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  • ALKU

Chris Drake Promoted to Senior Manager, Talent Development

February 09, 2023

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Chris has been an essential piece of the success of Talent Development. He is described as being driven, smart, methodical, and collaborative. From the start, he has set the benchmark for success as a Sales Trainer and developed countless Account Managers. 

Chris has been instrumental in developing ALKU’s new hire trainings and driving home the full sales cycle, which has led to faster contributions by our newest employees. With Chris as ALKU’s Training department lead, we will continue to improve and expect lasting results.   

Chris is always willing to assist and go the extra mile. He is no stranger to volunteering and has participated in countless initiatives. For example, he led initiatives with Lazarus House, participated in food and clothing drives, and raised money for when he participated in the Rodman Ride.   

Chris will be responsible for all training and mentoring operations within Talent Development in his new role. He will have oversight of both Account Management and Recruiting on the full-time side and will be in charge of our Intern Training program as well. As a Senior Manager, Chris will provide support and strategy across all groups he oversees. In addition, Chris will work closely with Revenue and Talent leaders to ensure seamless communication and process improvements.  

Congratulations Chris! We can’t wait to see all you accomplish in this new role! 

“Drake has been one of the most important pieces to the success of Talent Development. As ALKU’s first Sales Trainer, he completely revamped our sales training. He has set the standard for success as a Trainer at ALKU. As a Sales Trainer, he helped countless Account Managers see great success. He built a Sales Training team that is sought after and is a partner to our Sales Leadership team. Drake has played a large part in our internship training and bettering our Recruiting Training. It’s wild to think we have come that far as a group, but it is largely due to Drake and the teams he has helped create. He is driven, smart, methodical, and collaborative. With Chris at the lead for our training department, we will continue to improve and expect lasting results. Congratulations, Drake, you deserve this!” -Dennis Kapsimalis  

“Chris Drake will go down as ALKU’s training trailblazer. Since Chris transitioned to Talent Development, he has managed to bridge the gaps between new hire training, continued development, and future success in sales at ALKU. Chris has worked diligently on our training materials, revenue tools, and sales enablement and created one of the best training programs in the staffing world. During his time in Talent Development, Chris has built a team that the company now utilizes daily to get our sales talent up to speed. He has gone out of his way to seek feedback on the training program to ensure that his team is aligned with sales and recruiting management. Chris’ dedication to making the new hire training program as best as possible has led to improvements in both the sales and recruiting experience at ALKU. We have seen the contributions from new hires to revenue sooner than we ever have because of his efforts. Chris Drake has become one of the company’s biggest problem solvers, and there is no one who has not enjoyed working with him or his team. His contagious energy and passion for process and providing a learning experience will take our company to the next level. We are in even greater hands with Chris’s promotion to Senior Manager. This is one of the most deserved promotions I can think of. Congratulations, Chris.” -James Cassin-Reed  

“I think the promotion of Chris Drake to Senior Manager is a uniquely special move for the company. Chris was a super-talented salesperson, and the “traditional” path (as some might call it) of becoming a Sales Manager for a specific division wasn’t necessarily what he wanted. I credit ALKU for evolving to allow people like Chris to trailblaze a new path into Leadership. Look at the team of trainers he has behind him now that followed his leap of faith. It can’t be undervalued that he was the first one because now there is evidence of people successfully navigating the change from revenue to training, but there wasn’t when Chris bet on himself and made that move. So to see him getting rewarded with this promotion is extremely well deserved. You were a great salesperson, Chris, but the team you are building is even more impressive. The ability to effect positive change at this company by enhancing the skills of Account Managers and Recruiters (now) is way more valuable than whatever heights you carried as an individual contributor. Thanks for blazing the trail, man, and congratulations. This is very well deserved.” -Dan Lyons