John Harrison
- Specialism: Sales and Sales Strategy, primarily for technology companies
- Track Record: Chief Strategy Officer and Managing Director of Client Success for Oratium; Senior VP of Business Development for First Orion; VP of Sales and Director of Sales Enablement at IBM; Director of Sales at Apptegy; Business Advisor for Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program
- Offer: Fractional Sales and Enablement Leader; Sales Coaching; Deal Strategy development and ongoing advisory; Growth Strategy Consulting
- John says: “I’ll ask the tough questions no one else will.”
- Try me
I became a Portfolio Executive to help a variety of companies while managing my own availability. My journey began when Charles reached out to me, leading to my first success advising a Canadian company (a project still in progress). Through my experience, I have learned that organisations are built on people and processes. The organisation can only thrive if its team members grow and succeed.
Although company growth isn’t mysterious, many leaders see it that way. As a result, organisations often struggle with unclear goals or overcomplicate their challenges, crafting strategies that fail to meet their objectives. I’ve found that a simpler approach—driven by curiosity and clarity—works best. Success requires teamwork across the company, breaking down siloes that isolate departments. While sales provide the revenue for survival, it is often viewed as a standalone function, without recognising that its success depends on the entire organisation.
Helping you succeed—however you define success for your organisation—is my priority. Being a Portfolio Executive suits me well at this stage of my career, following a long tenure at IBM where I held a variety of roles, from trainee to VP of Sales. I also gained valuable skills working with smaller companies. What I’ve learned is that the challenges leaders face are fundamentally the same, regardless of company size.
My diverse background in business is a significant advantage for my clients. I draw on lessons learned in each role, from launching an internal startup to leading sales for a multibillion-dollar organisation. I help clients understand the differences in selling various products and services, revamp sales messages, and improve win rates.
Being a Portfolio Executive allows me to serve multiple clients simultaneously, sharing my skills across different organisations. I’m passionate about developing team capabilities, using a variety of strategies: simplifying processes for efficiency, training sales teams to articulate value to customers, and deploying sales clinics to accelerate opportunity closure.
Some examples of my current work include advising a Canadian company on forming an alliance with a large technology firm, helping a small software company establish and grow its sales team, and consulting a marketing company on their growth strategy.
Looking ahead, I hope to continue finding ways to help many organisations achieve their goals.