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Alex Shootman

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Chief Revenue Officer, Eloqua

804 points

Proven senior field executive with 24 years experience in all areas of revenue and profit generation for technology organizations. Led turn-around and growth in multiple organizations across four different enterprises, operating on the ground in all international geographies. Established a ...

Proven senior field executive with 24 years experience in all areas of revenue and profit generation for technology organizations. Led turn-around and growth in multiple organizations across four different enterprises, operating on the ground in all international geographies. Established a reputation for ‘Getting it Done’ and ‘Doing it Right’ in high-pressure situations, focusing on the basic fundamentals of success in each organization. Able to achieve corporate objectives that are often in tension with individual’s motivations by leveraging the attributes of character, competence, experience and a willingness to learn. Known for a dedication to investing in and coaching people; understanding that leadership is about getting results while developing people and being motivated by their success.

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WEB: Eloqua

May 3, 2012

Alex Shootman recommends this answer by Michael A Brown

What are current best practices you have seen in new hire sales training?

Hi Robert! In our experience, there are four types of sales training, and each has dramatic cost, performance, and results implications. Here’s how to choose …
No training. Cheap, but very expensive. Yet some individual managers, and some entire companies, believe that because they “only ... more

Sales Enablement

April 3, 2012

Alex Shootman and 13 other people answered this question

Is roleplaying an effective customer service training technique?

For us role-playing is one of three elements we use in skill building. Each of our customer facing folks has to go through certification as part of their on-boarding process and to stay on-board. There are three elements; learn, practice and do. Learn - in ... more

Customer Service

Contact Centers

March 3, 2012

Alex Shootman and 16 other people answered this question

What does sales want more: qualified leads or early leads?

Here is the real challenge; sales does not want more qualified leads or earlier leads...sales wants to exceed the revenue plan AND where there is competition, sales wants to win more than it loses. Because of this reality, sales will always be schizophrenic on the ... more

Demand Generation

Feb. 19, 2012

Alex Shootman and 8 other people answered this question

What skills/talents do you look for when hiring sales reps?

There are two categories of characteristics. The first for us are general categories that include optimism, enthusiasm, accountability, integrity, self improvement, ability to make the team better, a desire for a merit based environment and a hatred of passive aggressiveness. These are the 'fit' issues ... more

Employee Evaluations

Sales Management

Sales Performance

Feb. 10, 2012

Alex Shootman and 11 other people answered this question

How should senior executives be spending their time? Where do they have the greatest impact?

Dave - to me the toughest part about the senior sales executives job is the realization that you really do not 'do' much. And in fact when you look at your calendar you need to see a higher percentage of 'communication' in your calendar than ... more

Sales Management

Feb. 10, 2012

Alex Shootman and 21 other people answered this question

What books on leadership would you recommend?

The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi circa 1645.

General Management

Human Resources

Feb. 2, 2012

Alex Shootman and 8 other people answered this question

Have you made a sale using social media? Tell us your success stories!

We have been activating our sales force to use social media as a channel for prospecting. A lot of this involves the authentic use of the channel not just popping up on LinkedIn and announcing that you have something cool you want to show folks. ... more

Jan. 26, 2012

Alex Shootman recommends this answer by Joe Chernov

What are the differences between the VP of Marketing and CMOs?

Catherine - What a fantastic question! I am really eager to read the answers. With regard to what a VP of marketing does, I once wrote this little post on the topic for my personal blog: http://www.jchernov.com/what-a-vp-of-marketing-does But your question is a juicier one. Thanks ... more

Jan. 13, 2012

Alex Shootman and 13 other people answered this question

How do you reconcile problems when selling ethically and making goal are not in alignment?

Andrew - I have read the other four answers and so I am probably driving the nail through the 2x4 but I see no reconciliation. It has to be a both/and not an either or. Inside our company we live by 'culture eats strategy'. Our ... more

Sales Management

Jan. 11, 2012

Alex Shootman and 13 other people answered this question

What "hard truths" must HR pros learn to accept?

I wade into this topic with trepidation, given that I am an amateur OD person fulfilling the role of Chief Revenue Officer of a company. That said, I think the hardest truth for HR professionals to deal with is related to line ownership of certain ... more

General Management

Human Resources

Dec. 31, 2011

Alex Shootman and 14 other people answered this question

What advice would you give someone with a marketing background who's about to go into sales?

I might start with the first line from the poem "If" by Rudyard Kipling, "If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you". I have seen many successful people make a transition to sales and just ... more

Human Resources

Career Development

Dec. 21, 2011

Alex Shootman and 2 other people answered this question

When is it a good idea to publicize sales performance metrics throughout the company?

Publicizing results should be governed by a quote from Lombardi, derived from the ancient saying in 35 BC when Publilius Syrus said, “Admonish your friends privately, but praise them openly.”
"Praise in public, criticize in private"
I know of no benefit to publishing the list of people ... more

Performance Metrics

Dec. 15, 2011

Alex Shootman and 5 other people answered this question

How do you know if you have a clear vision for your company?

Catherine this is an issue that many of us who try to lead struggle with. I have a bit of a tangent answer rather than 'clear' maybe more of 'captivate'. I think there are four elements a vision must have to captivate people:
1. The vision ... more

Entrepreneurship

Dec. 9, 2011

Alex Shootman and 7 other people answered this question

What leadership changes are required to facilitate sales and marketing collaboration

The CEO has to ask the right questions. What he or she is interested in their folks will be fascinated by. If the CEO allows separate and conflicting answers about the operational performance to come from sales and marketing then sales and marketing will not ... more

General Management

Dec. 9, 2011

Alex Shootman and 1 other person answered this question at this roundtable

FSI Sales Office Hours: A Year in Review [12/15 @ 1 pm]

Should sales managers always be recruiting? Why/why not?

Yes. Internally we perform talent pipeline reviews just like we perform territory pipeline reviews. Our talent acquisition team has been aggressive adopters of new networking capabilities and offerings from companies like LinkedIn.
So I want our organization's name in the marketplace. I want explicit information about ... more

Sales and Marketing Alignment

Nov. 17, 2011

Alex Shootman and 33 other people answered this question

Is communication competency a skill or an art?

I would like to build upon what Jim wrote, paraphrased here...great communication is great storytelling. I agree. And at its most basic level, a story is someone, who overcomes something to get what they want.
One of our most effective sessions at our last quarterly ... more

Human Resources

Information Technology

Nov. 17, 2011

Alex Shootman is now following Gary Hart and 5 other people

Nov. 15, 2011

Alex Shootman and 2 other people answered this question

How do you get your sales team to see a month or two ahead when on a Monthly quota?

I am going to build upon something Dave wrote. As a sales leader I have to always remember that what I am interested in my folks will be fascinated by. So I have to be very conscious of what I am interested in. For us ... more

Sales Management

Nov. 10, 2011

Alex Shootman and 2 other people answered this question at this roundtable

MAI Series: A Sales View of Marketing Automation [11/10 @ 11 am]

Can you describe any successful experiences converting an old-school,process-resistant sales professional into someone who gets the new paradigm?

John thanks for pressing on the meeting today and pressing us on "give me a real story not theory"
Not sure if this is what you are asking for but we had one customer that using marketing automation for free trial sign-ups added the equivalent ... more

Lead Management

Marketing Automation

Nov. 10, 2011

Alex Shootman and 2 other people answered this question at this roundtable

MAI Series: A Sales View of Marketing Automation [11/10 @ 11 am]

What objections do sales executives typically have against marketing automation? (or are they typically uninterested?)

Craig, I could give you the politically correct answer that might sound something like, "They are not sure that the investment is worth the trade-off of spending money on sales people"
But, I think it is deeper than this...effective use of MA starts to change the ... more

Lead Management

Marketing Automation

Oct. 29, 2011

Alex Shootman and 6 other people answered this question at this roundtable

Customer 2.0 Is Mad as Hell [11/3 @ 11 am]

What is the most annoying sales tactic still be using today?

I will not name the company; but I get their calls frequently and it goes like this,"Alex, this is Fred from XXX. I was just talking the the VP of Marketing from one of your largest clients and they suggested that I call you"
Then if ... more

Oct. 27, 2011

Alex Shootman is speaking at this roundtable

MAI Series: A Sales View of Marketing Automation

Lead Management

Oct. 26, 2011

Alex Shootman and 15 other people answered this question

How can you create a culture where your employees feel comfortable creating content?

Three interesting words in this exchange; culture, sales and content. In a vacuum these words do not seem like they should go together but let's break this down.
1) Culture is the external manifestation of the shared values of a group.
2) Sales is connecting what ... more

Company Culture

Content Marketing

Oct. 5, 2011

Alex Shootman and 2 other people answered this question at this roundtable

Modern Sales Management: How the Best Sales Managers Thrive in Today’s New Environment [10/6 @ 11 am]

How should an individual sales rep be using social media in their selling process?

Craig,
We are investing quite a bit of time in teaching our sales team to effectively prospect in a modern way. While learning the basics of Twitter vs. LinkedIn vs. a blog is not that complicated; learning how to show up authentically and create trusted relationships ... more

Following 6 Topics

General Management

Sales Management

Following 25 People

Followed by 79 People

Knowledgeable in 60 Topics

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Sales Professionals

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