In a field as technically driven as natural gas compression, a lot is demanded of salespeople and nowhere more so than Compass.
Compass account managers are mandated to do far more than respond to RFQs. According to Scott Douglas, Vice-President of Sales and Marketing, these account managers bring a level of technical expertise that ultimately delivers a superior solution.
“Our sales team is varied and seasoned,” says Douglas, “and most have been in the compression business for the majority of their careers. We have a lot of technical knowledge at the front end, so we can understand where the client’s heading and what they need, and provide the best solution.”
Once an RFQ is underway, account managers will work closely with applications engineering on the bid preparation, and with project management during the detailed design.
“At the point that it becomes a project, there’s a hand-over to project management,” says Douglas, “but the account manager stays in the loop. We want the customer to see the depth of the organization and not have just one contact through the life of the project.”
Close collaboration between account managers, applications engineers and project managers – plus regular and frank communication with the client – lead to two outcomes. The client gets an even better compression solution than they originally asked for, and has a more satisfying project experience too.
“I believe in a diverse sales group to match the needs of different clients,” says Douglas, “but the technical knowledge of our account managers is so important. We’re in a somewhat custom industry, and for all these packages, there are so many variations you can have. If you have the knowledge to show the client something better, they’re going to see value in that.”