Sales Recruiting
Case Study:

Type: exclusive contingency search
Title: National Account Executive
Role: enterprise IT solutions sales
Location: MN, Midwest, and National
Client: global IT Solutions company
Collaboration: CRO
Completed by: Deare Search Partners sales recruiters in MN

Company Profile
This privately-owned IT Solutions company has recently taken on significant private equity investment. Broad organizational change is underway as founders transition out of daily operational responsibilities.

With core strengths in providing data analytics, cloud integration, information security, and other full-scale solutions, the company continues to grow organically and by virtue of strategic acquisitions. Revenue in North America is approaching $100 million. Domestic growth will involve the introduction of new solutions offerings and the addition of new locations in the Midwest, Southwest, and Eastern U.S.

Minneapolis will continue to serve as the national headquarters as the company deploys it national and global growth initiatives under new leadership.

Key Selection Criteria
– 10+ years of successful enterprise IT solutions sales experience in a complex, technology agnostic, consulting / solutions environment requiring broad knowledge of technology impact on business challenges, real-time “solutioning” capability, and complex sales cycle management skills
– $7 million+ book of business history
– New business development expertise involving actionable client relationships and/or deep prospect-to-close experience
– C-level and/or “C-minus-1” sales expertise, and ability to quickly establish trusted advisor status with new clients
– Bachelor’s degree, MBA preferred

Challenge
Loaded with a capital infusion and a new national growth strategy, the company sought to add a senior large enterprise IT solutions sales professional to join the core national sales team in a business expansion focused National Account Executive role.

The design and focus of the role is to engage previously unreached strategically aligned large enterprise client targets in the healthcare, financial services, and other verticals on a regional and national basis. The primary challenge involved the fact that the local, regional, and national talent pool fitting the requirements of the role was extremely limited and difficult to engage/extract at a time of peak activity and earnings.

Solution
Deare was known to, and pre-selected, by the CRO with board approval. Meetings were scheduled to discuss the nuanced selection criteria, with emphasis on the caliber of individual needed for the business-critical, national-scale role. The interview process was designed with principals aligned to optimally attract, compel, vet, select, land and onboard the desired candidate.

Result
Deare launched the search immediately, making direct contact with the esoteric and somewhat obscure talent community that operates at the highest level of the IT solutions marketplace.

Early in the process, a right-fit industry pro with a stellar large enterprise sales history entered discussions. The company ran an adaptive interview process, focusing on strategic work-in-progress conversations including strategic planning. A genuine “partners-in-concept” fusion formed on the basis of the shared excitement around the business potential involved.

The National Account Executive role was offered and accepted by a candidate thrilled to join one of the most exciting IT solutions growth ventures in the U.S.