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Not Legal Advice
The grass isn't always greener
Hey friend š
Something Iāve been thinking about lately:
I will (likely) stay in the sales tech industry for the foreseeable future. Hereās why.
For context, I started my competitive intel career at a sales tech company called ZoomInfo. After a few years, I left to build the CI program at ClickUp, which is in the project management space. Two years after that, Iām back in the sales tech space at a company called Apollo.io.
Returning to sales tech was a night-and-day difference from starting at ClickUp (which was a new space for me).
At ClickUp, I was starting from ground zero. Yeah, I was vaguely familiar with competitorsā toolsā¦ but thereās so much nuance in the project management space, so many use cases, and so much innovation I needed to pick up on that I was essentially starting from scratch.
This is a tough place to be in as a competitive intel leader because a lot of the value we bring to our companies isnāt just with our transferrable skills (e.g. how you work, connect with others, etc.), but itās also with our knowledge of the space we compete in.
To be clear, ClickUp was a wonderful experience for me. Tons of great memories, great team, and great product.
But when I returned to the sales tech space with Apollo, it felt like I was able to hit the ground running and provide significantly more value on day one. I was already deeply familiar with our competitors, trends, and our buyer personas, and felt confident sharing my opinions with other leaders at the company.
I shared these thoughts with folks in the Healthy Competition community and got some interesting responses.
100000% never leaving my space. I'm a good 15 years into ecommerce. I think some of the best value CI can bring is being able to help someone new with understanding the space and the weird things that are super important but very easy to miss Mindy Regnell, Head of Market Intelligence at Klaviyo | [Being from the same industry] is a strong differentiator in interviews too and usually gets screening calls scheduled fast. Sam Niro, Sr. Manager Competitive Intelligence & Strategy at Talkdesk |
There were also a couple folks that shared interesting counterpoints to consider:
Iām coming from CI in a very niche industry. Things are changing so quickly and consolidating. Iām finding there are fewer opportunities than before. Itās been an issue for me trying to find something to change into. Anonymous Healthy Competition member | I just recently changed industries from e-commerce to a hearing aid manufacturer. Some orgs want want you to be an industry SME while others like the outsider perspective. Dana Bentzen-Bilkvist, Senior Competitive Intelligence Manager at Sonova Group |
So TLDR, if you enjoy the space youāre in, and things are still competitive / interesting, then there are a lot of advantages to staying put and letting your knowledge compound.
BUTā¦ (and this is where my subject line comes in)ā¦ this isnāt legal advice. Make sure that youāre aware of any noncompete agreements you may have signed so youāre aware of who you, legally, can and canāt work with.
PS: if you want to take part in conversations like this, check out the Healthy Competition community! 100+ competitive intel practitioners are in there sharing tips and experiences to help each other level up.
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Stay Healthy, my friends.
šAndy
PS: Here are some more goodies if you want to keep the party going:
Check out my swipe file (free). It has all my fav competitive marketing examples.
Get paid what you deserve (free). 100+ practitioners shared their anonymous salary data with me. It should be especially helpful if youāre looking for a new CI role or negotiating a raise.
Level up your tech stack (free). I made a directory of recommended software and agencies to help you research competitors, differentiate, and learn why you win or lose.
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