Describe your journey to HubSpot.

I graduated from Boston University in 2013 with a BA in Sociology and a BS in Communication. As life would have it, for me to be eligible for the BS in Communication, I had to do an internship in the BU Public Relations Lab where my title was “Account Executive.” 

In tandem, as I was about to graduate, I was faced with a bit of a life crisis where I did not really know what I could do in terms of a “career” but I knew that I wasn’t going to move back in at home, and I was determined to “make it” as a college graduate. A friend of mine suggested sales (a career I never knew about) and when the stars aligned, a talented HubSpot recruiter sent me a LinkedIn message asking if I was interested in a career in sales (the Account Executive title definitely helped) and I went through the interview process. 

I knew of HubSpot as a company and a bit about the product before I joined. I did not know I was joining a unicorn start-up and a rocket ship for growth! Here I am ten years later and I enjoy every single week, I’m still learning a ton, and I get to be an active participant in my own development.

What do you enjoy about your role?

I did not grow up thinking “I would like to do sales,” and I don’t consider myself to be an extroverted person. The best part is I’ve learned through my career in sales that I do not need to be in order to succeed. 

My favorite part about sales as a career is the ability to learn something new every single day. I’ve never been an entrepreneur, and I’ve never owned or ran a business but, I do have the ability to speak to business owners and folks who are driving growth in their companies. It’s actually fun to learn every day and think through the puzzle of what “growing better” looks like for that particular customer. Each day is a bit of an echo, but yet again, unique in its own form. 

As a Director today, I enjoy growing our segment and growing our market (Latin America). I am an immigrant to the United States (Port of Entry MIA 1999) and the goal I had for my life was to make sure the next generation would have it better.

I’m lucky that in my life, things have worked out far better than I ever imagined (knock on wood!), but in parallel, when we grow as a company, there are opportunities created for other people. I enjoy seeing the growth of the team, and the talent development across the team, and I am motivated by knowing I might’ve been the third seller in Latin America, but here I am 10 years later, and I am not the last one. 

What's one thing you've worked on that you're really proud of?

On the personal side, I am proud to say I’ve been able to live my version of the American Dream and as an immigrant from Colombia, there’s something special about getting to say “I did it! I am self-made!”  (Thank you HubSpot Sales!)

On the professional side, I was 27, but HubSpot trusted me with the opening up of the Bogota Office in 2018. That office started out in a WeWork where we had enough seating for 8 individuals. Fast forward 5 years, our #BogoSpot office is now three floors, and HC surpasses 300 individuals! 

What's one aspect of HubSpot's culture or DI&B programming that you value and why?

HubSpot’s culture of transparency has been the biggest catalyst for my career. It has allowed me to see my role at HubSpot as an MBA. Our internal wiki documents the decisions we make as a company, how we make them, and what needs to happen for those plays to pan out--it becomes a real-life Business Case to review and learn from. 

I also appreciate the growth we’ve had on the diversity front and credit goes to our senior leadership for walking the walk. When I joined HubSpot I was the only Latino in the Business Development Representatibe (Junior Sales Role) organization. Whenever we did a diversity panel, it was usually the same four individuals (myself included). Fast forward 10 years and we have multiple employee resource groups like People of Color at HubSpot and BIPOC Sales Excellence, and I am motivated to see new faces every single month! It’s validating to see that I am not the only one. 

What do you like to do outside of work?

Outside of work, I enjoy four things:

1) Time with my best friend and wife Chelsea and our dog Stevie!

2) Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu--this is a massive part of my life and I take every single opportunity I have to train whenever I can. I also like to visit a gym whenever I go to a new city. It’s my own way of meeting new people with some built-in common ground.

3) I am incredibly mediocre at guitar…but I’m getting better! 

What does Latinx Hispanic Heritage Month mean to you?

Being Latino and an immigrant is a core pillar of my identity. Having a month to celebrate heritage feels validating! It’s also a good moment in time to pause and reflect on what challenges the Latinx community faces and what strides can be made to illuminate a path forward. 

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Learn more about HubSpot’s culture on our careers website and follow HubSpot Life on Instagram as we continue to share employee highlights, internal celebrations, learnings, and more. Interested in Sales @ HubSpot? Here you go!