#Databoss of Red Flag Alert: Marc Williams

In this edition of #Databoss, we sit down with our Chief Revenue Officer, Marc Williams, to find out his experience at Red Flag Alert since he joined us nine months ago.

What is your role at Red Flag Alert? 

I'm the Chief Revenue Officer or CRO.

My responsibilities are to manage revenue across the business, from marketing to SDRs, new business and the account management team. 

How would you describe yourself in three words?

• Determined
• Fun
• Ambitious 

What do you enjoy most about working here? 

We're at a rapid scaling stage here at Red Flag Alert and I like the challenges that brings. I feel like my experience can bring a lot of value, and I’m excited to see where we can take the business.

Is there something you've worked on that you're especially proud of? 

All of it!

We’ve had a record-breaking year so far on revenue retention, and we’ve broken the record on new business, so I think that in itself is an achievement I’m proud of. We’ve still got three months left of the financial year, and I think everyone’s excited to see where we’re going to finish.

I’d say that’s one thing I’ve been able to make the most impact with, using ideas that may seem quite standard, but are crucial to be implemented or businesses wouldn’t be able to achieve their goals.

How do you stay current with industry trends and development? 

I’ve been in the industry for 15 or 16 years now and I absolutely love it.

Most of it’s reading and keeping up with what competitors are doing/interested in. I think the most important thing is having a genuine interest in your industry.

Everything’s forever changing so it’s important to stay on top of it all so you can filter things down into marketing, SDRs, BDMs, and account managers.

How do you approach problem-solving and overcoming challenges in your role? 

I think my main approach is getting other people involved; I don’t think you can, or should, answer every challenge on your own. I’ve got a great team around me, from the people I manage to the people above.

You’ve got to have good support around you for when you do face challenges.

How does your role contribute to the success of Red Flag Alert? 

I think my 15 years of experience in revenue-driving have had the most positive impact on Red Flag Alert.

Even when I started as an SDR, became a salesperson, to a Sales Director, I’ve always had that determination to drive revenue throughout the business.

Who is your role model? 

I'm going to go with my mum as my role model.

It's generally because she brought up five children, and that's probably harder than running any business. She also ensured we all did quite well - we could’ve all worked stacking shelves (I still think that would be great) but three of us are in the industry, and my two sisters have their own businesses. 

If I could achieve something like that, I'd be happy. 

What advice would you give someone aspiring to become a Chief Revenue Officer? 

My best advice is to be careful what you wish for.

That’s something one of my mentors, a very close friend of mine, said to me when I first wanted to go into management and it’s stuck with me ever since. You always think you want to do it until you get it and realise it’s really tough, but also embrace it because the rewards are worth it.

What do you see as the future of your industry? 

Despite being in a recession, we're in a good position to help businesses. 

I feel like our industry is only ever going to get better and evolve. When you look at things, like, technology, every business wants to do things quicker onboard, faster. So it's only going to mean good growth for our industry, especially for RFA because we're in that scale-up mode.

We're going to be the fastest-growing CRA in the UK this year; that’s something we can all be proud of. It just goes to show that the industry is growing; and because of our diverse product offerings, we are as well.

What drives you to succeed? 

I want to do well in life and be semi-retired by the time I'm 55 (that's probably the biggest reason!).

I’ve always been ambitious. When I was younger, we didn’t really have the trainers and stuff all our friends had, so I’ve always wanted to work hard to make sure I can provide for my family.

I don’t think I’d ever fully retire, even when I’m 70, because I genuinely enjoy what I do and if it’s not what I’m currently doing, it’ll be helping people do what I do now – I’d probably get bored otherwise.

What do you enjoy doing when you're not working? 

Golf and cooking. 

I love playing golf, I try to go as often as I can and it usually takes upwards of four hours on days I go.

I’m also quite passionate about cooking. I’m a massive foodie and will attempt to make anything. I’d have to say my best dish, which all the family want to come around for, is Sunday roast.

Manchester has a great food scene, as does London. I spent eight years in London and learnt this stat: that if that you can eat out for breakfast, lunch and dinner; there are so many restaurants you would be able to eat somewhere new for ten years.