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Q: What is your role at FastSpring?

A: As a Sales Development Representative (SDR) on the Business Development team, I am meeting people all around the world who are building interesting and exciting software. I talk with them on the phone and via email to help them understand FastSpring so we can help them sell more with our full-service ecommerce platform.

Q: What did you do before FastSpring/What inspired you to join FastSpring?

A: I was a student at UCSB before FastSpring. I knew I wanted to stay in Santa Barbara after graduation, and luckily, I had some friends working at FastSpring. They told me all about the company and culture. There happened to be an open position, so I went for it!

Q: What does a typical day look like for Claire at FastSpring?

A: I come in between 7-7:30 and try to get in touch with everyone in Europe as soon as possible. I like to do my calls early in the morning and then focusing on sending out emails. We have three new members of the sales team, so I help with getting them up to speed with the new role. Then in the afternoon, I focus on my outbound efforts and making soapboxes and finding new accounts.

Q: Your role as SDR has a lot of moving parts, do you like how dynamic your position is?

A: I love it because I get to work with not only sales but also marketing, so I’m working with a lot of the different departments right now, which is really fun.

Q: What excites you every day working at FastSpring?

A: For me, it’s the people. I really enjoy working in a fun work environment with people who are easy to get along with. I also feel like I’m contributing to the betterment of FastSpring and contributing to our growth as a company, which is really exciting.

Q: Describe a favorite memory of your time at FastSpring.

A: I cannot praise our HR team enough; I think they throw the greatest company events. Our celebration for Fiesta was a blast, and I’m always happy to get to be a part of our events. I think my all-time favorite even was when we had a coffee cart and crepe station here for our rebrand.

Q: When did you first begin sales, and when did you start to grow a passion for it?

A: At the time, it was mainly my friends I knew here already that convinced me I could be good at the SDR role, but once I was in the role, I recognized how great it felt to be helping people along their journey of joining FastSpring.

Q: How do you feel you’ve grown since joining FastSpring?

A: I’ve definitely grown in my communication skills since joining FastSpring. Since FastSpring is a global company, I’ve had the opportunity to speak with people all around the world, which I think is something unique about working here. I’m also way more confident when speaking to global customers because I’ve learned to listen really well when there’s a bit of a language barrier.

Q: What are some of the challenges that you face in your role at FastSpring?

A: The time difference is one of the biggest challenges, which is why I like to get in early. It’s also difficult connecting with outbound leads at first to teach them about FastSpring and what we can do for them because they haven’t had the chance to research us as inbound leads have. You have such a short amount of time to explain who you are and why you are contacting them; it really forces you to be as clear and concise as possible.

Q: What is your proudest accomplishment while working at FastSpring?

A: In the last couple of months, I’ve taken on new responsibilities that have allowed me to work with so many departments within the company. I’m proud of being able to take on these new challenges and learn more about how to be a productive member of our team.

Q: What are your favorite hobbies and activities outside of work?

A: I love coffee and exploring new places, whether they are far away or right around the corner. I think it’s really cool to just see what different communities are like. The hiking here is amazing as well, and I do enjoy running–kind of. I did the She Is Beautiful run, which was 10 miles, but that’s kind of where I max out. I also enjoy beer and wine; I actually worked at Topa Topa and Foxx Wine Co. while I was in college.

Q: You used to work with JPL, what is JPL and what was your role there?

A: JPL is one of NASA’s affiliate sites, and I did climate science research there. I interned there for two of my summers at UCSB. In college, I majored in Planetary Geophysics and Environmental Toxicology. I love the planet, and one of my passions is interplanetary research.

Q: What is a fun fact most people may not know about you?

A: I love plants and gardening. I have a lot of plants at home, right now I have a 2 ½ ft cactus I’m trying to name.