Daniel, Senior Sales Manager: Making a difference in and out of the office

My "WHY" is to be the difference that makes the difference to my colleagues, friends, family, and the world around me. At Qualtrics, in my current role as head of the XM Sales Academy for EMEA, I have the opportunity to mentor as well as be mentored by early-in-career graduates, where I can make a direct impact on their lives as they navigate their career at Qualtrics.

How have you become involved in community while working at Qualtrics?

Through my involvement with 5FTF, I have raised over €5,000 which has been used to fund fellow researchers at Breakthrough Cancer Research where they are searching for cures to hard-to-find cancers like colon, pancreatic, etc. This is something that I am very proud of as both my parents are in remission from having had cancer in the past. I love the way my family can get involved in improving experiences. On our annual Qualtrics XM Day, we cleaned up plastic from the beach and my daughter created a digital magazine for her friends when they were all out of school, which was closed due to COVID-19 in 2020.

What attracted you to Qualtrics in the first place?

I had the opportunity to meet Dermot Costello in 2014 who set up the Irish office and found him to be a very inspiring person. When the role for head of sales development came up I knew it was the right role for me, at the right company, at the right time.

What was the turning point where you knew you 'had to have the job' at Qualtrics?

It was through the interview process that I got to meet with all the EMEA leadership team (Jules Cantwell, Caroline Mogford, Bertrand Van Overshelde). I found them all to be very transparent and also flexible to my requirements. At the time, my two girls were 7 and 5 so I needed to be able to do school drop-offs and pick-ups and they were all supportive of my ask.

What does your day look like?

As a working parent, my day starts pretty early. I try to get to the gym or go for a cycle a few days a week before getting my kids ready for school. One of the amazing benefits of our hybrid work situation is that I get to walk my girls to school which I could not have done in the past.  My day typically contains a lot of video calls with my marketing colleagues, leadership team, and wider sales development team. We review the prior week's performance before focusing on the key priorities for the coming week. I do a lot of interviews, sometimes up to 5 per week, which is one of my favourite things to do as I get an early opportunity to tell people about why Qualtrics is the company to come and work for.

What is your favorite part of your role?

I find Qualtrics a very collaborative company that is also growing very fast. As a result, I spend a lot of time problem-solving with other teams and departments.

What has surprised you most about working at Qualtrics?

How fast they move compared to previous companies I have worked for. It is a very entrepreneurial environment where we are growing at +40% each year. We have a fantastic leadership team that has a very strong vision about our future and the ding that Qualtrics can make in the universe. 

What are your aspirations in career/life?

I want to be remembered for the good that I have done and the impact I have had on my family, friends, colleagues, and the world around me.

What's a favorite moment/memory of your time at Qualtrics so far?

What 3 words would you use to describe Qualtrics to someone?

5FTF, Force For Good, Makes a Difference.

How do you feel you've been able to apply what you studied at school to your career?

I studied leadership and organisational behaviour. I use these skills every day in my role at the XM Sales Academy, building and designing the best 2-year sales academy in the world.

Qualtrics is growing, and if you're ready to find your "why" at a place like this, you can explore our open opportunities at any time by visiting our career page or by joining our talent community.

Daniel recently received a Master of Business MBS qualification from the University College Cork where he studied Management, Leadership and Organisational Behaviour. He is also an alumnus of University College Cork and started his career at Gateway Computers. Last year he took part in the Ride2amillion event to raise money for Breakthrough Cancer Research. He also cycled from Mizen to Malin along the Wild Atlantic way in 2021, which was 1,200 kilometers over ten days.

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