The Role of the Sales Professional
Discover the key skills and attributes that companies prioritize when hiring for sales positions. Explore why young scientists and engineers should be interested in sales, leveraging their technical knowledge to bridge gaps and drive innovation. Uncover how sales seamlessly integrates with other company functions, such as marketing, product development, and research and development, to maximize organizational success.
About the Speaker
Driving rapid and sustainable revenue growth for technology/telecom companies is where Heidi Westbrook excels as a high-energy sales and marketing leader, managing cloud operator, service provider, enterprise and channel sales teams in the U.S., Canada, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Time and again, she has developed sales strategy, recruited and retained top talent, instilled structure and discipline, and built winning cultures that drive growth and brand recognition. Most recently at Fujitsu Network Communications, Ms. Westbrook led the turnaround of a $1M division and paved the path forward to $50M in revenue over 3 years following significant product challenges. In this capacity as Director of Client Executives, she led 2 teams—North American Carrier Accounts and Cloud Infrastructure Providers comprised of 28 members—through organizational restructuring and change.
Previously at Lightriver Technologies as Sales Director, US Cloud & Data Center and member of the leadership team, she built the cloud business, brand awareness and revenues. Within 6 months of hire, she closed a new strategic customer taking the opportunity from $50K to $1.6M+ and was awarded “Best Customer Evolution” by vendor partner. In this role, she drove all sales, coordinate business development and marketing efforts while managing multiple technologies in a consultative engagement. In a prior role as Area Vice President of Sales for Xtera Communications, a leading provider of high capacity terrestrial and subsea optical solutions, Ms. Westbrook was brought in post-IPO to diversify revenues and develop the North America market. In just 90 days, she built a $30 million sales pipeline.
Following her career as Area Vice President – Regional US Sales for Optelian, Ms. Westbrook assumed a newly created role to diversify revenues, build a sales team and structure, and deliver results in North America, the Caribbean, and Latin America through direct sales, channel sales, and strategic partnerships. Under her leadership, the company became a market leader in 100G applications, set a robust and compelling product roadmap, and established a formal channel partner program. However before joining Optelian, Ms. Westbrook served as Sales Director for Tellabs for six years. After rebranding the company into an optical powerhouse and making the necessary internal changes to restore growth, strategic account sales more than quadrupled to $70 million in five years. Her loyal, customer-focused team of 38 sales, engineering, and support staff maintained the highest new customer acquisition metrics of any Tellabs team in North America.
Recruited to BlueCat Networks as Sales Director for the Western Region, Ms. Westbrook expanded the Western U.S. business for a startup Canadian company. The structure and processes she put in place resulted in 312% goal attainment. Progressing through the ranks of Alcatel (now Nokia), Ms. Westbrook rose to Senior Sales Manager for a $24 million business. In each of her positions, Ms. Westbrook developed strategies to meet and exceed quotas. She negotiated complex deals earning her promotions and ranking in the top 10% of Lucent’s sales force as National Account Manager for strategic accounts.
Believing that people are a company’s most valuable asset, Ms. Westbrook is an avid networker and has recruited and retained elite teams and individuals in a competitive hiring market for companies of all sizes. Ms. Westbrook graduated with a B.S. degree in Marketing and Business Administration from the University of Arizona.
