As a trailblazer in IT and security, BetterCloud needs their employees to be innovative self-starters — and that’s especially true of their sales team.
Leading the group is VP of Sales Matthew Young, who, before joining the team, worked for companies like Salesforce and Okta. With 22 years of sales experience and a slew of high-profile brands under his belt, he’s aiming to build “the next great sales organization.” We caught up with him to learn about how he’s leading the charge.
What’s your professional background, and what brought you to BetterCloud?
I’ve been blessed to work at some amazing companies. I started my career at Enterprise Rent-a-Car and ADP, who I credit with providing me with the basic fundamentals that have been key to my success throughout my career. In total, I’ve spent the last 22 years in sales. The last 10 years were spent at two of the most admirable SaaS companies in the world — Salesforce and Okta — who enabled me to develop and grow in ways I never imagined. The move to BetterCloud allowed me to take everything I’ve learned from those iconic companies and build the next great sales organization. I chose BetterCloud because of the people, the culture and what I believe is a massive market opportunity.
What was your first impression of the team, and how has it measured up since? How is it different from other sales teams you've been a part of?
My first impression was that they were very polished and had a high level of intelligence — both IQ and EQ. I was immediately impressed because they are a younger group than the sales teams I had worked with in the past. This has been fun for me because I am learning things from them as much as they are learning from me. I was also very pleased with how eager and hungry they were for mentoring. This is an important trait I look for in almost any candidate, so to know I was inheriting a team with this quality gave me comfort.
I think it’s important as a senior leader to never forget the challenges and frustrations I had as a rep."
Can you walk us through a day in the life on the BetterCloud sales team?
Things are fast-paced and ever-changing, with lots of internal collaboration. People are typically multi-tasking and wearing multiple hats. One of the things I love the most here is how open senior leadership is to feedback and input at the field level. They welcome and encourage it, so people typically get involved in multiple cross-functional initiatives. From a pure sales perspective though, it’s lots of evangelizing, as is often the case when you are creating a new market.
What are some of the team's biggest challenges, and how are they unique to the company or industry?
First, it goes back to my comment about evangelizing and building a market. Anyone who’s done this before understands how challenging it is. When you are the first to do something, you need to craft and perfect your message at a whole new level. It needs to be simple yet powerful, or people will quickly lose interest. Fortunately, we are solving a problem that is widespread and becoming top of mind for most, which makes it easier.
How does your team bond? How do you celebrate wins?
At early-stage companies, teams tend to bond through shared wins and losses. Individual wins become team wins and individual losses become team losses. Everyone is deeply invested in the success of their peers and rallies around them as a result. Each major company milestone is magnified and celebrated in ways you’ll never see at larger organizations. It’s one of the things I love the most about the startup world. And every once in a while, we celebrate with karaoke!
What’s your leadership style, and how do you give feedback?
I am approachable and hands-on, and I lead by example. I think it’s important as a senior leader to never forget the challenges and frustrations I had as a rep. So, when I make important decisions today, it’s usually based on feedback I’ve gotten from people in the field or things I’ve witnessed first-hand from staying actively involved. When I give feedback, it’s typically in real time and very simple and direct. I find that anything less dilutes the message and has a far lesser impact.
What's one trait that everyone on your team needs to have to be successful? Why?
It’s hard to pick one, but I guess I would say “hustle.” There is no substitute for hard work, especially when you are building a company. It takes a very unique person to do what we do, and without an insane drive and work ethic, it’s impossible to succeed in that mission.
What's one surprising fact about you?
I have lived in the same small town in Connecticut for my entire life!
