Ever wondered what it’s like to work at Salesforce EMEA? We’re going to introduce you to some of our fantastic women in technology on the blog on a regular basis – check back to see more and bookmark our careers site to start your own #dreamjob!
Over to you, Karen McAllister, Regional Vice President, Salesforce UK
When asked to describe my normal day at Salesforce, it’s hard to know where to start, as every day is different in my role. Which is what I love about my job! So here’s a relatively average day for me:
A Day in the Salesforce Life
08:00: My day starts. If I am commuting into central London, I try and get to the office by 8 am, so that means a train at 7 am (which to be honest is not much fun!). When I work from home, 8 a.m. is my first coffee at my home office, so a much easier commute, and I’m at home today – bliss! I’ll check my phone in case anyone is looking for me, log in to our Salesforce1 mobile app to see what is happening, and write my “To-Do” list for the day.
08:30: Quick breakfast, scan the news and have that very welcome 2nd cup of coffee at my desk.
09:00: I have a phone call with my team and we review the latest sales forecasts. It’s important to me to be on top of what’s going on with our customers, and we will talk and sometimes brainstorm possible ways to provide additional customer solutions.
10:00: I really enjoy meeting with our customers – it’s the best way to learn firsthand what our customers are doing with our technology – and it helps me get a feel for what is really driving the business agenda at world-class companies. Customer meetings always take priority and if I am not face-to-face, I spend a lot of my time on the phone with customers.
11:00: Quick tea break and then I get on a call with another customer, discussing their current challenges or what is happening more generally within the telecoms industry. Issues like customer service, proactive customer support, and issues management are all key topics under discussion. Salesforce makes technology that helps to enable and enhance a lot of these processes, and our customers are our best salespeople.
Noon: On days when I work from home, I will usually try and get away from my desk and phone for 40 minutes to 1 hour and go for a run. I find it really helps to clear my head and I can get a lot of my best thinking time while pounding the pavements. A quick shower and I’m back at my desk for a light lunch and some admin – my email tends to pile up fast and I like to stay on top of it.
13:30: Debrief calls with my boss to discuss a couple of customers that I met with last week. We can help them really streamline their business and I’m excited for the projects to go ahead; he gives me the green light to move forward, so I get on the phone with the team and we outline the initial strategy to take back to the customers.
15:00: Call one of the customers to discuss the next steps involved in driving the strategy forward. We have a really productive conversation and I take some notes (all stored within Salesforce Sales Cloud, of course!) on what I will need to do to follow up. The customer transfers me to one of their system engineers, and I in turn make an introduction to one of our technical team advisors.
16:00: I try to give myself an hour a day to focus on team topics – such as career planning or team training. We also make it a priority at Salesforce to give back through the Salesforce Foundation, also known as Salesforce.org. Salesforce encourages all our staff to spend 6 days (fully paid for) every year on any charity activity of our choice. Therefore, a truly great day at work can also include an element of foundation work, either all day or for a couple of hours. Recent foundation events I have been involved in include a London Mayor TeamLondon initiative to help 13-14-year-olds plan for their future careers, painting a sick little girl’s bedroom pink and serving tea and biscuits at an MS group. Today I don’t have a foundation activity but it’s great to plan for the next one, and I encourage my whole team to get involved.
17:00: A couple of calls with partners to round out the day, discussing common issues and making plans for a meeting next week with a joint customer.
18:00: About twice a week, I will have a dinner or drinks event to go to, either with customers, partners or colleagues. I try not to be too late at these and get home before 11 p.m., but otherwise, it’s the sofa, dinner and a glass of wine, as it is tonight!
22:00: Lights out. I’m in the London office tomorrow and have to get up early to make that 7 a.m. train!!
Thanks to Karen for giving us a little insight into her world! To find out about the possibility of working at Salesforce, and finding your dream job, please visit our careers site.
