Introducing Senior Sales Manager, Pharmaceutical, Hanzla Sheikh! Find out about Hanzla’s internship experience with ALKU, what a day in his role looks like, and more by reading his responses below!
What was your internship experience like?
My internship experience was amazing! I loved the fast-paced environment where we were doing the same job as full-time people, but the atmosphere was incredibly fun. It was so energizing, and everyone was working very hard to get commission. I had a very strong relationship with my TC Manager, Craig, as he was my first boss at ALKU and to this day is a close friend and mentor. One thing I will always remember from my internship is being surprised by how much ALKU invested in their Internship Program and how even as an Intern, my growth and development were prioritized. My internship at ALKU was one of my favorite parts of college.
What’s one piece of advice from your internship that’s stuck with you throughout your career?
The best piece of advice I still carry from the internship is an ALKU classic which is “you create your own luck in business.” I think that is incredibly true and there are hundreds of examples of ALKU employees who create their own luck every day by trusting the process and working hard to hit their goals. We are lucky to be at a company that enables us to be able to do this.
How did you capitalize on your success as an Intern when you started full-time?
The Internship Program was a huge launchpad for me when starting full-time. I was already comfortable with doing the job, using the tools, working with my team, and fitting in with the company culture. I feel like I had gotten a lot of the early pitfalls and roadblocks out of the way while I was an Intern, so the road ahead was a lot smoother come fulltime. Also, it was awesome to have had the opportunity to network internally as an Intern because when I started, I had plenty of people to ask for advice and help from.
What does a day in your role look like?
A day in my role starts off with overseeing the morning meetings for both my teams, followed by checking in with everyone individually on how they are doing and what activity and client meetings they have coming up for the day. Then, we make a game plan for each meeting. After that, there are usually a couple of one-on-one meetings and some management meetings to go to. Between working with my people and meetings I am on the floor dealing with situations of all kinds in real time, and if I am not doing all the above then I am usually prospecting to try to find new business for our teams.
What is your favorite part of your role?
One of my favorite parts of my role is working with and developing Salespeople and Sales Leadership. I love teaching the job and watching some individuals develop from newbies to experts. My next favorite part of the job is working with our clients. There are countless different situations across every client we work with, and I feel like I am always learning something new.
How do you keep yourself and your team motivated to improve?
Our company culture makes it really easy to stay motivated; there is always something to improve and work on. I think for both me and my team, setting massive goals with plenty of smaller milestones along the way is the key to staying motivated. I also think that the easiest way to motivate a team to improve is to show them that you yourself are working to improve. As a leader, your people will mimic your behaviors, so I try to make sure that I set the example I want them to follow.