Collaboration At Its Best: Engineering Perspectives with Sam DeBurra
Mar 29, 2022
It's not every day that a sales rep has the opportunity to experience firsthand what their customers do, nor is it the norm for them to provide product developers with ideas or direction. Sam DeBurra reflects on what he values about his sales career at Axon. The ability to significantly impact people remains a common theme in what he's most thankful for in his work. As the Vice President of Inside US Sales for Law Enforcement, Fire, and EMS, he leads a sales team that works with first responders across the country. He believes all positions within Axon can be changemakers who impact public safety on a global scale.
The Highest Energy
Sam is no stranger to working in a position where he feels he helps people. While his roles advanced and he impacted growth at previous companies, he had his vision set on a more meaningful career. He jumped at the chance to work at Axon because he immediately saw the mission as a way he could help communities, civilians, and first responders.
Within his first few hours at Axon, Sam noticed the high-energy environment was just as prominent as it was in the interview process. He credits this culture as the primary reason employees grow just as fast as the technology does.
Unique Experiences
One of the unique aspects of Sam's job is collaboration. From onboarding to his day-to-day tasks, he gets the chance to collaborate across several departments. He credits Axon's cross-functional training as a pivotal part of the onboarding process.
He's enjoyed visiting first responders in the office and attending ride-alongs to see how Axon's technology is used in real-world scenarios. It enables him to go beyond sales goals and get entrenched in the human aspect of his job.
These customer experiences quickly reveal what's working and inspire new ideas to drive Axon's innovation forward, helping law enforcement and communities. This enables the sales team to become an integral part of product conversations.
Pride to Protect Life and Make an Impact
While Axon's mission itself is gratifying, the palpable spark of excitement comes from each employee's immense pride for the mission and excitement to impact society positively. "There's this immense feeling of hope. While it may seem corny, the sales team is electric, high-energy, and happy to serve our customers," he said.
Sam is undoubtedly proud of his day-to-day work, but he's also incredibly proud of his team. The way sales are made drastically changed with COVID, yet inside sales has set a record each quarter since he's been at Axon. The sales team, as a whole, has doubled in the last two years to account for customer growth and expanding tech needs. "The leaders we've hired are excellent. We have rock-solid training, despite moving remote during COVID. Sales, like Axon's other departments, has proven to be resilient with all the challenges we've had due to the pandemic."
Celebrate All Successes
When asked to reflect on his favorite part of his job, Sam immediately said it was the impact you can see you're making in people's lives. Every customer and civilian saved by Axon products is an undefinable win. Sam also wanted to draw attention to the internal implications too. He's had the chance to watch young sales executives develop their skillsets and refine their craft. He's celebrated with colleagues as they pay off student debts and buy their first homes.
Axon's mission puts people and lives first, and Sam sees the public safety impact every day. As Axon's mission becomes more known, he's looking forward to growing the team to further their global reach. His ideal candidates are naturally curious. Those who do their research but aren't afraid to ask questions or challenge product ideas can stand out when they do so constructively.