We all know that there is no specific educational route into becoming a Sales Development Representative. That doesn’t mean that just anyone can do it though. It requires life skills, soft skills, some things self-learnt and some things taught. Above all else though, having a belief in yourself and a desire to get the job done, even when it seems like the world is against you, is essential. This is the character and inner confidence we look for. Of course, our SDRs all have these qualities in abundance but despite the common traits, they are all individuals, and they all found their own route here. That’s why we thought now was the time to gain a greater insight into some of our brightest stars.    

In this instance, we asked Nik to share his story with us.

Professional Philosophy

“Boundaries are not supposed to keep you in, they are supposed to be pushed”

I grew up in the south of the Netherlands and had a pretty normal upbringing, going to school, hanging out with friends and playing hockey. After school, I went on to study international business, although I already had some grounding as my parents used to sell rides to amusement parks and the office was attached to the house. 

During my bachelor’s degree, we had to do a six-month internship and I’d always wanted to work in New York City. By chance, my dad happened to know the person who runs ride sales for the North and South American market so was able to arrange an internship for me that way. I feel I did well in New York and there was even talk of me going back but then Covid hit so there were restrictions on travel and restrictions on opening theme parks, so it was not the right time.

So, I decided to do my master’s in marketing and sales but was having to do it online owing to pandemic restrictions. When they were lifted, I moved to Barcelona and physical classes resumed in September. After the course finished, I decided to stay in Barcelona and found a job as a headhunter through a friend of mine. I only stayed for a year because I was trying to develop myself in a different direction. Then, while browsing on LinkedIn, I saw the opportunity at Aexus. Immediately, I could see that this matched with my sales ambitions as well as my interest in tech.  

In terms of my soft skills, I’m a really good listener and I think that’s something that will really help in this job. For instance, if I’m doing a reach out on the phone, I can’t provide a solution if I haven’t listened to the problem

It may be a little too early in my Aexus career to start talking about future plans or when I would be making the step up to a business development manager role as I have to master this role first. I am ambitious though and will be looking to move forward in time. Ultimately, what I want to do is reach my full potential and if I can do that, everything else will follow.