Elevating Client Success: The Power of Collaboration

Jane: Thank you, Dave, for joining us for our IPI Converse.

Dave: Thanks for the invite.

Jane: You're very welcome. So let's talk about IPI’s approach with clients. How would you describe our current approach when working with clients, and how do you feel it’s evolved over time?

Dave: It’s always evolving, because everything’s constantly changing. Our approach is very much people-first. We aim to build long-term partnerships with our customers, and to do that, we need the right people with the right skills to offer support. It’s not just about sales. My role covers sales, but it’s about everyone in the business aligning with the customer’s needs, demands, and wants. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach; it’s about putting as much support around our customers as possible to build those long-term relationships.

Jane: Absolutely. I guess we become part of their team too, which is really important.

Dave: Yes. I was with a customer yesterday who was going through some issues, and I told them it felt personal to me. We’re in it together, IPI and the customer, working to overcome challenges. We have lots of examples like that and plenty of long-term customers.

Jane: Yes, and as you build those relationships, they help during the rough patches, don’t they?

Dave: Exactly. It helps smooth things over when challenges arise on both sides. It’s a core part of what we do.

Jane: That’s really nice. So, what qualities or skills do you think define a great salesperson?

Dave: In my career, I’m currently working with one of the best sales teams I’ve ever had the pleasure of leading, but that’s been hard to achieve. Our approach is slightly different, especially in how we nurture early careers. We’ve got a strong development programme for bringing in young people and graduates, guiding them to become either account managers or new business salespeople—two very distinct roles. Our teams are structured clearly.

As for what makes a great salesperson, it’s a combination of many skills. It’s about listening, having empathy, building relationships, and most importantly, understanding the customer’s business. A salesperson needs to grasp how a business operates to connect the right people within IPI to help. They’re like conductors of an orchestra, coordinating the various resources and disciplines within the company to support the customer.

Great salespeople are hard to find. There’s a quote from Mark Webber, the former Formula 1 driver, who said, “Average is easy, that’s why there’s a lot of it.” We don’t settle for average here. We’ve worked hard to find the right people who fit both our business and our customers’ needs.

Jane: Absolutely. And we’ve talked about the significance of having a great sales team, but at IPI, we also place a huge emphasis on culture. How do we ensure that our sales team reflects and enhances our company culture?

Dave: That’s not always easy. The first thing we look for when recruiting for sales, above skills and performance, is values. Will they be a cultural fit for our business? Since Sat joined IPI, and with the work that Lisa and the team have done to promote and support our values, culture has become paramount. We can’t afford to get it wrong. You could be the best salesperson in the world, but if you don’t fit our values, it won’t work.

When we recruit, the cultural fit comes first. Then we look at experience, ambition, how we can help them develop, and their sales capability. Everything revolves around culture and values. If you get that right, you get people who know what’s expected, who are excited to be part of what we’re doing, and who will ultimately be successful. And success breeds success.

Jane: So, let’s talk about the sales cycle. It’s a long process with many people involved. How does our sales team collaborate with key stakeholders, both internally and externally, throughout the sales cycle?

Dave: That might take a while! It’s a continuous loop. We bring in new customers through the new business sales team, selling them a vision of what it’s like to be part of the IPI customer portfolio. At the handover between the new business team and the project/account management team, there’s a whole group of people supporting the sales team to meet the customer’s needs.

We have strategic alignment between the customer and IPI, making sure we can put the right resources together to achieve the customer’s outcomes. There are many touchpoints across both IPI and the customer, all aimed at driving successful outcomes. I think we’ve become quite good at it, and the result is long-term relationships, which, as we discussed earlier, lead to a more collaborative partnership.

Jane: Definitely. It’s like an infinity loop, never-ending.

Dave: Yes, and as technology evolves, different skills and people become part of that loop. Culture and values aren’t just important for sales—they’re vital across the entire business. I’ve been here for 25 years, but some roles have only emerged in the last couple of years. For example, AI is something we’ve spotlighted recently. IPI is about innovation, and the people who interact with customers all come from a place of shared culture and values, which helps us deliver excellent service.

Jane: How do our sales teams stay agile to adapt to the rapidly changing business landscape?

Dave: It’s not always easy, especially when you’re an innovation-led business. New technologies and integrations are constantly evolving. Continuous learning and development are key—not just in technology but in culture, people, and interpersonal skills. Salespeople need to understand how technologies work together and add value for the customer. They don’t need to know everything, but they need to know who within IPI has the right knowledge. We have a team of specialists across different parts of the portfolio, and the salespeople rely on them.

Salespeople are keen to learn because they want to sell solutions that provide value to our customers. It’s an ever-evolving process.

Jane: What are some common challenges our teams face when collaborating with clients, and how do we address them?

Dave: Challenges are an occupational hazard—they’re inevitable, so we’re prepared to handle them. There’s no consistent challenge, but innovation itself can present difficulties because it’s about breaking new ground. The key is having the right people with the right skills and approaching things the right way. If challenges arise, we’re very customer-focused. It’s not about assigning blame—it’s about getting the issue fixed.

We’re working with a customer now in a tough situation, and it’s all about working together to overcome it.

Jane: Exactly. And, as you mentioned, we sometimes deal with challenges we didn’t cause, but customers bring us in because they trust us to help them.

Dave: Yes, and trust builds over time. We’ve had customers with us since the mid-90s, and we’ve been through all sorts of challenges—economic crises, COVID, you name it. It’s about working together to achieve the desired outcome.

Jane: Let’s talk about feedback. How do we collect and incorporate feedback from our clients?

Dave: Feedback isn’t always welcomed, is it? I was reading an old school report the other day, and it gave me feedback that I definitely needed to pay attention to!

Jane: Which subjects?

Dave: Biology and economics. They weren’t impressed with my attention levels! But, in all seriousness, we have many touchpoints with customers, and that means we get feedback from various people in different ways. The great thing is that within IPI, we have a collaborative process, so everyone gets visibility of that feedback. We can then address it and go back to the customer to resolve any issues.

We get plenty of positive feedback too, whether it’s about project successes or even the cakes we bring on go-live days! It’s all part of the loop, and good or bad, feedback helps us learn and improve.