Helping companies build high-trust workplaces and enabling a great workplace culture starts with recognizing the need to do so. Great Place to Work Singapore and ASEAN’s Sales and Client Solutions team know this to be true as they help companies kick-start the process of identifying this need. Samantha Casey, Lily Wong, Kristi-Ann Ong and Quak Swee-Seng share life beyond the world of Access, Analyze and Accelerate and what excites them the most.
Samantha: The sales team at Great Place to Work is committed to help the people and branding team at our clients’ organizations hit their goals. We spend time listening to our customers and what is most important to them at their stage of growth and ensure that we are setting up a long-term partnership that allows us to grow with our customers. Celebrating the success of all our customers despite how they partner with us is the most rewarding part of being a sales person here.
Lily: Sales and Client Solutions are responsible for the acquisition of new clients and maintaining a strong continuing partnership with existing clients. We help organizations become great places to work For All™ by quantifying their workplace culture and building a high-trust environment through our Trust Index Survey data.
Kristi-Ann: Client Solutions is the first point-of-contact any organization has with Great Place to Work. I see myself as your relationship manager from the moment I respond to your enquiry because I am here to listen to your needs and find solutions with Great Place to Work’s offerings. I believe that first impressions matter and so I strive to always be a good representation of Great Place to Work in my communications and recommendations.
Swee-Seng: Helping organizations to be a Great Place to work For All™.
Q: What do you enjoy the most as part of the Sales Team and what is the most underrated part of what you do?
Samantha: I thoroughly enjoy the deep customer relationships we have especially when we see companies receive the survey feedback, taking action on it and achieving results in the form of improved employee experiences. Yes, we reward it with our accolades but the smile on the faces of senior leaders when their people give improved feedback year-on-year truly stays with me and I feel a part of their success.
Lily: The relationships with the clients. Every interaction with a client is a learning experience and it adds meaning to our work when they share the impact Great Place to Work has on their workplace culture. The underrated part would be the amount of follow-up work and when we go the extra mile for our clients.
Kristi-Ann: I love that I am in the business of building relationships. I get to talk to all kinds of people from organizations across all industries from Australia to parts of ASEAN on a daily basis. It is a privilege to listen to organisations’ aspirations for their people and their desire in creating a great workplace. I am so thankful I am able to be a part of their journey.
Swee-Seng: I enjoy seeing the clients achieve Great Place to Work Certification. The flipside of it is handling disappointment at times.
Samantha: One of my biggest Sales Win moment happened just recently. A new customer of ours who, since their founding year, had put culture at the forefront of all they did, decided to participate in the Great Place to Work Certification™ this year. They aren’t a large-spend customer with us, they simply wanted to participate in our program. To their surprise, they made our Best Workplaces™List and I was lucky enough to be the person to deliver that news to them. Their goal was to be recognised for the years of hard work and we had a solution that allowed them to celebrate this in the best way possible. That is truly what my role is all about.
Lily: Seeing how sincere and earnest senior leaders of organizations are about building a great workplace culture and being intentional in taking concrete steps towards it is a Sales Win moment for me. Helping organizations elevate their employer branding from the inside-out and seeing how the employees truly celebrate with the company (for e.g., posting on their social media) when the company achieves Certification is truly satisfying.
Kristi-Ann: I remember my first conversation with company A. They said, “Kristi, I know my company is not yet a great workplace. We have a long way to go and we do not know where to start. But we want our people to enjoy coming to work and to trust the people they work for.” My Sales Win moment was when I was finally able to send them an email to congratulate them on achieving Certification. Company A deep-dived into their results, took action and implemented the culture they want in their organization. It was not an easy road but they sunk in their feet and committed to the project. When they achieved the badge, it was 100% well-deserved and definitely well-celebrated. What most people do not see is the level of organization and planning required before each day starts. I have to have my calls adequately spaced out to suit different time zones and to be very organized in my follow-ups.
Swee-Seng: When I underwent training to do sales, I sat in and listened to a sales call by an experienced sales consultant. The sales consultant pulled out 15 minutes before the call due to an urgent matter and I had to do the sales call with no preparation. I ended up closing the deal – and it was my first sales in the company. What is unseen is the amount of chicken rice I ate when rushing through deadlines! Chicken rice is the most convenient given that our office is surrounded by a few chicken rice stalls.
Q: What is your happy spot/moment/activity that you enjoy?
Samantha: I enjoy working with the other salespeople to come up with new and better ways of doing things. Allowing everyone the chance to innovate and contribute ideas is at the heart of our methodology at Great Place to Work and living it out with our team – it is truly what allows us to grow.
Lily: I enjoy gardening (in spite of the lack of green fingers, haha).
Kristi-Ann: I spend too much time shopping online for my groceries.
Swee-Seng: Trying to play a decent game of Squash or imagining I am playing the guitar like Slash. I welcome a shot of Cointreau or a glass of Merlot anytime.
Q: Tell us if you have another secret ambition besides working at Great Place to Work?
Samantha: I’d like to master Pilates, which I restarted recently and one day even become a Pilates instructor! I think I could do it well.
Lily: Hmm … I can’t think of any for now.
Kristi-Ann: I hope one day I can sing well or play the piano.
Swee-Seng: When I was very young, I wanted to win a Nobel prize. It can be in any area, Economics, Peace or even Literature, I just wanted a Nobel prize then. Now I would like to travel to space as a space tourist.
Q: In 5 years’ time, what would the future you say to you?
Samantha: The future would say to me – every moment, mistake and win matters. Everything that we go through is an opportunity to grow and learn as a leader and as an individual. It shapes who we are. I hope that in 5 years – I am looked to as a trusted leader and I have helped many in our business to hit both their professional and personal growth goals.
Lily: You are still alive! Good job!
Kristi-Ann: Kristi, you are right. There are thousands of Certified companies in Singapore. We have changed the world for the better.
Swee-Seng: There are more clothing stores in Singapore than Uniqlo and G2000.
Curious about the Great Place to Work team and how they make work purposeful and fulfilling? Find out more about them here.
Daphne Lee
Daphne believes in building community-relatable content, telling stories through narratives that add value in today’s workplace and in culture-building. Her idea of a great workplace is one that thrives on openness, support and inclusivity while building trust and working towards a common business growth and purpose. A journalist, she spent 15 years writing for trade publications, lifestyle magazines and broadsheet supplements. Daphne was also active in the Parent Support Group of her daughters’ school, chairing the volunteer-run committee for 3 years. A mum of two teenagers and two adopted dogs, she enjoys riding on her trusty bicycle to discover new sights and sounds in Singapore.
