Hvis jeg ikke ved det, er der nok også andre, der ikke gør. Men så kan jeg lære det.
Sådan tænkte Camilla Borch Clausen, da hun tog mod til sig og rakte hånden op i en fyldt foredragssal på universitetet.
Hun tænkte det samme, da hun sprang ud i sit første job, der var gennemsyret af Excel-ark – et program, hun i øvrigt aldrig havde arbejdet med.
Og hun tænkte det igen, da hun senere startede hos Atea uden nogensinde at have siddet i en salgsstilling.
Camillas tilgang til karrieren er enkel, men ambitiøs
„Jeg elsker at lære nye ting, og er ikke bange for at bede om hjælp eller stille ‚dumme spørgsmål‛. Selv hvis nogen tænker: Hvorfor ved hun ikke det? Man bliver ikke klogere af at gå med tingene selv, og jeg behøver ikke at vide alt på forhånd. Hvis nogen tilbyder mig et job eller beder mig løse en opgave, tror jeg på, at det er fordi, de ser et potentiale i mig, og har tillid til, jeg kan. Så må jeg lære det undervejs.‟
Den holdning har hun taget med sig hele vejen til sin nuværende rolle som Key Account Director, hvor hun samarbejder med nogle af Ateas største private kunder.
Egentlig havnede Camilla lidt tilfældigt i IT-branchen. Med en generalistuddannelse fra CBS vidste hun, hvordan man lærer nyt, og hvordan man hurtigt kan sætte sig ind i komplekse problemstillinger.
„Jeg havde aldrig haft et budget, og vidste ingenting om it-infrastruktur, salg eller styring af en kundeportefølje, da jeg startede. Halvdelen af mig syntes, at tanken om at arbejde i salg var fed – den anden halvdel var nervøs. For at sige det mildt. Men nogle gange må man bare hoppe ud på det dybe og prøve at svømme. Worst case scenario er, at jeg ikke kan finde ud af det, men så har jeg prøvet.”
Tidligere jobs havde givet hende en klar idé om, hvad hun i hvert fald ikke ville: være pistolsælger, der presser produkter ned i halsen på folk. En underviser på universitetet ændrede dog hendes syn på salg. Og netop den læring blev hendes springbræt til at bringe nogle af sine største styrker i spil:
„Jeg lærte, at salg handler om mennesker, om at skabe tillid og opbygge relationer. Jeg vil ikke sælge noget, som kunden ikke har brug for. Tværtimod handler mit arbejde om at finde ud af, hvad kundens behov er, og finde en løsning der passer til netop dét, så vi sammen kan nå deres mål.”
ENGLISH:
If I don’t know it, there are probably others who don’t either. But then I can learn it.
That’s what Camilla Borch Clausen thought when she gathered the courage to raise her hand in a packed lecture hall at the university.
She thought the same when she jumped into her first job, which was full of Excel spreadsheets – a program she had never worked with before.
And she thought the same again when she later joined Atea, despite never having been in a sales role.
Camilla’s approach to her career is simple but ambitious
„I love learning new things and am not afraid to ask for help or ask ‚dumb questions.‛ Even if someone thinks: Why doesn’t she know this? You don’t get smarter by keeping things to yourself, and I don’t need to know everything in advance. If someone offers me a job or asks me to solve a task, I believe it’s because they see potential in me and trust that I can do it. Then I have to learn it along the way.‟
She has carried this attitude all the way to her current role as Key Account Director, where she collaborates with some of Atea’s largest private clients.
Camilla actually ended up in the IT industry somewhat by chance. With a generalist degree from CBS, she knew how to learn new things and quickly immerse herself in complex issues.
„I had never had a budget and knew nothing about IT infrastructure, sales, or managing a customer portfolio when I started. Half of me thought that the idea of working in sales was exciting – the other half was nervous. To put it mildly. But sometimes you just have to dive into the deep end and try to swim. The worst-case scenario is that I can’t figure it out, but at least I’ve tried.”
Previous jobs had given her a clear idea of what she definitely didn’t want: to be a pushy salesperson forcing products down people’s throats. However, a lecturer at the university changed her view on sales. And that very learning became her springboard to leverage some of her greatest strengths:
„I learned that sales is about people, building trust, and creating relationships. I don’t want to sell something the customer doesn’t need. On the contrary, my job is to find out what the customer’s needs are and find a solution that fits exactly that, so we can achieve their goals together.‟
