From sales expert to sales coach

"Ambits suggested three possible mentors, and I immediately felt a rapport with Francis. As far as I was concerned, he also had a unique profile: as a certified Franklin Covey trainer and former VP Specialty Steel Wire at Bekaert, he was ideally placed to combine theory and practice.

I had a one-hour face-to-face meeting with Francis every couple of weeks, which was certainly not a casual chat. His experience as General Manager for Bekaert in China proved invaluable. He also taught me how to cope better with the uncertainty inherent in restructuring and staff changes. In my role as team lead, he pointed out the importance of clear processes and priority scheduling – urgency versus value.

“Francis also gave me books that we would discuss during our next session. ‘The Servant’ by James C. Hunter about servant leadership was a real eye-opener for me: it made me realise that no one gets up in the morning with a mission to make your life miserable, that it’s OK for a manager to ask for and offer help, and that there are some things you can influence and others you can’t, what’s known as the circle of influence. But Francis also had some really practical tips. For instance, I now end every business conversation by asking, ‘Is there anything else I can help you with?’”