My journey to Miro: James Hayward, Head of Strategic Sales APAC
This week, we’re joined by guest writer James Hayward, Miro’s Head of Strategic Sales, APAC. Here, he shares his reflections on his first 6 months as a Mironeer. Interested in working with people like James? Check out our Careers page at miro.com/careers, and start imagining your future with us.
Hi everyone! I’m James, and I joined Miro in late 2021 to head up Strategic Sales in APAC (Asia-Pacific region).
Over the past few years, I had the pleasure of leading a high-performing team at ServiceNow, and I was fortunate to learn and experience a lot during my time there. At a certain point, I felt it was time to try something new. I wanted to help build a new region in a new company from the ground up, hire a great team of individuals, and have impact and purpose. That’s when I found Miro.
What brought me to Miro
When I first discovered Miro, I found a product everyone loved. Right away, I could see it allowed teams, companies, and individuals to do their best work in and out of the office. Miro also seemed to have a compelling culture, with the most hungry and humble leadership I had ever seen, and its hypergrowth as a SaaS company was far beyond what I had encountered before.
Another big draw for me was Miro’s product-led growth (PLG) strategy, an end user-focused growth model that centers the product as its primary driver. Before it becomes used more broadly across an enterprise, a PLG technology is typically first adopted by individuals, teams, and departments. I always say Miro is really special, and the PLG motion is a big part of that, and something that has been intentionally developed over time. The end user experience, for both remote and in-office works, is top of mind for many high performing companies in APAC today, and Miro’s PLG motion is able to accelerate those customers’ adoption and use of Miro.
Overall, this job felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Young, hypergrowth company that had added more than a thousand staff in the last two years. That sounded like a special place, and one I wanted to be part of. I officially joined on October 18, 2021, ready to put my 15 years of experience in Enterprise selling to good use — primarily, helping our customers embrace the future of hybrid work and impacting the lives and experiences of their employees.
My first three months
My first three months at Miro were intensely focused on hiring, setting up processes, and onboarding myself and my team to start supporting customers. On February 1, we began transitioning our customers from overseas operations and support to our local team on the ground in Sydney. Today, we have literally millions of users and more than 250 Enterprise customers in APAC using Miro, and it was no small feat to be ready to support those customers for our launch! Coming to work every day and feeling like you are having an impact is special and invigorating.
When I started back in October, the APAC sales team consisted of just three people. Since then, I have been a part of hiring 45+ incredibly bright, talented individuals. At Miro, we hire in a very structured way. We bring in a diverse panel that assesses candidates not just in their fit for the role, but also for their culture add, sales excellence, and deal structure. The interview process often involves five or six interviews. And, yes, it is definitely a time commitment for the candidates and for us, but we like to take the time to get things right.
My tips for potential candidates
My life and my career have been a continuous story of great leaders supporting my growth. I have been fortunate enough to be backed by some incredible people who were willing to take a chance on me, and that permeates my leadership style.
After being part of so many interviews recently, I’ve thought a lot about what I’m looking for in a new hire. Honestly, there is no easy answer, but here are four things that really make a difference:
1) Collaboration
We win together and we lose together, as a team, and the highest performing teams don’t operate in silos. We hire people who understand the strengths of others and are able to work in a team-based environment to achieve the best outcome.
2) Culture
You can teach somebody about the product. You can teach somebody about software and technology. But I think drive, hunger, and that desire to win are really important, especially in salespeople at Miro.
3) Humility
It’s really important — both in sales overall and at a company like Miro — to be a quiet achiever, willing to be humble. At Miro, we leave our egos at the door.
4) Customer success
Customer success is the final big thing I look for. I hire people who put the customer first and understand their customers’ needs.
Key takeaways and learnings
The last six months have been some of the most incredible months in my professional career.
The feelings of growth and accomplishment, along with the challenge of constant learning, have been professionally exhilarating. Miro is a place where you can have a real impact. People at Miro do not walk over problems. Instead, we work together as a team to improve the way we work everyday.
Mironeers have an impressive willingness to help others in the organization. We have a strong leadership team who really care about their people and their customers, and we provide rich benefits that promote wellness, flexibility, and work-life balance.
Right now, Miro is at a crucial moment; companies really need this technology. We provide a best-in-class Enterprise platform that is on the cutting edge of innovation and able to support millions of customers today. We love our customers, and employees are given the autonomy to have an impact and drive change. Miro is a special place, and I can’t wait for the next six months!
One more thing…
Miro is growing and hiring! Visit miro.com/careers to learn more.
