spo-comm Marketing: Hello Christopher and thank you for taking the time for a little interview. Tell us, how did you actually come to spo-comm?
Christopher: I was looking for a job because I wanted to move to Nuremberg, to live with my girlfriend. When I saw the job advertisement, it just spoke to me straight away. I originally come from the sheet metal sector, but I have always thought of IT as an exciting matter. Even if, to be honest, I haven't really looked at it so far. I looked up the website right away and was thrilled that the company had such a young team with a cool spirit. Everything seemed so personable and open. I found the references and the product portfolio really exciting. Precisely because mini-PCs are not a standard product, but require a certain explanation. That’s quite a challenge. Since the tasks in the job advertisement also matched my previous activities well, I simply applied with good luck. I'm a career jumper, but thought “take the risk or lose a chance” (laughs).
Marketing: We're glad you took that risk. You just said you come from sheet metal processing. How was your professional career? What did you learn originally?
Christopher: First I did a commercial apprenticeship as an industrial management assistant at a facade construction company. During that time I mainly worked in sales. After that I left the company to do my technical diploma and then started a dual business administration course. Studying was my big goal and it was a good and educational time. However, after almost a year, I realized that it was simply not the right thing for me, since I already had a lot of practical experience, and I deregistered. It wasn't an easy decision, but it ultimately led me to where I am now.
Marketing: What happened next?
Christopher: First, I worked at my mother's advertising agency for two months and supported her with sales. Meanwhile I got a job in a sheet metal processing company. After initially working in work preparation and in internal sales, after six months, I got the chance to become sales manager. So I worked in key account management for three years, looked after major customers, gained new customers with cold calling and took care of the entire strategic and operational alignment of sales. In addition, I created marketing documents, took care of the website and looked after topics such as annual sales planning and calculation parameters.
Marketing: Wow, so you have a lot of experience with different topics. Nevertheless, you are now in a completely new industry. How did you fare in the first two months with the subject of IT and mini-PCs?
Christopher: In fact, I have always been very interested in IT because it is a growing industry in which I see a lot of potential, for example in the field of artificial intelligence. With regard to spo-comm, I find it really exciting that there are all kinds of small mini-PCs that are always individually adapted to customer projects. But to be honest, at first my brain was quite flooded. Both hardware and software are quite new to me. Luckily my colleague Mustafa gave me really great training and prepared me for talks with customers. I was also able to learn a lot through problem cases and special customer requests that forced me to do a lot of my own research.
Marketing: And on top you had the difficulty of starting at spo-comm in the middle of a lockdown. We are all still working from home most of the time. How was your introductory training?
Christopher: I thought it was really cool how well I was received by the team. I got to know the colleagues from Sales and Marketing beforehand in a Teams video call, which definitely made it easier for me to get started. Still, I was a bit tense and excited for the first few days. On the one hand, I had great respect for the change in industry; on the other hand, starting a job like this in lockdown is not so easy for the company either. But everything went really well. From day one, I was perfectly equipped with a laptop, headset, etc. and could have worked from home straight away. At my own request, however, I am mostly in the office and also very grateful that I have the opportunity. If I have any questions, I can simply go straight to my technical colleagues and see the products in real life.
Marketing: That definitely makes a lot of things easier. How is the teamwork with your sales colleagues?
Christopher: Great! I'm a big fan of Microsoft Teams now. The colleagues carried out product training with me via Teams and explained everything very well. It really felt like we were sitting right together. They also always have an open ear for questions and I can call at any time if there's a problem somewhere. But I also think it's great to get to know everyone personally over time. Working from home naturally minimizes the risk of infection, but I'm just a friend of working in an office. Fortunately, we can coordinate flexibly in sales so that not too many people are in the spo-comm HQ at the same time and we can follow all social distancing rules.
Marketing: And how do you like it at spo-comm?
Christopher: I like it very much. There is really a close team spirit and a lot of mutual support. Just like I imagined it.
Marketing: We are happy to hear that. Then we only have our final question for you: Which is your favorite mini PC?
Christopher: Definitely the new BOX J4125, which has just been presented officially..
Marketing: Why do you think it's so great?
Christopher: (totally enthusiastic) The BOX has an incredible price-performance ratio. The customer really gets something for his money. It is super small and still has a lot of interfaces. And it's suitable for so many areas. Simply a recommendable all-rounder.
Marketing: Our customers really can look forward to something. At this point, thank you again for your time and a warm welcome to the team!
