By: IT Weapons, winner of the Dell “Canadian Partner of the Year for 2012.”
Earlier this week Dell announced their international Partner of the Year Awards. IT Weapons was selected for Canada (read more), and this is a huge honor for our team. And while we are extremely proud of our team, we have to share this recognition with Senthil, our Dell rep. The reasons we love him are simple: he acts like he is on our team. A true honorary Wep. But it’s not just the fact that Senthil has been a tireless champion of IT Weapons inside of Dell Canada and with our industry peers … Although that certainly helps! The real reason we love him is because he shares our core values and he works for Dell with the same character and commitment we try to cultivate our own team.
Senthil understands the importance of exposure and accessibility when it comes to a successful business partnership. We try to do so as well. Just as we always try to ensure that each of our clients knows as many Wepz as possible, and that we get to know everybody at a client site beyond just the IT Manager … So too has Senthil made sure that he visits our office all the time and gets to know everyone he can. He asks questions, cracks jokes, and regularly brings new Dell folks by to meet our team. Relationships take work, and that work almost always pays off.
Senthil is quick to respond to requests and super-thorough with his updates. That’s also something we try to nurture in our own team all the time. Our CEO Ted‘s favorite saying is “It’s not the big that eat the small, but rather the fast that eat the slow.” Exhibiting a sense of urgency and commitment to the work are definitely part of the formula for any successful business. We do our best to make sure we are hyper-responsive, internally and externally, and the effort is worth it.
Senthil has never been a fairweather friend. Our industry is certainly not immune to Murphy’s Law. Things go wrong. And when they occasionally do go wrong and questions come up, Senthil works hard to get all the right resources and people aligned to tackle the issues immediately. This is another point of pride for our team internally. Addressing problems, conflict, and errors in a head-on and honorable way is among the most important parts of the ITW culture. Our Chief Architect Jason MacBean and our Principal Account Manager Brett Craig always say that the core operating philosophy for ITW is simple and honest, “Do a good job and they’ll call us back.” When trouble arises, you stare it square in the face, do the right thing, and the rest will sort itself out.
So, when we think about what makes a great business partner, a great company, or a great team member, the same simple and admirable characteristics always come to mind. We’d like to think these things are part of what has made ITW successful. We’d also like to think that these things are why were recognized by Dell as Partner of the Year. And these are definitely the things that we love about Senthil our Dell rep.
