Remmie – New to Transcend & the Water Industry

This post is written as a conversation between Remmie Monahan, Business Development Associate, and Adam Tank, Director of Software Solutions – Remmie recently started full-time at Transcend and has never worked in a startup before… not to mention the water industry!

Adam:

Had you ever considered working for a startup before? I know you have an entrepreneurial spirit.

Remmie:

Yeah, I loved the idea of a startup. I had never worked for one before, but I had a few friends that did, and they loved it. The ownership that they have within their roles is great and that’s always something that has attracted me to entrepreneurship. I was trying to combine my entrepreneurial spirit with a job, and it was proving to be difficult with graduation a few months away. When I looked into startups, and Transcend specifically, it opened my mind to more opportunities and obviously was a match.

Adam:

And relative to the water industry, you said you knew nothing about it before you came in. You obviously know a little bit more about it now. Do you feel like it’s fulfilling to do work in this industry, or at least with this type of mission?

Remmie:

I do. Honestly, I had never given the water industry much thought. I knew it existed, but had never thought about the opportunities it contains, and I had never thought I would take a job in the water industry. In the back of my mind, I knew that water is important. But since I started working here, I have realized that it is not only important but critical. And that makes it very fulfilling for me, knowing that we’re creating solutions that have the capability to help everyone. So, to make my long answer short, working in water is definitely fulfilling, complicated, but fulfilling.

Adam:

Complicated is true.

Can you talk about some of those things where you feel like you’ve taken ownership and you’re happy with the outcome?

Remmie:

Yeah, so essentially, when I first started, I was handed a sector of the business that was brand new, which is really cool because I was able to look at it from a bird’s eye view, narrow down exactly what I wanted to do, and ultimately implement my ideas. I analyzed every segment of the business as it related to my role, finding out everything from where potential customers are coming in from, what do they know, who they are, what their role is, how do they find us, and ultimately how do I get them to buy from us. This led me to develop other parts of the business including setting up email marketing, hosting webinars, and creating new reach-out campaigns. And it’s been tricky, obviously, but the closer we get to every meeting booked, the closer we are to a subscriber, and then I think back, I was a part of that, I helped create that experience, and that excites me.

Adam:

Do you feel like you are an entrepreneur?

Remmie:

I do! When first approached about this job, I wasn’t looking for a traditional job, to be very honest. I had a very open conversation with my parents close to graduation and I told them, I don’t know if the typical nine to five is for me, I’m just not sure it’s what I want to commit to. At the same time, I was thinking to myself, if I’m working at a company, I’m not an entrepreneur, that was the mindset I had. And that’s why working at a startup has been really cool for me. I have ownership over what I’m working on, I’m implementing my own ideas, and I have shifted my mindset because of that. I may not be the CEO of my own company, but being a CEO is not the only way you can experience entrepreneurship, all entrepreneurial experiences look different.

Adam:

What are some of the frustrating things about being part of either our company or a startup or the water industry?

Remmie:

Ha! There are some days when I’m on support with MailChimp three to four times, and I’m like, oh, my gosh. And that goes back to having no “formal” training. Which has its pros and cons. I was fortunate enough to have training on different software, like Salesforce and ZoomInfo, and I knew about sales cycles in general, but there was and is still so much to learn beyond my experience. I like that I have the freedom to try new things and learn from what is or isn’t working, but sometimes it takes longer for me to do something because I first have to train myself on it, and that can be really frustrating in some instances. But then on the flip side, I’ve got control over it, and I can choose how and if I want to do something. And, if something’s not working… change it, right. (Thankfully I also have a great team who will help in any way they can.)

Adam:

In your mind, why would someone buy Transcend software or in this case, the lite version?

Remmie:

To put it plainly, it’s a faster, cheaper way to do things. Yes, it changes certain processes within people’s roles, but if you can alter a process even just a little bit to make an overall goal more achievable, it’s hard to see why you wouldn’t make that change. Adapting to change is necessary for both people and businesses. We have to learn and evolve within our jobs and businesses if we want to stay competitive. I understand that some people are scared to evolve because it means they have to change. But if there is anything I have learned recently, it’s that you can’t stop change.

Adam:

Put yourself in the shoes of a potential client. What are they saying? Why are they objecting? What in your mind are some of the more legitimate reasons that they might object to buying software?

Remmie:

Software sounds complicated. I think that when people hear about a new software, especially if they currently use any sort of software, it is hard for people to adopt. And that’s constantly an issue, especially when it becomes on a larger scale. I am sure it is not a walk in the park to have a group of 100 engineers to adopt a new software. And so, I think that’s where a lot of objection and fear comes in. I also hear “we’re so busy, you know, why would we need this?” And I reply, I know that you’re busy and it’s great that you are, but if you’re busy doing copy/paste, that is not adding any value to your business or people’s jobs. This is where we can help. But I get it, it’s hard for someone to come in and tell you to change, especially when it’s a salesperson who doesn’t know the ins and outs of your business.

Adam:

Thanks for your insights Remmie, and welcome to Transcend!