That said the first six / seven months of the year have provided some great signs of progress and, as a management team, Nick, Julian and I are also cognisant of the various challenges that slow our progress as a company and frustrate all of us along the way.
So, what did the first half of the year look like. In numbers across the two companies we have had a good growth in Concurrent at 15% and a reduction in Honeycomb at -8%. Most will know that Concurrent is the rich cousin, so it is great to see the level of growth that we have there. It is not by chance. The growth has been achieved despite the challenges in building the sales team up to the numbers planned. April / May and the summer months are typically a challenging time for recruitment, but it is full steam ahead now to get the numbers into the sales team and drive the levels of growth in our plans.
The development of our messaging was also a positive step, and as is always the case with these things once we get there, there is a sigh of relief and then a difficult spell to act on the messaging. Change is difficult for all of us; we are not programmed for it. As a management team, we need to promote and drive the messaging. Then we need all the team behind it 110%. I am convinced of our messaging absolutely and can see the value of it in deals we have won this year, like FT Technologies (incl repeat order), Mettis Aerospace, Modular Automation, Teconnex and others.
There have been some developments in the teams also: Aida has made a great transition across to the Windchill implementation team and completed some initial projects. We all wish her well and a speedy recovery - it is hard to score goals without a striker! Atif has been busy developing his skills over the back end of last year and, with the guidance and support of Andrew, they have developed into a very credible and capable IoT / AR hit squad. The feedback from recent IoT / AR project activities has been the some of the best the company has ever received. I am always conscious of singling out individual activities, however I think it is worth noting Atif’s and Andrew’s work on these projects - particularly as this space is an emerging one. The parameters for engagements are open and fluid, the definition of what is good is evolving so keeping composure and professionalism on that journey is not always easy. I think we can say the same about certain aspect of the FT work Dave has undertaken. We have a bit to go on the project there before we are at a stage to get feedback from the customer, but so far so good. Jane has arrived and established herself as if she was always here and brings a great capacity to the team as an organiser and coordinator.
Some of you may be aware that Julian, Nick and I have developed a regular management meeting rhythm now, working to a priority list month to month. I know I spoke about communication in the messaging session earlier in the year and we are working to keep all informed on the outcomes of the management meetings. The main bullet points on the agenda at the moment are:
Finally, I’d like to wish John Osman the very best in his retirement. It has been a quick three and a half years John! Your contribution and efforts to the development of the business are recorded in its history’s timeline forever now. Thank you for all the efforts along the way.
So, lots going on and lots to do. Remember time: it is our friend and foe. Use it well and “don’t look back in anger” at least not today!
July has been a good month for sales.
Everyone in the team has contributed and we have some significant wins that are the result of implementing some changes and refining our approach.
Whoever told a sales team to do less? Not me that is for certain. But working on the calls we make, the meetings we attend, why we attend them and on what basis is a big step away from the desperate behaviour of less assured sales people.
Do Less – do less of the work that is pure speculation. Who would travel to a meeting with no upfront agreement and no next actions agreed? Most sales reps do… but we don’t!
For More – investing in peer to peer professional discussions to achieve more; blatantly honest dialogue and shared desire to achieve more
On Purpose – in our terms because it is right to do so with the right people at the right time
The power of this approach changes the game and I believe that is why we won IoT deals in Mettis Aerospace, Modular Automation and Smart Factory. A great PLM win for Steve and Adrian at Teconnex, a great win for Lee at Nortek where we guided the customer through and changed the whole landscape to walk a significant services PO in with little effort. A masterclass in high level professional selling and one that Lee can repeat time and time again and Luke becoming the most predictable and reliable Inside Sales professional that I have worked with. Month after month achieving targets and mostly without too much fuss! Now we have the foundations and the standards are in place.
Not to leave myself out, FT are raising another PO this week to take us into more challenging territory as we move into PLM-ERP Co-Existence. This is positive as they can be task masters and sometimes without compromise, so credit to Nick and Dave for managing the project and to Phil who is my voice of reason and keeps FT grounded.
Credit also due to Adam, who is leading a 30 day MCAD-ECAD collaboration project with Logitech. Pushing the boundaries and committing in unchartered territory and doing a very good piece of work.
One other topic that is front and centre is our evolving Customer Success Programme.
I am working on a model that proactively looks after our customers and raises the bar in providing positive experiences. I want to reduce the typical account management activities so that sales people can focus on their primary roles and the success programme puts its arms around our customers. It is a hard programme to get going and it requires some effort so watch this space as we build on this. One element that is in place is the right people ready to start with this. Emily and Laura can add so much value here and they are undoubtedly perfect in this role.
Laura also wins the tidiest desk with nicest plant competition and this is a trait of a successful young professional!
So, as you will have read in Owen’s article this month, the work in hand is relentless but we are wining.
We just need to make winning across the whole company slightly easier.
For another article…
Formula Student UK, part of Europe’s leading and most established educational motorsport competition, celebrated its 20th anniversary on 11th - 15th July 2018 at Silverstone.
Run by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Formula Student brings Universities from around the globe together to compete. Teams produce a single seat race car for autocross or sprint racing. They design and manufacture their vehicle, as well as do their marketing, find business sponsorships and make presentations to hypothetical manufacturing firms.
This year, we held a competition for the teams to win an Xbox for the best ‘Smart Connected Vehicle’. As we move towards a smart connected future, we wanted to celebrate forward-thinking teams that are integrating new technologies into their design, repair and vehicle analyse. The University of Liverpool came top, snatching the title with an impressive car and clear explanations of the smart components integrated within the car.
Over the week, it was great to see the number of Universities interested in PTC products - the sponsorship sign-up for PTC Thingworx AR and IoT products was tremendous. Students can see the potential business value behind these capabilities and already eager to bring it into their designs.
Arriving at the event isn’t enough for teams to secure their place in the final. They must first get the car through the business presentations, technical scrutineering, tilt test and brake and noise test, before moving on the dynamic skid, sprint, acceleration and endurance tests. The success of the UK teams was terrific, with many of smashing previous teams records or qualifying further than previous teams.
Well done to Monash Motorsports from Melbourne Australia for taking home the first place for their combustion car and 3rd for their Electric car!
And a massive congratulations to all the teams on their success.
For some students, the competition scrutineering wasn’t even their biggest obstacle. Team Auj of the National University of Sciences and Technology, Pakistan is the first ever all-female team to compete in the UK competition.
They faced down social prejudice, economic hurdles and political challenges just to arrive at Silverstone. These problems also delayed the build of their car until May. Yet, this team of fourteen women proved what they could achieve, completing the build and competed in the competition. They were presented with the Spirit of Formula Student Award and received a well-deserved standing ovation from all the students, sponsors and supporters at the presentation evening. Find out more about their journey here.
This team not only serves as an inspiration to girls in Pakistan but to women everywhere who aspire to careers in motorsports and engineering. With the percentage of female competitors now up to 13%, we hope to see more teams like in Auj in the future!
Formula Student is an incredible event, and one that Concurrent and PTC are proud to support. The passion and drive of the students competing are unmatched. Their eagerness, willingness to learn and desire to get out into the working world is a pleasure to see. It is also great to see so many familiar companies sponsoring the teams. Hopefully, this will only grow as the competition goes on.
The students competing are the future of engineering. We need to take inspiration from their triumphs as much as we need to inspire more people to get involved.
Happy Birthday to all our August babies!
Steve on the 4th
Karen on the 8th
And Andrew on the 21st
