B2B Sales Prospecting Perspectives

Niki first came to AG Salesworks 2 years ago through our very own
Operations Manager, Tara Bolger. Tara has been instrumental in hiring
a lot of the top tier talent we have here at AG, but her role in
adding Niki to our team is noted as one of her finest accomplishments.
 Since her inception, Nicole Cashman has been rapidly climbing through
the ranks and currently holds the position of Office Manager.
Niki loves a lot about AG but she said that her triangulated position
between Ryan Fecher, Tara Bolger and Kyle Smith definitely has to be
her favorite.  It is a well known fact that Niki is the heart of the
office. Her passion permeates through cube walls and motivates all AG
employees. While she is proud of her current accomplishments, Niki
always strives for more. She wants to eventually drive a Lamborghini
to the office and also have the same schedule as Paul. It is these
aspirations that drive her every day.

When Niki is not in the office, she can be found running the circuit
of hockey rinks on the South Shore battling all other parents to
attain hockey mom supremacy. Niki is the proud mother of 4 boys who
dominate the sport at every academic level from elementary school to
college. When Niki has a break from the office life and hockey mom
super-stardom, she wants to take a 2 week vacation in Italy. The food,
sights, culture and wine are all very appealing to her and she hopes
to make the trip sometime soon.

In her immediate future, Niki plans to dominate the AG bowling league (she got a strike today!) and also attend her first ever beer night. If you aren’t a regular
attendee, this week is the week to go! Niki is great company and is
sure to make this week’s gathering extra special.

For today’s employee spotlight we will be sitting down with Emma Lehman. Imported from Lakeville, Minnesota with an accent to match, Emmer is always teaching her work peers new Minnesotan colloquialisms. Emma graduated from University of Minnesota-Duluth in 2011 with a degree in Marketing and a minor in Psychology. Emma played women’s hockey in college but surprisingly being from the land of 10,000 lakes has never learned how to swim. We caught up with Emma to gain more insight into what it is like to be a Midwest transplant in the world of teleprospecting.

When did you start at AG Salesworks and what has been your favorite AG moment since then?

I started in January of 2012. My favorite time at AG was the summer outing at Jillian’s because I crushed everyone in bowling.

How did you get so good a bowling?

My Mom taught me to always release with your thumbs up!

What made you move to Boston from Minnesota?

I just had to follow in the footsteps of the sports greats Randy Moss, KG and David Ortiz, ya know? I actually get to root for winning teams now. No, but seriously, I already had a bunch of friends here that I met studying abroad and my Dad travels here for work all the time so it just seemed like the right place to go.

What do you miss most about Minnesota?

My cat, Penny (see photo below)

What is your favorite thing about living in Boston?

Definitely food in the North End… or anywhere in Boston for that matter. There are so many more options here than back home.

What state is colder? Minnesota or the Commonwealth of Massachusetts?

They’re the same, believe it or not!

What are your hobbies outside of work?

I’m big on leisure activities and I love to bowl and play pool.

What is one thing you can’t go a day teleprospecting without?

A nice fizzy pop. (Translation: a diet coke).

What is currently in your Netflix Queue?

Outside Providence

What is your favorite Thanksgiving side?

I’d have to go with Creamed Corn… I don’t think that side gets enough credit for how yum it is.

John Phillips is a staple at AG, and the grumpiest person you’ll ever encounter. He was referred here many moons ago and was recently promoted (CONGRATS) to Manager of Client Operations. When asked what he’s going to miss most about being in the Business Development position he says “as most people know, ‘Phillips Hours’ was named after me – duh”. What he looks forward to in his new role is working alongside Laney and training his team in the ways that helped him succeed as a BDR.

It is common knowledge that John Phillips eats a lot of bananas, but what was recently discovered is that he really enjoys playing the kazoo. Last New Years, John spent from 11 PM until 2 AM blowing a kazoo into a party hat without uttering a single word. Hopefully that masterpiece was recorded. 

John said that his favorite moment at AG to date was winning the bowling league (Go team Jillips!) last year and dominating minute to win it, along with every other competition that he’s involved in.

John has 18 pairs of sneakers and only wears pastel colored button downs.  

 Jill’s beginning with AG was certainly unique.  While prospecting AG for another company, we were so impressed with her sales skills we offered her an immediate position. Her favorite thing about working at AG is the people she works with and all the laughs they have together. She never wakes up feeling like she doesn’t want to go to work. Outside of AG Jill enjoys exercising, trying out new restaurants, lounging by the pool and trips to NYC with her boyfriend.  

Jill’s favorite AG moment is when she convinced a fellow coworker to field test a new product by Depends.  Winning the bowling league last year was a close second. She is also very proud her perfect portrayal  of Fitts on Halloween, cropped pants and all (pictured below).

When you walk through the doors of AG the first thing you will see is Kevin’s smiling face waiting to welcome you.  He came to AG 3 years ago after graduating from UMass Amherst with a degree in Marketing and a minor in IT. Kevin is a huge Boston sports fan and loves going to the Celtics and Sox games.  Anyone who knows Kevin understands that his favorite thing in the world is his Bengal cat KiiKii (not his wifey), who frequently stars in LOLcat images created by Kevin.

Words can’t properly describe what a character Kevin is, so instead here are some pictures that might help… 

Laney began working at AG almost 6 years ago after graduating from Bryant University with a degree in Marketing. She now works as a Director of Client Operations.  Laney took a one year hiatus from AG, but as one employee put it “she realized the horrible mistake she made and came crawling back – even better than before.”

In her free time she enjoys cooking, skiing (her father invented the parabolic ski), playing with her chocolate lab Chipper and watching the Bruins. Recently, she has been busy planning her wedding with her fiancé who she describes as “just the best guy ever!”  Laney is the youngest employee at AG - She is only 7 years old because she was born on February 29th. 

Some of Laney’s greatest accomplishments include scoring a 107 in bowling last week, being elected VP of Student Council as well as Prom Queen (she swears she would have been Homecoming Queen, but they spelt her name wrong on the ballot).

Stephen has been working with AG Salesworks for almost four years. Stephen has extensive experience calling into Medical Facilities, Software Developers, Higher Education, and K-12 Public Schools for high technology infrastructures, ERP’s, Wireless Networking, and Binary/Source Code Analysis solutions.  Stephen has worked with both established organizations as well as startups.  He enjoys working with start-ups because he can assist in discovering the client base and locating their key target markets. 

Some of his favorite things about AG is the environment created by the management team and the camaraderie with his fellow employees, which includes Friday AM breakfasts, Pot Luck Meals, and corporate golf outings.  Stephen’s favorite memory is winning the AG Rap Contest at the 2011 Summer Outing with his rendition of “AG Paradise”.  Outside of work, Stephen spends most of his time with his three children and wife of ten years.  He has a passion for food and all things Disney.  He has taken his family there over 100 times and is even greeted at the resort by staff saying “Welcome Home Stephen!” 

Katherine (aka Kat) joined AG Salesworks after graduating last year from UMASS Amherst with a degree in Marketing.  Currently, she is calling into IT and Quality Assurance departments for software development testing and business process management.  Her favorite part about working at AG is the people. “You just can’t find coworkers like them.  They make for such a fun and comfortable work environment.”  Kat is enjoying her success at work and each month, she aims to exceed the goals set in front of her and top our leader board.  Her favorite moment at AG was winning one of our Superbowl squares; she’d never won anything before and views it as a great accomplishment.  When not working, Kat is an avid reader, a foodie, and lover of the outdoors.  

Eric began working for AG Salesworks in October, 2007 and was promoted to Senior BDR this past year.  Currently, Eric works with Learning Management Solutions and service providers for tracking and reporting solutions.  Eric’s favorite part of working at AG is the culture, especially the shared activities outside of the office and the Friday contests, which he and another colleague oversee.  When asked his favorite moment at AG, Eric stated “winning the AG fantasy football league last year and getting the bragging rights was great.”  Eric would like to continue his professional growth by working in operations, increasing his management skills, and ultimately working as a Director of Client Operations.   Outside of work, Eric likes to play Xbox360, go on hikes with his dog Nami, and is an avid fan of anime and sports, especially the UFC.