Meet Jessica Saunders, a newly promoted Territory Sales Manager at Simpson Strong-Tie. For her, success means being proud of her work and having a supportive team that has her back. Learn about how Simpson culture supports her in her current role, the insights she’s gained as a woman in sales, and how they help her strike a satisfactory balance between work and her home life.
My career at Simpson Strong-Tie has been a journey full of challenges and growth opportunities. Despite experiencing gender biases and stereotypes, I never let them affect how I do my job. I am proud to be a sounding board, mentor and support system for other women in the industry.
When I first joined Simpson, I joined the Inside Sales team. A lot of my job consisted of talking over the phone with our customers. Eventually, I had the desire to see these customers in person, so I switched to Outside Sales. I became pregnant with triplets in 2013 and took six years off as a stay-at-home mom. Once the kids started school, I was lucky enough to return to Simpson Strong-Tie as a dealer sales rep, and I became a senior dealer sales rep soon after. Just this week, I signed an offer letter to become a Territory Sales Manager and will start my new role immediately. I couldn’t be more excited about my next chapter!
When I started in 2011, only two women worked in Outside Sales in our branch. However, since my return in 2020, I’m pleased that the number of female outside salespeople has increased significantly. I’m proud to be a part of a team that includes some of the best women in the field. I have met inspiring women in my industry who have become good friends. I surround myself with successful and driven women to stay motivated.
Unfortunately, I have faced gender-related biases among certain customers, ranging from subtle to outright rude. Whether it’s someone refusing to make eye contact with me because they believed a female couldn’t possibly have an answer to their question or someone thinking there’s no way a woman could handle their request, I’ve learned that I can’t change other people’s deep-rooted beliefs. Still, I can absolutely try to prove them wrong. I don’t let biases affect me and hope my success will change minds over time. Typically, I’ve found it takes an even more extended amount of time to build trust with people who have biases. It can be frustrating, but it’s worth it when you can get to the other side.
Simpson Strong-Tie cultivates a solid and supportive team culture by hiring the best people, offering a never-ending opportunity for training and education, and offering the ability for personal and professional growth through various channels. At Simpson, we’re encouraged to reach out to our peers within our branch and beyond to gain different perspectives and ideas. We learn from one another and support one another. This seems less typical at other companies, where the mentality (at least in sales) tends to be “every man for himself.”. One of the main reasons I love what I do is because I am a part of such a fantastic team.
Simpson has always been great with their various friendly competitions to recognize and award salespeople who have done an outstanding job. The acknowledgment is not just something to be proud of once you’ve earned it, it also helps inspire you to keep doing what you’re doing. There are awards given at a branch level in various market segments that showcase outstanding individuals. We also have larger-scale, companywide, awards for the “best of the best” where these individuals are recognized in front of all branches and market segments. It’s an exciting time and wonderful to know that if you put in the work, you will be recognized because what you do matters.
Balancing work and personal life is probably one of the hardest things to manage. When you love what you do, turning off “work mode” can be challenging. I try to be intentional with my time, and it is all about family when the day is done. My family comes first, and Simpson Strong-Tie supports that. Success in my job means feeling proud of my work and making my customers happy. Focus on accountability and follow-through. If my customers are happy and feel well taken care of, I can go home to my family, be proud of what I do, and feel fulfilled. It’s not every company that allows you to do that.
