The demand for online security has never been greater. What was once a luxury item has now become a necessary component for your online presence. Whether you're a company conducting business online or a consumer who stores their personal info online, there is a potential risk. With an ever widening range of online attacks, you absolutely need to protect your property. =

Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) is a digital attack that attempts to disable any online service by sending an overwhelming amount of traffic from multiple sources, also known as 'Botnets". Though these attacks do harm, they are not targeting to expose or steal any personal information, but rather to overpower a service through the hosting server, making it unavailable to it's users. Over 2000 DDoS attacks are observed daily with one-third of all online downtime complications resulting from DDoS bombardment.

These attacks can be disguised in many shapes and sizes; however, each strike falls under one of the three core categories:

Volumetric

In a volume-based attack (ICMP), the bandwidth of a network/service is affected and flooded.

Protocol

Protocol attacks are aimed at saturating networks resources by sending open requests (Pings of Death).

Application

An application violation (Slowloris) targets the hypertext transfer protocol with the conclusional outcome of crashing the server.

The process of recovering from a DDoS attack can take hours to days to weeks; all depending on the time length of the strike. All businesses and consumers should take the precaution of purchasing an anti-DDoS service to insure your IT safety.

Here are our top 5 DDoS Protection Selections:

There is just too much on the line when it comes to protecting your online assets. Just remember that one of these attacks has the potential to destroy all the hard work you’ve put in to your online presence. Beat the botnets to the punch, and take immediate action by purchasing a protective service.

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Everyone wants to hire the perfect employee, but the question is, how is perfect defined? Is the ideal hire the person who has these 3 certifications, and 5 years of experience in one specific role only in a defined vertical? Chances are that’s how you’ve written your job description, but you are limiting your options by not casting a wider net and start looking at so-called “under-qualified” candidates.

Here are 6 key reasons you should be considering candidates who, on the surface, don’t meet all your specs.

1. Under-Qualified Doesn't Mean Unqualified

To clarify, ‘under-qualified’ doesn’t necessarily mean someone who can’t do the job, who doesn’t possess the skills you need. It can also mean someone with years in the workforce in a different vertical. There are incredibly qualified people who, on paper, may not match your job description, but who in practice are perfect for your company. You run the risk of missing out on valuable talent who have the potential to be amazing employees.

2. Different Experience

Just because someone doesn’t have the experience you want, doesn’t mean they don’t have experience. It may turn out that the experience’s they do have could be a boon to your organization, and help them excel in your open role.  

The experiences and skills of such a candidate could provide a new perspective for your organization. Fresh eyes, and new ways of doing things that no one else has could provide varied and more productive activities for your company.

3. Building from the Ground Up

Hiring someone who doesn’t have the skills you are looking for actually provides you with an opportunity. They won’t come into your organization with habits or expectations that things be done a certain way. They’re eager to learn how you do things, and how your industry works. They’ll learn company specific systems and skills, which when combined with the skills that they are bringing, can make for an invaluable addition to your organization.

4. Cost

A component of salary tends to be how much pertinent Less experience means less market value or proven track record, which means a lower starting salary. Of course, they should expect, and you should provide, a higher salary if and when they start to perform at the level. This should hopefully have the added benefit of driving them even harder to prove themselves.

5. More Drive

We know that the most productive employees are those who feel challenged and supported. Chances are that someone who is moving into a new space, who is being trained up and given all the necessary supports to succeed will be a long lasting employee. Remember, you are hiring not only for their qualifications, but also for cultural fit.

6. How to find the good ones

If you are working with an outside recruiter, trust them to know what constitutes a good fit for your company. They have the breadth of experience and contacts to know who has the qualifications you need, even if they don’t have the direct experience you were requiring.

Look for candidates who are excited to get into your field, and understand that they need to prove themselves.

Look to parallel fields, and consider what positions might prepare someone for the transition into your space. A good example of this this is how the music industry acts as a feeder for AV/IT companies.

Looking past the job description can open up many exciting possibilities, and serve to enrich your company with a good deal of dedicated and resourceful talent.

No hiring choice is black and white, there are always options to be weighed. But making the decision to promote from within or recruit externally can feel like a particularly knotty choice. Both options have their merits. But does one make for sounder hiring practices than the other?

Let’s weigh the pros and cons to figure it out

PROMOTING INTERNALLY: The Pros

A Powerful Promise

The promise that your company offers the possibility of internal mobility can be a powerful recruiting tool. It signals to candidates that you are invested in your team and that you have thought about their futures. Employees feel that they have a possible roadmap for growth, which in turn encourages greater loyalty. Ultimately it can enhance your retention rate quite a bit.

Ease the Transition.

Current employees already are familiar with your company culture. They know the rules, the policies and the inner workings of the business. Induction time is erased or greatly reduced, and the hire can get right down to work. Your business saves time, energy and money that would otherwise be expended on onboarding. Those valuable resources can be redirected toward the creation of new positions or saved for another time.

Moral Booster

The promise of promotion boots moral and keeps energy up in the office. When employees know there is an opening, they’ll hone their production and work hard to earn a spot on the next level.

The Bottom Line.

Finally, promoting from within your business is far less costly. You’ll save on recruiter fees, background checks, and advertising. Money in your pocket.

Sounds like a no brainer, right? Well, hold on, here comes the other side of the coin.

PROMOTING INTERNALLY: The Cons

Conflicts Abound

Opening up an internal search might energize your employees, but what happens to the candidates who don’t get the new job? Any responsible and well-executed internal search is going to include complete vetting of the candidates. The process can easily lead to increased dissatisfaction and eventual resignations. It’s one thing to interview for a position at a new firm and not get it, but it’s quite another thing to be turned down by your current employer for a promotion. These are employees who have already gotten a taste of the possibility, if you can’t fulfill it, they’ll look elsewhere.

Skeletons Have Legs

Everyone makes mistakes -- it’s what helps us grow. But some mistakes are hard to live down or move past within the company. The story of how Tim tripped at a luncheon and spilled a cup of coffee in the CFO’s lap, the time Phil blew the sales luncheon because he was fighting a stomach bug. These stories have legs, and like other skeletons in our closets, that have a habit of following us around.  Stories linger, and so do reputations -- it may be hard for your other employees to see their peer in a new light.

Stagnation

There’s something to be said for being too familiar with company culture, being too close to what goes on. When you move someone new into a management position you’re putting them there because of the ideas and the energy they bring. It’s hard to push innovation when someone is too familiar, or too comfortable with how things have always been.

Bad Habits Can’t Be Promoted Away

Just as it would be incredibly unwise to marry someone in the hopes that their bad habits will magically change after the wedding, so too you can’t promote bad habits away. More responsibility will only enhance weaknesses and shine a spotlight on difficulties.

EXTERNAL HIRE: The Pros

Fresh Perspective

Businesses grow and prosper when the spirit of innovation is encouraged and the limits of imagination are pushed. Getting a fresh pair of eyes on your business is one of the best ways to get ideas flowing and energy moving. Bringing in an outside hire is one of the best ways to infuse your department or company as a whole with new ideas.

Pick From the Best In The Business

When you contract with an outside recruiter, they are looking not only at people who are already in the job market, but also talent who haven’t thought about making a move yet. Through their connections and networks, recruiters pre-screen for the best and most qualified talent, bringing you a wealth of talented people who might not otherwise have been attracted to your job opening.

Create Diversity

Recruiting outside talent enables you to think outside the box. You will be pulling from a worldwide talent pool, a vast pool of talent, ability, and connections.

Beat the Competition

Non-compete clauses aside, external recruiting allows you to pick from the best talent in the industry.

EXTERNAL HIRE: The Cons

Higher Costs.

An external higher will cost you not only in recruiting fees, but, according to a 2012 study by Wharton management professor, Matthew Bidwell, salary will be on average 18-20% higher than an internal promotion. They are also at a higher risk of being let go in the first 18 months. However, when an external hire makes it past the 2-year mark, they are more likely to remain in your employ for the long term.

Slower Onboarding

Any new hire is going to require training, but someone new to the company or even the sector is going to require an investment of time and money to train them up on systems, processes, and protocol. In the first year and external hire will be bound to have lower productivity than an internal promotion -- about 20% lower.

HOW TO DECIDE

Ultimately you have to look at your business and the position in order to determine which hiring model is going to work best for you. If you are not in the position to spend the resources on training, and if your company culture cannot support or does not demand much innovation, then you are better off developing talent within the company. However, if you have a stable base, and have systems in place that support training and development, then look outside -- you’ll have a much wider pool of talent to pull from.

“Hard skills will get you an interview but soft skills will get- and keep- the job.”

SaaS is a technologically driven field where success is driven by your hard skill sets, however, you also need to develop some very important soft skills if you want to enjoy long term success in this space.

Here are some common soft skills to help build your success in the SaaS industry:

Adaptability

Software as a Service continues to be a model for technology to drive and deliver innovation to businesses worldwide. If you plan on working in this industry, you’ll need to be able to adjust to your surroundings and make use of the resources at hand. It's important to be familiar with multiple web frames (Python. Ruby on Rails), or have experience with different user interfaces (JQuery or YUI). The ability to learn a new system, adjust to new features and controls, and utilize it to its fullest capabilities is an invaluable skill that has endless applications. In an ever-changing market, having knowledge of numerous server and client-side technologies positions you to be better prepared for whatever new systems come down the pike in the future.  

Organization

Nothing feels better than going through your files and grabbing a document in the exact folder where you left it. Computer files are similar to a teenagers bedroom, in the sense that things can get out of hand and quickly disorganized; it just happens and we don't realize until the damage is already done. Being able to track and locate all files and documents is vital within the SaaS space. To stay organized, try to limit the number of folders by consolidating documents and deleting unnecessary files. Though it's elementary, proper labeling and archiving goes a long way and will make you more efficient.

Situational Awareness

Constantly working around different computer systems requires you to be aware of your surroundings and all elements (hardware, software) contributing to the work process. In SaaS, you'll need to be able to break down a situation, understand the who’s, what’s, and why’s. Don't be afraid to get a little paranoid or OCD here. Checking, rechecking and checking again keeps the process running smoothly.

By analyzing an environment, you'll be able to point out weak areas that are in need of security or surveillance. By being attentive and focused, you can analyze your customer's needs and discover where they are in the buyer's journey and how to help move them along the process. Overall, being mindful towards your work or environment will lead to positive decision making.

Communication

As we continue to make the necessary adjustments to new systems and software, we need to remember to communicate with associates and customers on the recent changes. Instruct how to make the proper alterations in a clear and professional manner. Restate key statements while pausing to ask for any clarification. When you communicate via email, use clear and concise subject lines while being informative and straightforward.

Through communication, present and future complications may be resolved while new skills can be learned. Just keep in mind that everybody perceives information at a different rate. Be prepared to cater to your audience.

Relationship Building

Collaboration is key in SaaS. Growing and building your network enables you to learn new tricks and solutions around what can often be problematic tech. If you need feedback on a new system or want an experienced opinion in a program you created; your opportunities are endless with a large network pooled around the same sector. Also if you're working in sales, building relationships with customers are crucial; it helps grow trust for the product and company, while also increasing the potential for referral traffic. 

Though hard and technical skills are crucial for your career success, your soft skills will make you shine above your competition.

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J. Patrick and Associates serves Information Technology firms that are looking to improve or expand their teams in mission-critical functions, where the success of the firm is highly dependent on the quality of certain hires. Whether you’re a candidate looking to move to one of our top-end customers, or a vendor looking to build your sales team, contact us today. 

The Internet of Things, or IoT, is the network of devices (cars/buildings/refrigerators) embedded with software, sensors, electronics, etc that allow them to network and communicate and exchange data. It’s an exciting development impacting many sectors- prime among them, the AV industry.   

Cutting Costs.

Less Hardware = Less Money. With the  IoT, audio and visual information are transmitted wirelessly. It can be run on the same cable as the internet, phones, power and other devices, all which contributed to cutting down on the costs of wiring.  The number of necessary control devices also drops as one display can be used to run all of the operations. Technology such as Power over Ethernet (PoE) is just one example of this consolidation of wiring.

Easing Integration.

IoT allows for multiple devices to communicate with one another remotely. This opens a number of possibilities in AV. A conference room could have a screen that is connected to multiple devices, allowing for multiple attendees to display information with no wires. Microphones can be switched on and off from one central device, say a desktop or a smartphone. Sensors on the windows read the amount of sunlight coming in, and communicate with the lighting to adjust the overhead lights as needed. The possibilities are quite endless.

Smart Signage.

With IoT, digital signs are becoming more reactive, and therefore more effective. If, for example, a customer walks into a store they’ve shopped in previously (or have a membership to), digital signage can now offer/advertise specific items to that customer. All the sign needs is a Bluetooth connection to a customer’s phone and it can tailor offers similar to previous purchases from the customer.

Or, signage can be informative. EZ Pass gateways can time how long it takes vehicles to move between tolls, and let drivers know the estimated time with current traffic conditions. Airports can read how many Bluetooth devices are in a security line, and how long it takes each one to get through. Then, they can automatically message flyers with an alert if they should arrive early due to unusually long security lines. Parking garages can sense which spaces are open, and connect to a car's satnav to direct them to the most convenient spot.

Homes with an IQ.

When it’s said that IoT can connect anything, it isn’t an exaggeration. Samsung is working to create a full line of home appliances monitored and controlled with a mobile device. Lights, the radio, even a fridge can be monitored and controlled with your phone from anywhere.  

Eye in the Sky.

Do you know what’s really cool? Taking birds-eye-view pictures. Or Videos. And with IoT, this has become a lot easier, using drones. With the ability to take shots that would normally require much more money or setup time, drones allow companies big and small to get footage beyond comprehension. The applications of drones in AV range from landscaping advertising to sports events and so on.

A Bright Future

All of these changes and advancements mean that the role and expectations of AV companies are changing with them. When looking for talent, a few specific skills need to be kept in mind.

1) Knowledge of IT is no longer a perk, it’s a requirement. Being able to set up a network, or test the connections between devices is important. Integration doesn’t mean just physically setting up a system, it’s making sure all of the devices are talking to each other digitally.

2) AV companies need to be looking for Information Security Analysts (read more on how to hire the best infosec analysts). With all the new forms of connectivity available, comes a host of new ways for information to be stolen or compromised. Security has to be a prime concern when we have multiple devices talking to each other and accessing data and personal information.

Staying ahead in the AV space doesn’t only mean having the newest equipment, it also means keeping an eye on all the other info-sec technologies. Integration is the name of the game if you want to stay ahead of the competition.

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Congratulations! You’ve gotten yourself a new job; taken another step up the ladder. Time to celebrate and daydream about all the future holds for you. But before you pop that champagne, you have to resign from your present job first. Handling a resignation well requires forethought, planning, and professionalism. 

What to Consider when Resigning from your Job

First Things First

As tempting as it may be to rush to resign as soon as you get an offer, don’t. Offers fall through, negotiations break down, budgeting gets pulled. Wait until you’ve got a signed offer letter in hand, start date and your benefits package all figured out before letting your manager know you’re leaving. There’s nothing worse than jumping the gun then finding yourself empty-handed.

Make A Plan

Before you schedule a meeting with your manager make a plan of how you intend to ease out of your position. Offer a schedule to transfer accounts, information etc… to co-workers or your replacement, and make recommendations of how best work can be reassigned or shifted. Make certain to include a road map for any unfinished projects and clean up any files that are in less than pristine shape.

Write TWO Resignation Letters

The first letter you’re going to write is solely for your own use. This is the letter where you air all of your grievances -- you say everything you’ve ever wanted to say. Think your present boss is a moron? Say it. Hate the way your co-worker laughs? Say it and tell them if you never see them again it would be too soon. Still angry that you were passed over for an important project? Let it all out.

Doesn’t that feel good?

Yes, it does.

Good. Now delete the file, burn the paper, empty the trash. No one else on the entire planet needs ever see it, and in fact, it’s probably wise to destroy it as soon as you type the last period

Now sit down and write the second letter -- the real one. Keep it short, clear and always professional. State what you are grateful for, what worked for you and what you will carry with you through the rest of your career. Be certain to say thank you, and of course include the date for your last day.

And unless you’re as clever as the guy who sent a condolence card, keep it simple, straight forward and professional.

Schedule An Appointment

Unless you work on one continent and your supervisor is on another, always offer your resignation in person. And always schedule a meeting -- a drop-in is not the way to handle this kind of information.

Make sure you let your direct supervisor know first-- you don’t want word leaking out before you’ve had a chance to handle it yourself. Once they’ve been informed, ask your boss how they’d like you to manage letting other people in the office know. They may want to get out in front of the information first -- if so, respect their choice.

Be Prepared For the Counter Offer

There’s every chance that your well-planned resignation will be met with a counter-offer. And it may be sweet -- more money, added benefits, extra time off. Your boss may be very motivated to keep you around. But be wary.

No matter how valued you are, you’ve already identified yourself as a flight risk, so even though the company is fighting to keep you around, they also know you’ve got one foot out the door. When the time comes for cut backs or reorganization, your name very likely will be at the top of the list.

You went looking for a new job for a reason, is more money really enough to make you want to stay? Not likely. Stick to your plan to move on and up.

The Best Laid Plans

Your perfect resignation scenario probably looks something like this: You book a meeting with your manager, hand them your letter, offer two weeks and share a hearty handshake. You then spend the next two weeks easing the transition, saying goodbye, having your exit interview and preparing to move on.

But there’s every chance that the company wants you gone that day. So be prepared, have boxes at the ready, make sure you’ve cleaned up your company computer and be prepared to be walked out by security with little time to wrap anything up.

Finish Strong

Resigning a job isn’t only about what happens next. It’s about what happens three, five, ten years down the road. You want to exit the company on a positive note. Be helpful and constructive in your exit interview, consider what you say carefully and aim to be an asset up until the end. Then say thank you and wish everyone well. If you exit on a high note, then you’ll have even more to go out and celebrate.

6 Skills You Need To Develop To Be A Leader At Work 

“Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.” - Jack Welch

Let’s get this straight from the get-go; there is no such thing as a natural-born leader. Regardless of how much power and influence one may have been born into, leadership is a learned skill. Sure, it comes easier to some and we can’t ignore that there are those who enjoy a quicker route to the top, but in order to stay there, to keep growing their influence, they had to cultivate some key qualities.

Leadership is not a title, it’s a mindset, a way of being. Whether you have your sights on management, the C-level suite, or run your own business, you’d do well to begin integrating these qualities into your everyday life now, for habits only become habits with practice.

Here are 6 things Great Leaders know:

1. Leaders Speak Less, Listen More

The only way to get a broad understanding of any situation is to first listen to what others have to say. Take everything in, consider all sides of the story before formulating your response. Then, once you’ve considered what it is you want to contribute, concision is the key to effective communication.

When you are willing to listen more and speak less, others will feel more valued if you are willing to hear them out. When you do speak, people will be far more apt to listen.

2. Leaders Value Integrity 

Someone who motivates and drives a successful team is, first and foremost, a model of reliability and accountability. Reliability is won by doing what you say you’re going to do when you said you’re going to do it. And then going one step further to take responsibility should things go sideways.

3. Leaders Are Always Adapting

There has to be more than one solution to any given problem, and a good motivator knows this to be true. Rigidity kills innovation, leaving no room for new ideas to bloom. Certainly there may be standards and procedures that must be adhered to, but a good leader leaves room for creativity to bloom.

4. Leaders Communicate 

While this may sound at first like a contradiction of Speak less, listen more, it’s in fact an important leadership skill. Assumptions not only cause conflict and wasted time and resources, but they also diminish trust. Once again concision is the key - it takes less time to communicate clearly with your boss, your team, your customers than it does to clean up the mess left behind by confusion and miscommunication.

5. Leaders Know It’s All In The Timing

Patience is a virtue, so we are told, and it’s also a key to understanding what true leadership means. Now is not always the best time to hold that meeting, to send that email, to ask your boss to assign you to that project. Just as entrepreneurs know that there must be a period of sacrifice before success, planning ahead and being willing to be patient often means the rewards will be all the sweeter.

6. Leaders Know the Goal. 

The point of being a leader is not glory or accolades, or even the biggest office. In business, the goal it to build a strong company and ensure that everyone succeeds. Ego, selfishness, competition and other cut-throat tactics might get you ahead in the short term, but a career to be proud of is built of stronger, more generous material.

Successful leaders are not born, they are made from integrity, respect and hard work.

Are you looking for a new position to help you meet your career goals? If so, let J.Patrick & Associates hunt for you!

Looking to fill an open position is so much more than closing a vacant role. Vacant positions open the window of opportunity for the role and company alike. The main factor to keep in mind when searching through candidates is how the new hire will benefit or improve the current business. Here are a few suggestions to consider when deciding to outsource for your emloyment needs.

Different Skill-sets

• A great way to change the flow of operations around the department is hiring an individual with a new set of skills. The job market is like the ocean; in the sense that it’s filled with tons of fish, each containing their own unique features, and you don’t really know what's out there till you lower your fishing rod and wait for the pull. Every person in the workforce is fully equipped with their own distinct set of skills that pertain to a certain niche. It’s simple, discover areas for improvement throughout the company and recruit professionals that specialize in those particular fields. By bringing in a new set of tools, you will be able to integrate them throughout the entire office. Current employees will have the opportunity to learn new things and collaborate on unfamiliar topics that wouldn't have been possible without the new acquisition.

Competition on the Rise

• As we all know, in this competitive market, the only way to survive in the industry is to adapt and evolve. If your business is falling behind the competition, there's two things to consider: Why your competition is getting ahead and What you can add or improve to get the lead. Hiring some fresh blood that has experience in particular fields, providing insight learned from previous jobs or education may be the right amount of spice to increase productivity over competitors and get ahead in the market.

Expansion

• There’s no better time to look for outside candidates then when you’re looking to expand the company. Expanding an organization will mostly require outside sourcing, especially recruiting new staff to run day-to-day operations. If you’re expanding internationally, then it is highly recommended to hire applicants that live locally. Having a local employee can become one of your greatest assets, simply due to the fact that they have a greater awareness of what and what not to do. When you’re expanding your business, don’t forget to also expand your resources.

New Perspectives

• As stated above, when your company needs to brush things up or possibly take a new direction, hiring externally could be a major key. A person’s perspective is what shapes and creates their ideas with the potential to evolve into something greater. All of our surroundings (Race, Income, Education, Etc.) frame our perspectives, creating a wide-range of unique angles. A business can utilize these different perspective for identifying unforeseen problems and creating efficient solutions. A competing company can never have enough perspectives.

Corporate Turnarounds

• In the case of an acquirement or change in management, it’s not uncommon for a business to change their strategies or practices. However, hiring externally can help smooth over this process. Implementing new practices isn't the easiest shift in the workforce, especially for long-time employees. By creating a team through outsourcing, the new employees will be only accustomed to new business practices further helping implement them into the culture. The external hires will also be able to help ease current employees into the transition.

Investment

• As we’ve all heard, the greatest investment is to invest in yourself. It goes the same for businesses and consumers. By going to college and earning a degree, you are choosing to invest in yourself and your future. A business may also choose to invest in themselves by purchasing new equipment, or recruiting new team members. If you're company has the appropriate training and financial resources, then it is highly recommended that you outsource and hire externally. You'll be able to build your star employee from the ground up.   

Positives and negatives surround the hiring process. If you're looking to fill an open position, consider all options before deciding to outsource or hire internally. Just remember, the most important variable to keep in mind when filling a vacant position: How will this person benefit the company.

J. Patrick & Associates is an Executive Recruiting firm that focuses on Executive Management, Sales, Marketing and Technical roles within Information Technology markets. We have over 20 years of experience recruiting in every aspect of AV/VTC/UC, Application, Storage, Information/Network Security, Mobile Technologies and Telecommunications.

If you've already read How to Start Off Right as an AV Technician, now is a good time to investigate taking the next step in your career. For an audio visual technician (AV tech), moving up the professional hierarchy often means pursuing a position as a lead technician. If this is a career path that you are considering, you should prepare yourself by building upon some of the basic competencies you have already developed as a tech.

Know Customers

As an AV tech, there is an extent to which--even though you are primarily working with inanimate objects--you still have to be mindful of the customer-facing aspects of your role. You conduct yourself with an appropriate level of professionalism, courtesy, respect, and etc. The same holds for lead tech positions, albeit to a much greater extent. You should anticipate having to develop an approach that is much more sensitive to the finer points of customer service.

In your new position, you will be the proverbial face of the company, the first point of contact. Crucially, this means that you will want to develop a manner that makes customers both feel heard and confident in your ability to see that their needs are met. This is a core leadership ability that is difficult to fake, so the best approach is to work on active listening--make a conscious effort to hear, understand, and remember specific customer concerns as they are expressed to you. This will increase the customer's faith in your capability and ensure that their first impression of your employer is a positive one.

Specialize. Hard.

A lead tech needs to be the most generally competent member of their team. That doesn't mean that you shouldn't delegate responsibility according to ability; as this is part and parcel of effective leadership, you absolutely should. But you will find that things run much more smoothly when all relevant parties see you as an expert.

If you don't know where to begin brushing up your skills, start with something you enjoy. Once you feel thoroughly grounded in one area, move into territory with which you are less familiar. Here, you shouldn't feel ashamed to reach out to people whose reputation precedes them. It seems to be a universal law of human nature that we enjoy demonstrating mastery when given the opportunity to do so.

Speak to your manager about acquiring more certifications. Even if they won’t pay for it, certifications are always a worthwhile investment. CTS, CTS-D, CTS-I, and other certifications are irrefutable evidence of both the richness of your skillset and your willingness to push yourself to acquire new knowledge. Become intimately familiar with InfoComm for certification details and dates for upcoming training sessions.

Experience, Experience, Experience

If an attribute is common to all lead techs, it’s a comparative wealth of that vaunted quality for which no known substitute exists--experience.

With experience, you find your own way of doing things. You develop both a technical and an interpersonal style that sets you apart from your peers. So take the overtime when it's available. Be quick to consider new approaches and listen with discernment to ideas that challenge your habits.

Learn Leadership Skills

I'll risk redundancy to state frankly that the biggest difference between an AV technician and a lead is the ability to do just that: lead. How does one learn to lead? The same way we learn everything else: mimicry. Find someone you respect and hold them up as a model and unofficial mentor. Imitate their leadership style until you are comfortable enough to experiment and make it your own.

You can take leadership courses and consume content about what it takes to be an effective manager. YouTube is brimming with content from thought leaders in every conceivable field, so find a credible manager whose content you're capable of enjoying and soak it up. Here, you need not limit yourself to the AV field because the skills you are trying to acquire are interpersonal in nature. Effective leaders are often charismatic, so it shouldn't be too difficult to discover a palatable guru.

Be All Business

Come in early and leave late. Demonstrate your commitment to professionalism. Even though your job requires casual clothing, you should still look your best. Stains, rips, and logos (other than your employers) might not seem like that big of a deal, but personal appearance is--everywhere and always--the basis of first impressions. Plus, it's an easy variable to account for, so make sure to hit the layup.

Get Going

The initiative speaks volumes. Pushing yourself to become a technically skilled leader is a surefire way to demonstrate that you are the best choice for their next lead tech position.

With all the world's knowledge at your fingertips, a strong sense of professionalism, and the basic humility that allows you to learn from others, you are well prepared to take the first steps toward becoming an effective lead. So get out there and do it. You have everything you need.

A winning Olympic team is not so different from a winning sales team -- well, aside from the whole medal and international fame angle. What it takes to build a team of dedicated, talented and motivated individuals is the same whether we’re talking sports, IT or AV solutions. While your team’s top-grossing salesperson is never going to wind up on a box of Wheaties, they are going to rise to fame within your company. And just like the coach training star athletes, a great sales manager also has to build and train their team.

Here’s how a great sales manager is like an Olympic coach.

They Build a Diverse Team

Just as a good swim coach understands that a team made up entirely of freestyle swimmers will not win the most medals in the games, so too, the smart sales manager knows that a diverse talent pool makes for the most wins. 

While top salespeople may share some fundamental skills or abilities, a team made of salespeople with the same strengths and weaknesses does not make for the highest sales numbers. Different clients may require different sales styles, just as different products may too. You need the closer who can work with your larger, more corporate clients, and the “finesser” who knows how to nudge a new customer toward a close.

Just as athletes need to stretch and grow, so too do salespeople -- make sure you’re making room for your team to get new training, face new challenges and keep pushing the limits of their reach and ability.

They Know It’s A Mental Game

An Olympic level coach knows how to read their athletes, and understands what it takes to make each individual perform at their best. Some members of the team may need loud music to pump themselves up before the game begins, while others need a quiet place to find their focus. The smart coach makes room for both team members to get what they need. And they also make room for failure; there is no such thing as success without trial, error, and mistakes.

This couldn’t be more true for salespeople. Not every call is going to result in a win, not every deal is going to close. There will be winning streaks, and there will be times when it’s hard to get a spark lit. Winning sales managers understand they have to create an environment that fosters resilience, where each salesperson gets the supports, training, and kind of incentive that keeps them pushing through the tough times.

They Know that Teamwork is Important Even in an Individual Sport

Just as the 200-yard dash might be an individual event, even Usain Bolt’s chances of reigning dominant diminish without a strong team to support him. Sales may be an individual sport, but even a top-grossing sales star cannot reach those heights without the support and dedication of the entire team.

They Understand the Transformative Power of Failure

The best sales managers are the best because they know that failure isn’t measured by deals not closed, but opportunities for growth not taken. And in fact, I’d argue that the very best managers of any stripe are the ones who are willing to share the stories of their loses, who don’t pretend they’ve always been exactly where they are in their careers. There are studies, after studies, after studies on the power of failure -- you need not look further than silicon valley to know how so-called failures or losses can lead to transformative innovations.

Practice, Practice, Practice

Even the kid born with innate ability or talent needs coaching and an incredibly high number of repetitions to hone their abilities. Michael Phelps might have been born with the wingspan of a champion, he might even have the focus and passion to win buried deep in his DNA, but he would never have made his first Olympic team if he didn’t have the drive to keep practicing and honing his skills.

None of this is to suggest that you going to be hiring salespeople who solely are athletes, already experienced in sales or have proven track records, but you are looking to hire people who are driven and are committed to honing their skills.

Providing your team with ongoing training, holding sales competitions, and constantly raising the bar on performance and outreach all help to build a better, stronger team.

They Know A Win Isn’t the End Of The Game

Just as the US Women’s Soccer Team knows that past glory in the World Cup doesn’t insure how they’ll perform in the future, a sales team is always building on success. It might be tempting to rest on the laurels of a hot quarter, but taking those wins and pushing for a banner year is what makes a sales team truly successful. The constant drive to improve is a mindset that needs to be encouraged, fostered and rewarded.

J. Patrick & Associates is an Executive Recruiting firm that focuses on Executive Management, Sales, Marketing and Technical roles within Information Technology markets. We have over 20 years of experience recruiting in every aspect of AV/VTC/UC, Application, Storage, Information/Network Security, Mobile Technologies and Telecommunications.