Michael Muhlfelder

Calm Ocean Sales

Fractional VP of Sales / CRO for hire on an hourly, daily and monthly basis. I can help with go to market planning or be your VP of Sales on a limited, part-time basis. DM me for an appointment!
I am fortunate to work with these great clients-
Plastic Bank ( www.plasticbank.com)- Helping the planet to reverse poverty and remove plastic from the oceans. ( Contract June 2023-December 2023 )
Grax ( www.grax.com )- Take control of the chain of custody of your salesforce data and make it actionable at the same time.

Fractional VP of Sales / CRO

Revenue Collective

The Revenue Collective is a private, invitation-only NETWORK community of sales and marketing executives at growth focused companies

Network Member

Jitterbit

> Responsible for all new ARR across North America Sales teams and Sales Engineers.
> Oversaw acquisition of more than 430 new customers and 60% of ARR via customer expansions through direct engagement with customers and prospects as well as sales leader / coach / strategist.
> Work cross-functionally to ensure best possible engagement experience pre- and post-sale
> Engage executives cross-functionally as well as with customers, partners and prospects to learn and provide insight and assistance that will enable mutual success.
>Key constituent in acquisition of Jitterbit by Audax Private Equity
>Key constituent in acquisition and on-boarding of 3 acquired companies
>Participated in creation of compensation plans, strategic go to market plans, account management
>Keen focus on intelligent growth of Jitterbit

Jitterbit is a global leader in iPaas ( integration platform as a service ) and low code application development ( App Builder ). We help businesses make faster, more effective decisions by enabling them to unify and exploit data from all sources.
Using the Jitterbit API integration platform ( Harmony) companies can rapidly connect SaaS, on-premise and cloud applications and instantly infuse artificial intelligence into any business process.

Vice President of Sales, North America

MapAnything, Inc.

> Responsible for all sales functions and operations worldwide for MapAnything.
> Implemented and revised sales process and methodology.
> Delivered largest revenue quarter in company history.
> Grew ACV by over 40%.
> Revenue results included largest ACV quarter and 4 of the largest ACV months in company history.

MapAnything, Inc. is a strategic partner of Salesforce.com, ServiceNow, Servicemax and General Motors

Chief Revenue Officer

Sales Strategy Advisor

> Consulted with executives and individual contributors alike to comprehend their market(s), business imperatives and goal as both fee-based and pro bono work.
> Provided non-biased direction to help companies and individuals to meet and exceed their goals.

Independent Strategic Advisor

TARGIT

> Responsible for software and services revenue in the Americas for TARGIT with a goal of growing the business at least 30% Y-O-Y.
> Architected and implemented sales process and rules of engagement for TARGIT Americas

TARGIT is the software company behind TARGIT Decision Suite, the business intelligence and analytics solution for all business users that reveals actionable insights from all data sources, such as ERP systems, CRM systems, Microsoft SQL Servers and other internal and external systems in order for everyone to make better and faster decisions.

Vice President of Sales, Americas

LogMeIn

> Responsible for management and success of the enterprise (field) sales and business development teams in North America ( inside and field sellers ).
> Completed 7 consecutive quarters of over quota attainment while growing new and add-on bookings by more than 20% YOY. Active leadership role in strategy discussions which impacted the overall sales organization as well as NA Enterprise Sales.  
> Participated on behalf of LogMeIn in webinars as well as live presentations on subjects such as collaboration and sales management in order to help build the LogMeIn brand. 
> The NA field (enterprise ) sales teams were responsible for the sale of LogMeIn core solutions ( Rescue, BoldChat, Join.me). 
> Participated in early stage discussions regarding optimal sales processes for Xively- LogMeIn's award winning solution for device connectivity for the Internet of Things (IoT). 

 LogMeIn users worldwide rely on the company's solutions for collaboration and connectivity whether machine to machine, machine to human, human to human or connectivity of "things".

Senior Director Field ( Enterprise ) Sales, NA

Transitioned within IBM after the successful acquisition of Cast Iron to take responsibility for sales in Eastern NA for this new category of technology solution from IBM.

PureApplication, Sales Executive, East N.A.

Cast Iron Systems, an IBM Company

> Responsible for sales of the leading integration solution to drive business value from data residing in SaaS and On Premise technologies.  
 > Drive sales strategy and process across a team of highly skilled inside and direct sellers across NA resulting in double digit growth in revenue and ASP.
> Communicate, lead and partner with ISV's and SI's including Salesforce.com, Oracle, Google, HP, Netsuite and more.  
> Lead sales team through the acquisition by IBM, doubling the team in size while overachieving quota objectives.

VP of Sales, NA

Responsible for sales management, partners and customer success for Eastern North America before taking responsibility for North America overall.  Worked with a team of Enterprise Account Executives and partners to secure 400 new customers in just 4 1/2 years.

Senior Director of Sales, Eastern NA

Pragmatech

Responsible for creating and managing optimal sales processes and structure to take advantage of hybrid sales model - inside and direct sellers- across North America. Member of the executive team and participated in strategic discussions and direction of the company as it evolved from an on premise proposal generation solution to a sales and content marketing platform running in a SaaS environment. 
Managed the team to produce the largest revenue quarter in the company's 12 year history.

VP, Sales Effectiveness

*"FULL STACK" Sales Leader
*"BEEN THERE, DONE THAT" sales leader who has sold and built end to end sales teams in good times and during difficult economic periods.
*SPECIALTIES: cloud computing; sales strategy and process;  building/rebuilding and re-engineering hybrid sales teams to take advantage of disruptive technologies and low friction sales models: Account Management; Compensation planning; Go To Market strategies
*RESULTS ORIENTED, data driven, professional sales leader with over 30 years of B2B selling and sales management experience across all verticals and company sizes. 
*HONEST AND TRANSPARENT in communications up, down and across organizations to best create an environment of trust and mutual respect. Categorized as an "authentic leader".  
*HIGHLY SKILLED in strategic selling, sales coaching, deal structure and negotiation. 
*EXPERIENCE  building and managing across multiple go to market channels and hybrid sales organizations.
*EXPERIENCE as a "change agent"​ in the M&A process.  Well versed across all critical business functions.
* SPECIFIC EXPERTISE in CRM systems and sales ( salesforce.com, Siebel, PeopleSoft, Oracle ), Integration, iPaaS, Middleware ( Jitterbit, Cast Iron, IBM ), collaboration ( LogMeIn join.me and BoldChat ), IoT / AI ( MapAnything, LogMeIn Xively )
* 10 time Presidents' Club Attainment
* 2 time Sales Eminence Attainment

Fractional VP of Sales / CRO for hire on an hourly, daily and monthly basis. I can help with go to market planning or be your VP of Sales on a limited, part-time basis. DM me for an appointment!
I am fortunate to work with these great clients-
Plastic Bank ( www.plasticbank.com)- Helping the planet to reverse poverty and remove plastic from the oceans.
Grax ( www.grax.com )- Take control of the chain of custody of your salesforce data and make it actionable at the same time.

I despise shopping. Truly. 

Today I went into a mall for the first time in years ( no exaggeration ). Why? I need a new suit for an upcoming milestone event. I am a very difficult "fit" for suits and back in the day when it was required for B2B sales, I had a closet full of custom suits. Today, I own one and it is black so I can wear it to almost anything ) except the upcoming event.

Over the course of the day, I went to 4 stores. 

The first one- a mall store- had a helpful salesperson who pretty much listened and then put me into a suit that almost fit. Except it didn't. I took her card and I left.

The next store- in more of a strip mall location- had no suits in my size that I could find and no one tried to help me. In and out in 8 minutes.

The next store- a MAJOR chain, also in a mall- had a similar result as the first except this time the salesperson said "we don't actually do alterations at this location, you will need a local tailor or visit the nearest one of our stores that does alterations which is about an hour away".

Store #4 was also a national chain, mall location, I reluctantly went in because I had a pre-conceived notion of their merchandise. Their salesperson heard my dilemma about fit. Measured me and brought me two suits to try on. Both fit, both could work. I had mentioned to him that I used to buy custom suits "back in the day" and he said, "we make custom suits and you have just enough time if you order it this week". Price point is about $100 more than off the rack once you factor in alterations.

Guess where I am buying my suit?

Revenue leaders- which sales team do you have? The one who tries to force a sale, the one that doesn't show up, the one who can't even compete, or the one who listens and sells the value?

Yeah, I know. You are thinking that this is a stupid example because it is a men's suit and not a $100K ARR deal.

Except it isn't. It's a great example...

The rules always matter.

Last Friday the Iowa Women's Basketball Team won their game vs UConn to go to the NCAA Finals vs South Carolina ( Congratulations to the Gamecocks on their win and spectacular season! )

In the final seconds of the game, down by 2 points and with the ball in possession under their basket, a UConn player committed a foul. This turned the ball over to Iowa and suddenly insured they would win the game.

People were outraged because in the instant it was a questionable call. Except that it wasn't. It was a foul. All the time. Whether in the first 3 seconds of a game or the last, regular season or championship, it was a foul and the rules say that the other team gets the ball.

Then the outrage moved to a sentiment that the Ref should not have called a foul in that situation. That the rules only apply in certain times and circumstances.

UConn's star player, with grace and wisdom said that the game was not lost on that one play or one call. She is correct and deserves praise for speaking the truth.

As I see it the reaction by fans and the media is a window into a fundamental flaw in society that we see across the spectrum from sports, to business, to politics, to personal relationships. The idea that rules are situational and that excuses are valid when rules are broken. 

We are not perfect ( I am far, far from it ) and we all at some point do break rules. Generally people will break rules by accident, like committing a foul at a crucial part of a game. Whether by accident or on purpose, large or small, when we break a rule and get caught, we have to accept the repercussions and do it without blaming others or making excuses.

Own it. Learn from it. Accept it. Point the finger back to yourself.

Finally, let's also remember that in the NCAA Tournament that most of the players are literally kids. Younger than virtually every person on this platform. Most professional athletes are younger than most of you who are reading this post ( and much younger than me ). Give them grace and cheer them on, especially when they make a mistake because they feel far worse about it than any fan.

Yeah. This seems pretty accurate for tech companies ( BTW- it has never made sense )

"Columbus took a chance"

Wise words last night from one of my closest friends. He is a retired teacher who knows little of what those of us on this platform do for a living. He told me that this was what his father used to say to him when he wasn't quite sure whether or not he should make a potentially life-changing decision.

After I laughed, I fell in love with these 4 simple words.

Yay Boston!!

Jelly beans, a favorite candy on Easter, were created in Boston!!

https://lnkd.in/eYVsp3-E via @BostonGlobe 

bostonglobe.com • 3 min read

This favorite Easter candy was born in Boston (but is delicious all year round) - The Boston Globe

"Use the difficulty" 

Absolutely brilliant

https://lnkd.in/eGY-WbS2

Spaghetti Plantations.

Brilliant.

Happy April 1st for all of my fellow fools out there who celebrate it!

Taplio

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