Why I Joined a New Company During a Global Pandemic

Many may say it’s an interesting time to join a new company, and they would be right. But that is what I did.

At the start of the new year, I became part of the Highspot team as the VP of Product Marketing. Yes, it’s strange to have never shaken hands with my team, and yes, developing a 90-day plan looks different than it used to. But when the right opportunity presents itself, it is absolutely worth taking the leap. 

Sometimes, we just know when it’s time to make a move, as I did. Other times, it’s not so black and white, and we need more data to make an informed choice.

Whether you’re searching for a job now or in the future, here are three key areas to help you make the best decision. 

The Mission

Just like it’s important to love the product you sell, it’s important to believe in the company you work for. And in our current times where many things remain uncertain, a strong mission that unites and inspires people is paramount to employee morale and company success. 

Almost every company has a mission statement. You might find it in a job description or on the website careers page. While it’s great if you agree with the mission statement, the important thing to discern is if that company is actually living and breathing its mission in the real world. Is the company executing on this mission statement? Or is it just a phrase on a page?

I experienced Highspot’s mission long before I joined the company. As a user of the Highspot platform at Apptio, I saw how this technology was changing how our team worked, how it solved pain points I’ve felt as a marketer for the last 10 years, and how it became a catalyst in our business. Here was a company delivering on its mission to “transform the way millions of people work” with leading software and customer service. 

Now, I get to be part of that mission, as we work to solve our customers’ challenges with innovative solutions and bring Highspot to more people around the globe. When you believe in your company’s mission, and the ability to deliver on that mission, every day is inspiring.

The Opportunity

Most of us spend more than half of our waking weekday hours at work. For me personally, that means time spent away from my wife and daughters. With this level of investment, I want to be sure that the job and the company is going to create value for me and my family in return.  

You want to find a job where there is an opportunity to make an impact – an impact where you can see the results from the work you’ve put in. Not only is this motivating day to day, but it’s fulfilling to look back on, months, and years from now. 

The impact can come in several forms. There is the potential impact your company, your team, and you alone can make. I wanted the trifecta, which is what led me to Highspot. 

I recognized the incredible growth of the sales enablement category, and I believe that today, especially in our remote reality, you will not scale, win, or meet your objectives without sales enablement. The world’s highest-performing organizations are adopting sales enablement, with the function experiencing a 343% increase in adoption in the past five years. I also saw the chance to join an amazing team already doing great things, and where I could click in to do my job both as a product marketer and as a leader – ensuring that our revenue-generating teams are on the same page so that together we can drive incredible outcomes for our customers and take our business to the next level. 

If you’re curious to find out more about pragmatic steps your organization can take to close the gap, check out my latest blog “Getting Go-To-Market Teams on the Same Page.” 

The Culture

In the words of Mike Tyson, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.” 

2020 has been tough on companies – but some were more prepared than others. A common denominator of the businesses that successfully navigated change was a solid foundation in core cultural values. While many companies scrambled, others had established values to guide them through difficult situations. 

The principles should inform the decisions – not the other way around. At Highspot, when facing unexpected punches, we look to our Guiding Principles to ensure we invent a future aligned with who we are as a company and who we want to be. 

A company’s culture – or the shared values, attitudes, and behaviors of a company and its people – determines how people interact with fellow colleagues, and externally with everyone from customers to the community. You want to find a company that walks the talk.

During my first week at Highspot, I was blown away by the work both inside the virtual office walls and outside in the community. A tangible example is our partnership with Ada Developers Academy, a non-profit, tuition-free coding school for women and gender diverse adults. In addition to supporting the critical cause of diversifying tech, this partnership has earned Highspot some incredible engineering talent over the past two years. 

Not only will a company’s culture directly affect the success you have in your job, but it will also influence your job satisfaction, and ultimately, your happiness. Culture is perhaps the single most important factor that will impact your experience at a company – choose wisely. 

Whether you decide now is the right time for you to make a leap or not, I hope you keep these three focus areas in mind. We all deserve to apply our energy and effort at a company with a mission we believe, a place where we have an opportunity to make a difference, and with a culture that supports us in becoming our best. If you think that place is Highspot, we’re hiring. Take a look at our open roles, or feel free to reach out to me directly.