Annette Abell

Identified an under-served niche for a professional consultancy specializing in providing ERP/CRM implementation services spanning all Salesforce.com platforms. Prospect and win clients ranging from tangible products to professional service organizations. Lead the design and specification of set-ups, support clients through the process to ensure effective implementation, and work to maximize user adoption. Core Responsibilities & Accomplishments: • Lead & manage new business development & client engagements, including assisting clients with devising & implementing operational, sales management, sales process, marketing & technical issues related to application deployments. • Expertly manage projects across clients’ multiple business units & departments to ensure strategic & realistic scope, execution, testing, launch, training & sustainability with the goal of realizing return on objective. • Apply two decades of experience in the private sector to helping clients extract value from their Salesforce.com investments, including advising clients on platform selection & licensing issues. Select Critical Contributions: • Sales management. Devise & implement sales management plans designed to optimize how sales team target, sell/close new and repeat business, including training clients on how to identify high probability pursuits. • CRM implementation. Provided thought leadership around the design & specification of innumerable CRM applications deployed across clients in a wide variety of industries, including establishing KPI’s and protocols to foster desired outcomes—applying data-driven analytics to provide decision support. • ERP system design. Led the charge to help Rhode Island’s manufacturing extension partner streamline & replace an under-performing legacy ERP system to improve profitability/service. Designed a new financial infrastructure to realize client objectives. Delivered the solution on time, on plan & on budget—a solution that became the gold standard.

Recruited to take a $3M firm into a new for-profit market with an emerging SaaS product (SalesForce.com). Crafted the company’s first sales plan and aligned it with marketing to focus collective energies on prospecting, qualifying and closing. Defined all sales and marketing metrics supported by a new commission structure to incent desired behaviors and the financial model.

Inherited an at-risk top-ten client with the objective of putting the firm on a successful path to growth after a thorough opportunity assessment that included development of a comprehensive multi-national communications and education plan. Enlightened new and existing clients on how to leverage online qualitative research methods to expand portfolios and drive profitability. Applied the model from Toronto to Washington, DC and across the pond to UK and France—successfully creating 15+ new accounts and 2+ top-tier renewals within the first six months.

Accepted a purposeful lateral move to return to a client-facing position. Grew net new business in two unique sectors: Public relations agencies serving Fortune 500 companies as well as NGO’s, national charities and associations, and global foundations with public affairs and policy needs. Developed research-driven solutions that included new market entry; new product development; branding; positioning; segmentation, targeting and messaging; strategy development; employee alignment; loyalty; leadership initiatives; advertising and marketing mix optimization; crisis communications and reputation management. The results: Stimulated $250K in new business from dormant, keystone accounts. • Led a global, cross-department team on one of the year’s largest opportunities valued at $1.3M. • Cultivated top-five tier accounts that contributed 60% of sales and 80% of pipeline. • Drove a 66% win rate by volume and 36% by value—another best-in-class accomplishment. • Increased average project size by 33% to over $75K—a significant achievement.

Supported aggressive, double-digit YOY sales growth for 13 business units each with its own industry, product mix, positioning and sales model. Partnered with profit-and-loss leaders on how to best invest their marketing budgets to insulate tier-one client base and procure new high-value clients. Led all strategy planning through to execution and tracking of marketing tactics. Monitored performance against ROI expectations, refining programs to optimize the <1% of revenue marketing budgets. Maximized the talents of the sales force by analyzing CRM data to develop ideal client profiles—efforts that led to retention strategies and the creation of new business development resources. • Led the charge to reposition the company as a leader in an entirely new and controversial market targeting highly skeptical, data-driven, highly conservative industry leaders. Crafted the brand and go-to-market strategy necessary for a successful IPO—efforts that contributed to the firm becoming the 13th largest marketing research firm in the world. • Educated and armed front-line staff on high-value-added solutions that drove up average project value by 8%. • Developed marketing performance metrics, proving 15%+ of sales were driven by marketing—a key metric in justifying additional marketing investments. • Improved sales efficiency by 4% with the implementation of simple company-wide lead qualification and recontact programs that could be deployed nationally.

Directed all physician, consumer, and community communications designed to make Thompson an active choice for patient care, rehabilitation, senior living and other services. Advised executive management and board how to increase admissions and in-network patient enrollment, resulting in a physician recruitment and consumer referral program, “Choose Doctors Who Choose Thompson.” • Saved the system over $75K with a single alignment of its marketing mix. • Streamlined print, outdoor and online media plans to complement one another and save 10+%.