Optiv Canada.....Smoke and Mirrors - Named Account Manager Optiv Employee Review

2.0
Mar 29, 2016
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The Corporate Strategy is bang on in the USA....as is the execution in the USA...., the Canadian Country Manager knows what he is talking about and has a plan in place for success, but that is where it all ends. This company has zero chances of success in Canada until the ELT in the USA begin to understand that Canada is a net new market and not California. The Sales and Support Team are amazing....and the CEO is a brilliant guy....also very personable...

Cons

Unfortunately beyond the sales team and the Canadian Country Manager, no one in the company understand Canada. In 2015 the VP in the USA who Canada reported into was changed. From then on the downward spiral began. Having a VP who does not understand currency changes, or for that matter has not been to Canada for 46 years proved to be a challenge greater than anyone could have imagined. The company is rock solid in the USA. In Canada its a sales team, all of whom are in the process of leaving, and some amazing SA's. Pricing, costs etc are all done in USD and converted. Quotas in USD and converted. To say the least it was a great run, until changes were made that brought the Canadian Team to their knees.

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Optiv Response
10y
Thank you for sharing your feedback. You bring up a number of valid points, many of which are being addressed at this time. The integration of Accuvant and Fishnet in 2015 was a top and strategic corporate priority, and as with every major integration, there were bumps along the way, most of which have smoothed out. As we head into 2016, the Executive Leadership Team is very much aligned with your viewpoint that the leadership, support and enablement of international expansion, in particular in Canada, are all areas which warrant increased focus, priority and investment. To that end, we’ll be announcing a new Country General Manager, Canadian by heritage, collaborative by nature, and with significant general management experience in growing a US-based business in Canada, with deep understanding and sensitivity in that building and leading a Canadian market business is different than that of a US, despite a number of similarities between US and Canadian business practices and cultures. In concert with bringing in a new leader, Optiv is substantially increasing investment in Canada-based resources, including Client Managers, Solution Architects, and Consultants. With the Accuvant and Fishnet integration now complete, Optiv is highly focused on making our Canadian business as successful and robust as the market offers. There is much more we can share on the topic but perhaps this Glassdoor company review page is not the appropriate channel to have this discussion. We would like to extend the opportunity to discuss your concerns further. Please, feel free to reach out to Chris Stolley, VP of Sales, and continue this conversation. We would like to clear any frustration or mis-perceptions you may have. Thanks!

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