quickly self-assess their performance and identify where they might be off course. From there, we work together to adjust their plan with intention. It keeps expectations clear, creates shared accountability and helps each person stay confident in their path forward.

What part of the strategy excites people — and what metric shows progress?

AI is a major focus and very trendy across every industry right now. What I appreciate about our approach to AI is how intentional we are in how we use it. Across the business, we’ve taken a two-sided approach to AI adoption.

Internally, we’ve implemented enterprise-wide AI tools that help our teams save time and focus on the work that matters most. What I appreciate the most is how our people have remained the focus throughout and how these tools have empowered us to work more efficiently and better support our customers.

On the product side, we find that many companies are layering off-the-shelf AI tools on top of existing software and calling it innovation. Our team of AI scientists is building VelocityAI directly into the core of our platform, powered by the largest and most meaningful dataset in the EHS space. The result is smarter workflows, faster insights and better decisions for our customers.

What excites me most is how real the progress feels. We’re helping customers make smarter decisions faster and because we’re in the safety business, that means more people go home safely to their families at the end of the day.