Can you tell us a little about your background?
I grew up on a dairy farm in Southern Illinois, learning work ethic from the hardest working man I’ve ever known … my Dad. Regarding my education, I am a Speech-Language Pathologist by trade, but I completely jumped ship and began building a career in technology within the Salesforce ecosystem in January 2018.
What is something unique about you (a fun fact) that few people are aware of?
I like to craft bespoke leather goods (i.e., wallets, totes, glasses cases, etc.) I’m also married with four kids, ages seven and under. On top of that, I’ve been teaching myself how to pull a perfect shot of espresso at home, and it’s been a ton of fun!
What is your favorite pastime?
Probably bowhunting or playing travel baseball as a kid. It’s amazing how carefree I was in the middle-school stage of life. Making friends and getting exposed to so many different cultures, foods, and ways of thinking during my college was also a great time! Currently, it’s wrestling on the floor with my kids, playing board games with them on Sunday afternoons, or taking them swimming at Grandma & Grandpa’s house.
Do you have any pets?
My kids have a hamster: Master Shifu Fireball Niermann.
If you were trapped on a deserted island, what are three items you would want to bring with you?
I’d bring a lighter, a fishing line, and a machete.
What’s been your most interesting job so far?
CapStorm, hands down. What makes it most enjoyable is also what makes it most challenging: the need to learn and apply new skills constantly. I love this about CapStorm because it means work is always exciting. But it also means growing and improving at my job is a daily requirement.
What drew you to CapStorm?
At the most basic level, it was all about being a provider for my family. I was somewhat stuck in a career field that made it very difficult to be the sole breadwinner. My wife and I had two children at the time, and I was working two jobs to help ensure she could stay home with our kids. The proverbial “ends” were meeting, but home ownership was at least 15 years into the future at that point. One of CapStorm’s co-founders learned about my frustration and mentioned that I would likely be a great salesperson, having the ability to gain more earning power after a year or two. I should also mention that watching CapStorm begin to experience some noteworthy success in its early years also piqued my interest. I eventually took the leap and seriously considered quitting about four months in because of the learning curve, but stuck with it.
Who would you select as a mentor if you could choose anybody, and why?
Greg Smith, Ted Pappas, and Peter Coffee. Anyone who knows me might think, “Wait, you are already in mentorship relationships with these guys!” and they would be correct. When I was just 14 years old I reached out to an old friend and asked him to mentor me … That relationship had an incredible impact on my life, and since then, I have almost always had a mentor or mentored someone else. The “why” behind the “what” is that we all have blind spots. When we invite someone else into our own weakness or darkness, it is so much easier to grow and press through the most difficult seasons of life. I can say with certainty that if it had not been for some of the mentors I’ve had over the years, I definitely would not be where I am today.
What’s been your favorite project here so far?
A few years ago, we surveyed our customer base to see how we could better serve them. During this project, we learned that we were exceeding customer expectations in many areas and actually had high-visibility business problems that we did not know about. This made me feel very good because I realized how powerful our product is, and that made me believe in it all the more!
What are your goals for the next six months?
Hitting our number early? Just kidding…well, sort of! I want to cultivate and grow our sales team & sales process to where we achieve synergistic success as a team, personal growth, and exciting sales victories. Certain parts of selling are a numbers game, and they can be very difficult at times. However, we have an incredible group of people and our current trajectory suggests that the best is yet to come! If I see our team crushing their targets six months from now and celebrating that together, this is how I will know we’ve been successful.
