Path to PreSales – Details, episodes & analysis

In this episode, we sit down to explore the path to presales of Jack Cochran, Director of Solutions Consulting at ActionIQ.

There is so much to be learned from Jack's story, leadership style, and perspective. We deep dive into how reading has not only shaped his professional outlook but also honed his leadership skills. 

From recommended reads to career-defining strategies, Jack provides awesome advice for PreSales success that you won't want to miss!

Episode #014 - In this episode, I sit down with Rew Dickinson, CEO at Alpha PreSales, to discuss his intriguing path from Consultant to Sales Engineer (SE) to Account Executive (AE) to CEO. Rew provides awesome insight into  how becoming an AE can make you a better SE, how to lead regardless of your title (i.e., it's OK to not go the traditional management route and crush it as an IC instead!), the synergy between different PreSales roles, and the essence of success in the field. His reflections and advice are a compelling and informative guide for both newcomers and seasoned professionals.

Don't miss this opportunity to learn from a true thought leader in PreSales and #techcareeradvice. Subscribe today and level up your tech career skills with us!

Resources Discussed in Today's Episode

• Alpha PreSales (website): https://www.alphapresales.com/
• Alpha PreSales (LinkedIn page): https://www.linkedin.com/company/alpha-presales/
• Connect with Rew on LI:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/rewdickinson/

Episode #005 - Let's talk PreSales within Cybersecurity! On this episode of Path to PreSales, we explore key learning considerations for breaking into tech and presales with a cybersecurity focus.

Our guest, Damian Tommasino, is Principal Security Sales Engineer at Feroot Security and founder of Cyber Informants: a unique content hub, education platform, and community that is on a mission to redefine pre-sales within the cybersecurity industry. 

Join us as we dive into Damian's path to PreSales within cybersecurity, and discuss many excellent resources that he's working on to help you find your own path within cybersecurity! 

Episode #004 - In this episode of Path to PreSales, we kickoff an educational spotlight series that is in a solo episode style. Today's episode focuses on how to use chatGPT to learn and improve technical skills that can help you land your first or next role in PreSales. Uniquely, this episode is entirely narrated by Matt Madden's new AI co-host, who discusses the importance of prompt engineering and best practices for using chatGPT to refine technical skills.

Would love to hear feedback on the style of this episode, so please let us know! I hope it can kickstart your chatGPT testing journey for augmenting your PreSales skill-building workflows! 

Episode #003 - In this episode, we speak with Sarah Musick, Cloud Solution Architect at Intel.

Not only do we dig into Sarah’s Path to PreSales, but we get really tactical on learning routines, habits, and mindset that can help you be successful in your pursuit of your first role, next role, or next promotion within tech and, specifically, PreSales.

Regardless of where you are in your career journey, whatever you may be focused on learning right now, there are some really actionable takeaways ahead, so hit play and subscribe to get more great episodes like this every Wednesday! 

Episode #002 - In this episode, we speak with Kevin O’Dell, VP of Field Engineering at Synthesized.

We dig into Kevin’s amazing journey into PreSales, from his roots in in technical support, to how that progressed into his path to PreSales from there, where he excelled as an individual contributor and then moved into Sales Engineering leadership, eventually becoming a published O’Reilly author!

Kevin is an amazing storyteller and mentor, and I think you are going to really enjoy and find value in his perspective and the advice he shares in today’s episode. 

Episode #001 - In this FIRST episode of the Path to PreSales podcast, we speak with Greg Condon, Senior Sales Engineer at Checkr.

Greg delivers a masterclass on leaning into your existing strengths and how to network effectively (even if you don't know where to start), while also sharing some very helpful perspective on the right mindset and actions that can help you maximize opportunities to land your first or next PreSales career role. Additionally, we talk about the importance of finding a role that aligns with your goals, strengths, and vision.

Episode #00 - Announcing the launch of the Path to PreSales podcast! Host and Senior Sales Engineer, Matt Madden, will be interviewing PreSales professionals that had very unique paths into technology career roles that are focused on PreSales activities. In each episode, we'll surface actionable insights from our guest's journey into the role, including tips, lessons learned, and recommendations shared that will help you determine and pursue your own unique path into a PreSales role!

Episodes release every Wednesday, starting March 22nd.

Episode #013 - On the newest episode of Path to PreSales, Mark Green from Consensus joins us to take you on his PreSales journey. Learn the ropes of personal branding from a veteran PreSales leader and podcaster, understand why it matters, and get inspired by his origin story. We cover a lot of ground in this episode, and I am confident it will equip you with the mindset and process advice that will help you build your brand intentionally and navigate the PreSales landscape confidently.

Also, be sure to check out the excellent PreSales podcasts that Mark hosts/co-hosts, which are Burning PreSales and Two PreSales in a Pod!

Resources Discussed in Today's Episode

• Mark's Website: https://www.mark.technology/
• A PreSales Must-read: Selling is Hard. Buying is Harder: How Buyer Enablement Drives Digital Sales and Shortens the Sales Cycle by Garin Hess
• Concensus
• 2023 Sales Engineering Compensation & Workload Report

Episode #012 - In this episode, we sit down and explore the PreSales and tech career journey of Brian Lewis, Co-founder and CRO of Homerun Presales. Along the way, Brian provides invaluable insight on everything from how to stand out as a candidate at your dream company (even if they don't currently have open job postings!), to PreSales skill-building, and more. He also gives a really great overview of the current state of the PreSales software solutions ecosystem, from demo automation tools to purpose-built platforms for PreSales team success like Homerun Presales. 

All in all, Brian provides a comprehensive overview that can help you knock your PreSales career out of the park. Give it a listen today wherever you get your podcasts!