Staff & Consultants
Profit sharing proposal from Andrew. Sales bonus and salary discussions.
ANDREW FEEDBACK & PROPOSAL
What kind of bonuses and rewards do you think you deserve for your work in 2022 and what are your expectations for 2023?
Look, I’ve said again and again since I arrived a while ago now that I think the best way for a company to be structured is through a “profit share” or “revenue share” model. The reason for this, is that it makes everyone in the company invested in the well-being of the company. Whereas commissions is for an individual, “profit sharing” is good for everyone.
For example, sales is weighted more than marketing which is weighted more than customer service, etc. So everyone gets their base salary based on what “department” they are in. Then, sales get’s a higher percentage for bringing in more money to the company, marketing would be next for bringing in the leads, and then customer service. People get a higher percentage for their seniority (1% more for each year you’ve been at the company).
This is a great article that outlines exactly what profit sharing is and why it’s good for employees: https://www.g2.com/articles/profit-sharing
Base Salary: €2000/month
Commission of 5% for any inbound sales, as I am able to upsell and sell more to a lot of customers over time (this is a much lower % based on industry average)
Commission of 20% for any outbound sales that I’m able to source from scratch (which is on the low end of the spectrum for industry average which you can see in this article:
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/commission-structure-for-sales#:~:text=What%20is%20the%20typical%20sales,structures%20allow%20a%20100%25%20commission.).
NOTES ANDERS:
I agree that profit sharing is the best model, if we want to go down the route of offering something extra for the staff on top of the fixed salary.
We are definitely not set up to offer a 20% commission on sales (20%) and I would argue that it is Andrew's job already to actively seek new sales and not just rely on what comes in.
Any sales commission set up would come with a reduced fixed salary and used to get more sales people onboard in various markets.
What kind of bonuses and rewards do you think you deserve for your work in 2022 and what are your expectations for 2023?
Look, I’ve said again and again since I arrived a while ago now that I think the best way for a company to be structured is through a “profit share” or “revenue share” model. The reason for this, is that it makes everyone in the company invested in the well-being of the company. Whereas commissions is for an individual, “profit sharing” is good for everyone.
For example, sales is weighted more than marketing which is weighted more than customer service, etc. So everyone gets their base salary based on what “department” they are in. Then, sales get’s a higher percentage for bringing in more money to the company, marketing would be next for bringing in the leads, and then customer service. People get a higher percentage for their seniority (1% more for each year you’ve been at the company).
This is a great article that outlines exactly what profit sharing is and why it’s good for employees: https://www.g2.com/articles/profit-sharing
Base Salary: €2000/month
Commission of 5% for any inbound sales, as I am able to upsell and sell more to a lot of customers over time (this is a much lower % based on industry average)
Commission of 20% for any outbound sales that I’m able to source from scratch (which is on the low end of the spectrum for industry average which you can see in this article:
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/commission-structure-for-sales#:~:text=What%20is%20the%20typical%20sales,structures%20allow%20a%20100%25%20commission.).
NOTES ANDERS:
I agree that profit sharing is the best model, if we want to go down the route of offering something extra for the staff on top of the fixed salary.
We are definitely not set up to offer a 20% commission on sales (20%) and I would argue that it is Andrew's job already to actively seek new sales and not just rely on what comes in.
Any sales commission set up would come with a reduced fixed salary and used to get more sales people onboard in various markets.
ANDERS' SALARY TERMS
I have not had a salary increase for the past 4 or 5 years. With today's increasing inflation and in the light of a great performance the past couple of year, this has to be looked at from January 1st.
In addition, since I am not employed by neither Parklife nor the Greek company, there are few extra costs for Parklife for my dividend monthly payment. In comparison, it costs us about the same to employ Alina for EUR 2000 as it does for mine 3500 EUR per month.
Also, I have self employment status in Greece which gives me less protection than those who are employed. In case something should happen.
The average CEO salary in Greece is EUR 5280 per month, with 14 months salary (Christmas, Easter, and Summer extra).
I suggest EUR 5000 per month from January 1st.
I have not had a salary increase for the past 4 or 5 years. With today's increasing inflation and in the light of a great performance the past couple of year, this has to be looked at from January 1st.
In addition, since I am not employed by neither Parklife nor the Greek company, there are few extra costs for Parklife for my dividend monthly payment. In comparison, it costs us about the same to employ Alina for EUR 2000 as it does for mine 3500 EUR per month.
Also, I have self employment status in Greece which gives me less protection than those who are employed. In case something should happen.
The average CEO salary in Greece is EUR 5280 per month, with 14 months salary (Christmas, Easter, and Summer extra).
I suggest EUR 5000 per month from January 1st.
STERGIOS FULL FEEDBACK
1. In your view, what is your main role in the company and which three responsibilities are your prioritising highest?
My main role is e-commerce, marketplaces and digital marketing.
I am responsible for daily management, strategy, optimization and finding the best solutions according to the requirements and external/internal feedback and needs.
2. Describe a typical working day in your "department" in a few sentences. For example: I usually open my computer at... then I read my emails and select which to prioritize... or I go one by one... My main time before lunch is spent on... then I often focus on... etc. etc. Formulate this as best for you, but please be a bit detailed. This is for me to better understand how you spend your day and I will not judge you on it. You will see mine as well.
I usually check my emails and slack at 9-9:30 in the morning first from my mobile phone.
At 10:00 My laptop is open and I prioritize my emails and dm’s in slack according to the importance and urgency.
Next, I review the status of the projects that I’m currently working on and I try to finish any pending work if present. I try to make sure that all the work I am coordinating or is assigned to me is moving forward and without any glitches. Since e-commerce and Amazon «are open» 24/hrs per day I check my emails, Back Office/front office and various other platforms at least 20 times during the day in order to ensure that everything is running smoothly and normal for the customers. I have daily communication with almost everyone in the company plus the external partners Satissup, Developers and Dope Agency which I am responsible for their coordination.
3. What is your ideal working week in terms of home vs. office days?
I’m confident that I can perform everything my job requires at an equal or even higher level outside of the office.
As we have discussed and agreed in the past my aim is to work remotely as we already all do.
You, Andrew, Jessica and me are working 80% from home and everyone else in the company is working 100% (Alexia, Ieva, Alina, Mike, Hardy, Karim) and of course for all of our external partners there is no need to meet in person.
Many jobs and industries that seem like they would be most difficult to do remotely are actually some of the fastest growing areas for remote work.
Some of the benefits are:
· Increased employee productivity
· Having a flexible schedule,
· Overall satisfaction with work-life balance,
· Zero commute time
· Fewer distractions from colleagues
· Lower costs both for the company and the employees
When I am in Athens I would enjoy meeting you since there is a new office twice per week but the dates and times should be fixed in order to have the ability to arrange my schedule as well. Also an agenda should be ideally maintained in order for everyone to be prepared and not to meet without reason.
4. In terms of teamwork in our company, what would you suggest we could do differently to enhance this between us?
Communication and rational thinking are the primary pillars that create the foundation for good teamwork. In order for the team to work most efficiently, each member should have the same understanding of three different key points: The goal, the roles, and a correction mechanism. Problems begin to occur when there is discrepancy between these ideas throughout the team. As long as the pillars are there, however, these problems should be easily remedied. Without communication, the ideas of goal, roles, and correction will begin to fall, and members will be working to different ends.
Also: It is very important in my opinion that ownership should be clarified for each department. Of course feedback and ideas should be more than welcome from everyone but for every department there should be a decision maker. 5 or 10 people cannot decide all together what is the best solution in a scenario. It creates complexity. I can give feedback to Hardy or my suggestions but I cannot decide for him what is the best practice for doing sales in Germany. The same with the accounting department, sales, customer service etc.. people that have expertise in their department and are responsible for taking the final decision. This should be respected.
An additional note: The communication especially with Hardy is very difficult. I can remember multiple times when Hardy was rude, strong minded and unresponsive which is leading to dissatisfaction and frustration within team members which of course is affecting our performance as well. A solution must be found for this.
5. If we could hire 1 or 2 more staff here in Greece, which roles would you assign to them that you think is lacking?
I believe it is vital to hire an operation manager with an HR background. This person will be responsible for the Line and Staff functions of the company making sure all the managers are coordinating and following targets in a smooth way. This person should be responsible as well for reforming the core values of the company and making sure everyone is respecting them. Bonuses, Incentives, Salaries, Vacations, Targets, Day to Day operations, Agenda and more should be removed from your responsibility and should be given to someone professional that would hold the day to day and the handbook of the company.
In addition, but less important, since we have several accounts in social media growing (bazooka & 3v3) and new platforms are popping up frequently you could probably hire a part time person for the content of social media that it would be also responsible for the monitoring. It can be a young social media enthusiast that will be managed by the e-commerce and digital marketing department.
6. What do you feel are the three most important contributions to Parklife's success in the past year?
1. I am coordinating the digital transformation by creating a very valuable asset for the future and the image of the company. A global brand new b2c/b2b website and a Backoffice/front office system absolutely customized to the organization’s needs and challenges.
2. I am communicating daily with Satissup and changed the way we have been working with them by providing suggestions and solutions. Transparent communication and good relationships have been established which led to clear goals and reporting. Customer service has improved and stock planning which is the most vital and difficult part has been successful. As a result, Amazon had an increase of 130% in revenue last year.
3. I have initiated the digital marketing and seo optimization of the company by coordinating the research and the set up of Google and Social Media ads in collaboration with DOPE agency.
7. What is your view on your current salary level and expectations for increase?
According to the data the average salary for e-commerce managers in Greece is 2.800 EUR per month for 2022.
http://www.salaryexplorer.com/salary-survey.php?loc=84&loctype=1&job=765&jobtype=3
https://www.salaryexpert.com/salary/job/e-commerce-manager/greece/athens
My salary expectations for this position is 2.150 EUR. I feel this is a fair salary given my experience, knowledge of the industry, and seniority in the company.
8. What kind of bonuses and rewards do you think you deserve for your work in 2022 and what are your expectations for 2023?
2022 was a year that targets have been achieved by my side and ecommerce results have overperformed.
The target for the first year of the eshop was 100-120k EUR with 10% advertising cost.
Our current revenue is 200k with much less advertising cost than 20k and of course indirect revenue generated has not been counted (which in my opinion a way to be tracked should be found in order to have a clear picture of general e-sales coming from emails and chatbox).
I believe fair is that bonuses should be awarded after targets have been achieved and over performance should be rewarded as well.
I think 2.5-3% is the industry standard for this occasion.
Let me know if you have any questions on the above.
1. In your view, what is your main role in the company and which three responsibilities are your prioritising highest?
My main role is e-commerce, marketplaces and digital marketing.
I am responsible for daily management, strategy, optimization and finding the best solutions according to the requirements and external/internal feedback and needs.
2. Describe a typical working day in your "department" in a few sentences. For example: I usually open my computer at... then I read my emails and select which to prioritize... or I go one by one... My main time before lunch is spent on... then I often focus on... etc. etc. Formulate this as best for you, but please be a bit detailed. This is for me to better understand how you spend your day and I will not judge you on it. You will see mine as well.
I usually check my emails and slack at 9-9:30 in the morning first from my mobile phone.
At 10:00 My laptop is open and I prioritize my emails and dm’s in slack according to the importance and urgency.
Next, I review the status of the projects that I’m currently working on and I try to finish any pending work if present. I try to make sure that all the work I am coordinating or is assigned to me is moving forward and without any glitches. Since e-commerce and Amazon «are open» 24/hrs per day I check my emails, Back Office/front office and various other platforms at least 20 times during the day in order to ensure that everything is running smoothly and normal for the customers. I have daily communication with almost everyone in the company plus the external partners Satissup, Developers and Dope Agency which I am responsible for their coordination.
3. What is your ideal working week in terms of home vs. office days?
I’m confident that I can perform everything my job requires at an equal or even higher level outside of the office.
As we have discussed and agreed in the past my aim is to work remotely as we already all do.
You, Andrew, Jessica and me are working 80% from home and everyone else in the company is working 100% (Alexia, Ieva, Alina, Mike, Hardy, Karim) and of course for all of our external partners there is no need to meet in person.
Many jobs and industries that seem like they would be most difficult to do remotely are actually some of the fastest growing areas for remote work.
Some of the benefits are:
· Increased employee productivity
· Having a flexible schedule,
· Overall satisfaction with work-life balance,
· Zero commute time
· Fewer distractions from colleagues
· Lower costs both for the company and the employees
When I am in Athens I would enjoy meeting you since there is a new office twice per week but the dates and times should be fixed in order to have the ability to arrange my schedule as well. Also an agenda should be ideally maintained in order for everyone to be prepared and not to meet without reason.
4. In terms of teamwork in our company, what would you suggest we could do differently to enhance this between us?
Communication and rational thinking are the primary pillars that create the foundation for good teamwork. In order for the team to work most efficiently, each member should have the same understanding of three different key points: The goal, the roles, and a correction mechanism. Problems begin to occur when there is discrepancy between these ideas throughout the team. As long as the pillars are there, however, these problems should be easily remedied. Without communication, the ideas of goal, roles, and correction will begin to fall, and members will be working to different ends.
Also: It is very important in my opinion that ownership should be clarified for each department. Of course feedback and ideas should be more than welcome from everyone but for every department there should be a decision maker. 5 or 10 people cannot decide all together what is the best solution in a scenario. It creates complexity. I can give feedback to Hardy or my suggestions but I cannot decide for him what is the best practice for doing sales in Germany. The same with the accounting department, sales, customer service etc.. people that have expertise in their department and are responsible for taking the final decision. This should be respected.
An additional note: The communication especially with Hardy is very difficult. I can remember multiple times when Hardy was rude, strong minded and unresponsive which is leading to dissatisfaction and frustration within team members which of course is affecting our performance as well. A solution must be found for this.
5. If we could hire 1 or 2 more staff here in Greece, which roles would you assign to them that you think is lacking?
I believe it is vital to hire an operation manager with an HR background. This person will be responsible for the Line and Staff functions of the company making sure all the managers are coordinating and following targets in a smooth way. This person should be responsible as well for reforming the core values of the company and making sure everyone is respecting them. Bonuses, Incentives, Salaries, Vacations, Targets, Day to Day operations, Agenda and more should be removed from your responsibility and should be given to someone professional that would hold the day to day and the handbook of the company.
In addition, but less important, since we have several accounts in social media growing (bazooka & 3v3) and new platforms are popping up frequently you could probably hire a part time person for the content of social media that it would be also responsible for the monitoring. It can be a young social media enthusiast that will be managed by the e-commerce and digital marketing department.
6. What do you feel are the three most important contributions to Parklife's success in the past year?
1. I am coordinating the digital transformation by creating a very valuable asset for the future and the image of the company. A global brand new b2c/b2b website and a Backoffice/front office system absolutely customized to the organization’s needs and challenges.
2. I am communicating daily with Satissup and changed the way we have been working with them by providing suggestions and solutions. Transparent communication and good relationships have been established which led to clear goals and reporting. Customer service has improved and stock planning which is the most vital and difficult part has been successful. As a result, Amazon had an increase of 130% in revenue last year.
3. I have initiated the digital marketing and seo optimization of the company by coordinating the research and the set up of Google and Social Media ads in collaboration with DOPE agency.
7. What is your view on your current salary level and expectations for increase?
According to the data the average salary for e-commerce managers in Greece is 2.800 EUR per month for 2022.
http://www.salaryexplorer.com/salary-survey.php?loc=84&loctype=1&job=765&jobtype=3
https://www.salaryexpert.com/salary/job/e-commerce-manager/greece/athens
My salary expectations for this position is 2.150 EUR. I feel this is a fair salary given my experience, knowledge of the industry, and seniority in the company.
8. What kind of bonuses and rewards do you think you deserve for your work in 2022 and what are your expectations for 2023?
2022 was a year that targets have been achieved by my side and ecommerce results have overperformed.
The target for the first year of the eshop was 100-120k EUR with 10% advertising cost.
Our current revenue is 200k with much less advertising cost than 20k and of course indirect revenue generated has not been counted (which in my opinion a way to be tracked should be found in order to have a clear picture of general e-sales coming from emails and chatbox).
I believe fair is that bonuses should be awarded after targets have been achieved and over performance should be rewarded as well.
I think 2.5-3% is the industry standard for this occasion.
Let me know if you have any questions on the above.
ANDREW FULL FEEDBACK
1. In your view, what is your main role in the company and which three responsibilities are your prioritising highest?
My main role in the company is sales. I prioritize sales/personal email, the chat box, and the phone line (all of which get multiple sales requests a day).
2. Describe a typical working day in your "department" in a few sentences. For example: I usually open my computer at... then I read my emails and select which to prioritize... or I go one by one... My main time before lunch is spent on... then I often focus on... etc. etc. Formulate this as best for you, but please be a bit detailed. This is for me to better understand how you spend your day and I will not judge you on it. You will see mine as well.
From Monday-Friday, I wake up around 7am and get ready for my day. After a tea and a quick shower, I sit in front of my computer between 7:30-7:45am. I turn on my availability and check-in on Slack to announce my arrival to work and check any remaining Slack messages from the day before/that morning. I then set my status in the chat box to “Available” and I turn on the Rapport phone application. I then prioritize my personal email first, going through each message 1-by-1 and handle each one as I come to it. Some are done faster than others, which is why I prioritize getting the quick ones done and out of the way. Anything that needs a lot of care and time, I mark as “Unread” and I come back to those in order to give them the time that they need. I then turn my attention to the sales@bazookagoal email and do the same thing. Since this email has many more emails that are irrelevant or spammy, I click the “Mark All” button and go through and make sure to unmark any that are relevant. I then click “Mark as Read” in order to organize the ones that need attention. I then go through the ones that are marked “Unread” and deal with the ones that can be handled quickly and leave the ones that need more care and time marked as “Unread”. So after getting through both my personal and sales email and handling all of the quick emails and keeping the important ones that need more time and care as “Unread”, I turn my attention to the chat box to see if there are any messages from the day before/that morning that need replying to. I reply to all the messages that came in during the evening and morning. After replying to all of the chat box messages (either I reply in the chat itself or send emails for anyone that is no longer active), I turn my attention to the Rapport phone app and see if there are any voicemails from the day before/that morning and depending on where they call from, I either call them back or I mark down on a piece of paper the name of the customer that called, what time they called, what they called about, and what is the best time to call them back either based on what time they tell me to call back in the voicemail or at a reasonable time based on the timezone they are in. After dealing with all of the chat box and Rapport phone application duties, I then turn my attention to Ninox. I organize all of my deals from top to bottom with the “Requests” at the top and the “Completed Orders” at the bottom. I then go through each and every open deal of mine by copying the email address and seeing the status of it (who replied last, where things stand, etc). If a reply/follow-up is needed by me, I reach out with the relevant message and then I update Ninox accordingly by putting the times of the last reply, copying and pasting the latest communication in the communication section, and then marking the status accordingly. After I run through each and every one of my Ninox deals, I turn my attention back to my personal email. I go through each “Unread” message and deal with them 1-by-1. After that, I go through the sales email and deal with all of the “Unread” messages 1-by-1. The reason I do this AFTER Ninox, is that a lot of the messages in both emails are touched on by going through my Ninox deals 1-by-1. Once all of this is done, it is typically noon and I take my first break of the day (having completed between 4-5 hours of work up to this point). After this break (for lunch or just recharging), I see if there are any replies in the sales and personal emails (which there are typically quite a few). I then focus on replying to these and completing the sales as quickly and efficiently as possible. I then turn my attention to outbound sales. This entails sourcing (Googling different retailers, clubs, academies, schools, etc) throughout the USA, Canada, and Europe (not touching Asia or Central/South America for the time being). I then send out emails with our price lists (either B2B or B2C depending on who the potential customer is) and mark them down. I then follow up 2 times in the following days to see if people received my email and to give me an answer. If people do reply, I do my best to be to the point and efficient in closing the sale with them, by letting them see the benefits of our goals, how they can be used, and why BazookaGoal is the best. Then after this, it’s about 3 or 4 pm and I wrap up my day. I then work 1 or 2 more hours throughout the rest of the day before going to sleep, just touching on emails that come in from the USA and other timezones. I am also responsible for the Friday Tactic Board newsletter which has previously required not only the content, articles, links, etc., but also includes a video interview which I’m then required to record, edit, post on YouTube, and then embed it into the newsletter in MailChimp. This is all the while checking Slack messages for important inter-BazookaGoal related communication (which I make sure to reply to within 5-10 mins AT THE LATEST), the chat box, and any incoming phone calls.
3. What is your ideal working week in terms of home vs. office days?
Look, for me, the more we work together (whether in cafe, restaurant, office, etc) the better. It’s clear that working together is better for communication, efficiency, and motivation. It was great when the Satisupp office was 10 mins down the road from my house. I was ALWAYS pushing to go into the office, almost daily, but the past few months I gave up asking b/c okay… it was summer… but we were never going into the office really. Now we have an amazing office, but the issue is that the office is a bit further away. So perhaps 2 days a week (Tuesday/Thursday) would be ideal for us to ALL attend and work together, but I would also be happy with 3 days a week (Monday/Wednesday/Friday). But for now, I would say 2 days a week MINIMUM (Tuesday/Thursday) and we go from there. I’m a morning person, so if we could arrive to the office around 8:45am and begin work at 9am, that would be great. So for me, Monday/Wednesday/Friday from home or wherever we want and Tuesday/Thursday at the office.
4. In terms of teamwork in our company, what would you suggest we could do differently to enhance this between us?
I’m not entirely sure what you mean by this question, but I will try to answer accordingly. I think that other than meeting in the office twice a week, we should absolutely be doing the weekly calls on Wednesdays. This is missed/ignored WAY too often and is important for updates, figuring out solutions to problems, and all of us getting on the same page… especially those of us that don’t live in Greece like Hardy. So I think 2 days of work in the office a week, the weekly call on Wednesdays, and then I think having 1 team activity for those who live in Greece every month would be great. This could be a dinner and movie, a trip away somewhere like Sounion, or something else that brings us all together and do something that is NOT work. This is important for team moral and building strong bonds between us.
5. If we could hire 1 or 2 more staff here in Greece, which roles would you assign to them that you think is lacking?
I don’t think hiring more people is the answer at this time. I think I have the bandwidth to take on more responsibility, but only if the salary reflects that. But the places that I think are lacking that could use more help is having deals being processed. Too many times that logistics gets in the way of things and there isn’t a clear understanding of what is needed for certain orders. The breakdown in communication typically happens with Hardy/SunSpeed, but we also see this with Eurologistix. Also, the printing could be smoother too. Figuring out who is printing what, what the status of certain printing orders is, and what stock levels the printers have. Too many times I don’t receive replies from KiliArts and especially Menne to know where an order is, who is dealing with it (with Menne, is it Hardy or Jessica with communication?), and in what order they will be printed. Can we hold more stock of nets at places like KiliArts and Menne? Also, I think expanding into new Amazon markets and being able to hold the BGXL1 would be important, especially for USA orders.
6. What do you feel are the three most important contributions to Parklife's success in the past year?
I feel that since I took over from Ersie, my workload has increased but my pay has remained the same. I think I bring a lot of value to the company not just from a dollars and cents point of view, but also from the way that I make the company look. I am polite, friendly, determined, efficient and I create a lot of great relationships with customers who, as a result, want to continue buying from us and recommend their colleagues and friends to us to also buy. There have been many examples of late where, because of me speaking to the customer on the phone or WhatsApp, they have purchased more b/c of the person I am. A customer was going to pay for 20 goals, just the normal 120x75cm. But after speaking with me and the rapport and trust I built, they decided to upgrade and go with 20 units of the custom goals, leading to between $800-1000 more dollars they spent. I have never once complained about my salary and I put my head down and work regardless. I have had people reach out to me, offering me many jobs since starting here. Whether it’s from my masters degree, from LinkedIn, or even clients/customers who try to pull me away, I’ve turned them all down because I love working here because the work is good and you are a GREAT guy and someone I LOVE working for. That’s why when I was accused of “not showing enthusiasm” or whatever after our move into the new office, I took that to heart. I feel I’ve been loyal and determined for this company, all the while not complaining about my current status. Even though I’ve been offered more lucrative jobs, I’ve turned them all down to be here b/c I feel the potential is there for this company to be big and I want to be a part of the reason why it makes it to that level. I think that as a base salary, €2000/month is fair. For any sales that are handled by me, commission is fair (as this is the case with 99.9% of companies in the world, they give commission for sales). I will speak more as to the balance of commissions below.
8. What kind of bonuses and rewards do you think you deserve for your work in 2022 and what are your expectations for 2023?
Look, I’ve said again and again since I arrived a while ago now that I think the best way for a company to be structured is through a “profit share” or “revenue share” model. The reason for this, is that it makes everyone in the company invested in the well-being of the company. Whereas commissions is for an individual, “profit sharing” is good for everyone. For example, sales is weighted more than marketing which is weighted more than customer service, etc. So everyone gets their base salary based on what “department” they are in. Then, sales get’s a higher percentage for bringing in more money to the company, marketing would be next for bringing in the leads, and then customer service. People get a higher percentage for their seniority (1% more for each year you’ve been at the company). This is a great article that outlines exactly what profit sharing is and why it’s good for employees:
https://www.g2.com/articles/profit-sharing
But let’s say we don’t do profit share. I don’t think bonuses are a good idea, b/c I think bonuses are irregular and you never know how much you’re getting or when. If we don’t do a profit share, I believe that this would be what’s best for me personally (as I can’t speak for anyone else or other departments):
Base Salary: €2000/month
Commission of 5% for any inbound sales, as I am able to upsell and sell more to a lot of customers over time (this is a much lower % based on industry average)
Commission of 20% for any outbound sales that I’m able to source from scratch (which is on the low end of the specrtrum for industry average which you can see in this article and in the screenshot below): https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/commission-structure-for-sales#:~:text=What%20is%20the%20typical%20sales,structures%20allow%20a%20100%25%20commission.)
THESE ARE MY ANSWERS, LET ME KNOW IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS.
1. In your view, what is your main role in the company and which three responsibilities are your prioritising highest?
My main role in the company is sales. I prioritize sales/personal email, the chat box, and the phone line (all of which get multiple sales requests a day).
2. Describe a typical working day in your "department" in a few sentences. For example: I usually open my computer at... then I read my emails and select which to prioritize... or I go one by one... My main time before lunch is spent on... then I often focus on... etc. etc. Formulate this as best for you, but please be a bit detailed. This is for me to better understand how you spend your day and I will not judge you on it. You will see mine as well.
From Monday-Friday, I wake up around 7am and get ready for my day. After a tea and a quick shower, I sit in front of my computer between 7:30-7:45am. I turn on my availability and check-in on Slack to announce my arrival to work and check any remaining Slack messages from the day before/that morning. I then set my status in the chat box to “Available” and I turn on the Rapport phone application. I then prioritize my personal email first, going through each message 1-by-1 and handle each one as I come to it. Some are done faster than others, which is why I prioritize getting the quick ones done and out of the way. Anything that needs a lot of care and time, I mark as “Unread” and I come back to those in order to give them the time that they need. I then turn my attention to the sales@bazookagoal email and do the same thing. Since this email has many more emails that are irrelevant or spammy, I click the “Mark All” button and go through and make sure to unmark any that are relevant. I then click “Mark as Read” in order to organize the ones that need attention. I then go through the ones that are marked “Unread” and deal with the ones that can be handled quickly and leave the ones that need more care and time marked as “Unread”. So after getting through both my personal and sales email and handling all of the quick emails and keeping the important ones that need more time and care as “Unread”, I turn my attention to the chat box to see if there are any messages from the day before/that morning that need replying to. I reply to all the messages that came in during the evening and morning. After replying to all of the chat box messages (either I reply in the chat itself or send emails for anyone that is no longer active), I turn my attention to the Rapport phone app and see if there are any voicemails from the day before/that morning and depending on where they call from, I either call them back or I mark down on a piece of paper the name of the customer that called, what time they called, what they called about, and what is the best time to call them back either based on what time they tell me to call back in the voicemail or at a reasonable time based on the timezone they are in. After dealing with all of the chat box and Rapport phone application duties, I then turn my attention to Ninox. I organize all of my deals from top to bottom with the “Requests” at the top and the “Completed Orders” at the bottom. I then go through each and every open deal of mine by copying the email address and seeing the status of it (who replied last, where things stand, etc). If a reply/follow-up is needed by me, I reach out with the relevant message and then I update Ninox accordingly by putting the times of the last reply, copying and pasting the latest communication in the communication section, and then marking the status accordingly. After I run through each and every one of my Ninox deals, I turn my attention back to my personal email. I go through each “Unread” message and deal with them 1-by-1. After that, I go through the sales email and deal with all of the “Unread” messages 1-by-1. The reason I do this AFTER Ninox, is that a lot of the messages in both emails are touched on by going through my Ninox deals 1-by-1. Once all of this is done, it is typically noon and I take my first break of the day (having completed between 4-5 hours of work up to this point). After this break (for lunch or just recharging), I see if there are any replies in the sales and personal emails (which there are typically quite a few). I then focus on replying to these and completing the sales as quickly and efficiently as possible. I then turn my attention to outbound sales. This entails sourcing (Googling different retailers, clubs, academies, schools, etc) throughout the USA, Canada, and Europe (not touching Asia or Central/South America for the time being). I then send out emails with our price lists (either B2B or B2C depending on who the potential customer is) and mark them down. I then follow up 2 times in the following days to see if people received my email and to give me an answer. If people do reply, I do my best to be to the point and efficient in closing the sale with them, by letting them see the benefits of our goals, how they can be used, and why BazookaGoal is the best. Then after this, it’s about 3 or 4 pm and I wrap up my day. I then work 1 or 2 more hours throughout the rest of the day before going to sleep, just touching on emails that come in from the USA and other timezones. I am also responsible for the Friday Tactic Board newsletter which has previously required not only the content, articles, links, etc., but also includes a video interview which I’m then required to record, edit, post on YouTube, and then embed it into the newsletter in MailChimp. This is all the while checking Slack messages for important inter-BazookaGoal related communication (which I make sure to reply to within 5-10 mins AT THE LATEST), the chat box, and any incoming phone calls.
3. What is your ideal working week in terms of home vs. office days?
Look, for me, the more we work together (whether in cafe, restaurant, office, etc) the better. It’s clear that working together is better for communication, efficiency, and motivation. It was great when the Satisupp office was 10 mins down the road from my house. I was ALWAYS pushing to go into the office, almost daily, but the past few months I gave up asking b/c okay… it was summer… but we were never going into the office really. Now we have an amazing office, but the issue is that the office is a bit further away. So perhaps 2 days a week (Tuesday/Thursday) would be ideal for us to ALL attend and work together, but I would also be happy with 3 days a week (Monday/Wednesday/Friday). But for now, I would say 2 days a week MINIMUM (Tuesday/Thursday) and we go from there. I’m a morning person, so if we could arrive to the office around 8:45am and begin work at 9am, that would be great. So for me, Monday/Wednesday/Friday from home or wherever we want and Tuesday/Thursday at the office.
4. In terms of teamwork in our company, what would you suggest we could do differently to enhance this between us?
I’m not entirely sure what you mean by this question, but I will try to answer accordingly. I think that other than meeting in the office twice a week, we should absolutely be doing the weekly calls on Wednesdays. This is missed/ignored WAY too often and is important for updates, figuring out solutions to problems, and all of us getting on the same page… especially those of us that don’t live in Greece like Hardy. So I think 2 days of work in the office a week, the weekly call on Wednesdays, and then I think having 1 team activity for those who live in Greece every month would be great. This could be a dinner and movie, a trip away somewhere like Sounion, or something else that brings us all together and do something that is NOT work. This is important for team moral and building strong bonds between us.
5. If we could hire 1 or 2 more staff here in Greece, which roles would you assign to them that you think is lacking?
I don’t think hiring more people is the answer at this time. I think I have the bandwidth to take on more responsibility, but only if the salary reflects that. But the places that I think are lacking that could use more help is having deals being processed. Too many times that logistics gets in the way of things and there isn’t a clear understanding of what is needed for certain orders. The breakdown in communication typically happens with Hardy/SunSpeed, but we also see this with Eurologistix. Also, the printing could be smoother too. Figuring out who is printing what, what the status of certain printing orders is, and what stock levels the printers have. Too many times I don’t receive replies from KiliArts and especially Menne to know where an order is, who is dealing with it (with Menne, is it Hardy or Jessica with communication?), and in what order they will be printed. Can we hold more stock of nets at places like KiliArts and Menne? Also, I think expanding into new Amazon markets and being able to hold the BGXL1 would be important, especially for USA orders.
6. What do you feel are the three most important contributions to Parklife's success in the past year?
- Creating the outbound sales process that has attracted many new customers, ESPECIALLY finding our new USA retailer (SoccerInnovations). This has brought in thousands of dollars to the company and these are leads I am finding from scratch (sourcing the leads, communicating, closing the deal, processing the order).
- Coming up with the idea of the ChatBox that has lead to thousands more dollars in sales. The ability to answer customers in real time, figure out their email or phone number, and to have this close communication lead to sales is a big big win.
- Creating the streamlined processes of the sales procedures. Before when Ersie was in charge, things were scattered and inefficient. Since taking over, I’ve done as well as I can with the resources at my disposal to create a streamlined process that allows us to make sure sales are not falling through the cracks.
I feel that since I took over from Ersie, my workload has increased but my pay has remained the same. I think I bring a lot of value to the company not just from a dollars and cents point of view, but also from the way that I make the company look. I am polite, friendly, determined, efficient and I create a lot of great relationships with customers who, as a result, want to continue buying from us and recommend their colleagues and friends to us to also buy. There have been many examples of late where, because of me speaking to the customer on the phone or WhatsApp, they have purchased more b/c of the person I am. A customer was going to pay for 20 goals, just the normal 120x75cm. But after speaking with me and the rapport and trust I built, they decided to upgrade and go with 20 units of the custom goals, leading to between $800-1000 more dollars they spent. I have never once complained about my salary and I put my head down and work regardless. I have had people reach out to me, offering me many jobs since starting here. Whether it’s from my masters degree, from LinkedIn, or even clients/customers who try to pull me away, I’ve turned them all down because I love working here because the work is good and you are a GREAT guy and someone I LOVE working for. That’s why when I was accused of “not showing enthusiasm” or whatever after our move into the new office, I took that to heart. I feel I’ve been loyal and determined for this company, all the while not complaining about my current status. Even though I’ve been offered more lucrative jobs, I’ve turned them all down to be here b/c I feel the potential is there for this company to be big and I want to be a part of the reason why it makes it to that level. I think that as a base salary, €2000/month is fair. For any sales that are handled by me, commission is fair (as this is the case with 99.9% of companies in the world, they give commission for sales). I will speak more as to the balance of commissions below.
8. What kind of bonuses and rewards do you think you deserve for your work in 2022 and what are your expectations for 2023?
Look, I’ve said again and again since I arrived a while ago now that I think the best way for a company to be structured is through a “profit share” or “revenue share” model. The reason for this, is that it makes everyone in the company invested in the well-being of the company. Whereas commissions is for an individual, “profit sharing” is good for everyone. For example, sales is weighted more than marketing which is weighted more than customer service, etc. So everyone gets their base salary based on what “department” they are in. Then, sales get’s a higher percentage for bringing in more money to the company, marketing would be next for bringing in the leads, and then customer service. People get a higher percentage for their seniority (1% more for each year you’ve been at the company). This is a great article that outlines exactly what profit sharing is and why it’s good for employees:
https://www.g2.com/articles/profit-sharing
But let’s say we don’t do profit share. I don’t think bonuses are a good idea, b/c I think bonuses are irregular and you never know how much you’re getting or when. If we don’t do a profit share, I believe that this would be what’s best for me personally (as I can’t speak for anyone else or other departments):
Base Salary: €2000/month
Commission of 5% for any inbound sales, as I am able to upsell and sell more to a lot of customers over time (this is a much lower % based on industry average)
Commission of 20% for any outbound sales that I’m able to source from scratch (which is on the low end of the specrtrum for industry average which you can see in this article and in the screenshot below): https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/commission-structure-for-sales#:~:text=What%20is%20the%20typical%20sales,structures%20allow%20a%20100%25%20commission.)
THESE ARE MY ANSWERS, LET ME KNOW IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS.
