Employee Spotlight: Hass Johnson

Title: Director, Regional Sales

How long have you been at LogicMonitor?

Nearly one and a half years or nearly 6 years in SaaS time.

Why did you choose to work at LogicMonitor? 

I was looking for a company that would appreciate my unique background and where I could deliver a lot of value. I’m a bit of a hybrid in multiple ways because I have an undergrad degree in Computer Information Systems from Clark Atlanta, an MBA from the McCombs School of Business, experience in selling and leading both new business logos from mid-market to enterprise, and managing multi-million dollar customer accounts. I wanted my next company to really take advantage of the breadth and depth of my experience. 

Furthermore, as a salesperson who still develops code, I wanted a place where I could lead a sales team and leverage all of my background to build a business. Luckily an awesome friend referred me to LogicMonitor.

Why sales? 

I found sales through a series of stages in my career. I love it because you always know where you are. I used to work in IT at Ford Motor Company, doing everything from helping manage a Class II Data Center to developing code from their highly critical marketing and dealer systems. Ford was so big, you could barely tell if you or your work made an impact. With sales, I see my numbers and I know where my team and I are. It’s the closest a non-athlete can get to a scoreboard. That gets me going.

What is your advice on how to be successful every day? 

I’ll answer that question in two ways, one for all professionals and secondly for salespeople:

1. To be successful every day, first find something you love, get deep into it, and do it until you can’t or don’t love it anymore. You’ll find your brand of success this way much faster than any other approach, even if it’s just waking up every day and not hating your life.
2. As a sales professional, there are typically three ways to get to your number: prospecting, prospecting, and qualifying the hell out of what you’ve prospected. There are only three ways to get a deal into pipeline: 
   1. Find it yourself (you or your SDR)
   2. Get it from marketing in some form or fashion (at many companies you’re blessed if you get these so don’t squander them)
   3. Get it from a 3rd/external party or the channel 

Salespeople who continuously optimize across all three of these tend to be successful.

What is the most rewarding part of your role?

Coaching and developing my sales team. Seeing my reps get #BetterEveryday is my daily addiction. I live for it. Seeing them get promoted is the result of all the work we put in, but you don’t get there without hard work.

Was there a certain moment in your career that you felt was a turning point? 

My mentor Robert Alvarez, CFO at Bigcommerce, used to coach me a lot on my empathy and connecting with my team as the primary focus on building a business vs. just the numbers. I feel like I have improved on that in every leadership position I’ve had. I think the turning point was while I was at Newgistics leading a team of Account Managers. We managed a quarter-billion-dollar logistics business and nearly half the company’s revenue. It was a high-stress job, not just for me but for my team. I felt like I put it all together there and discovered my true style as a sales leader.

If you could choose anyone, who would you pick as your mentor? 

I currently have two mentors, one mentioned above and the other is my former boss and CRO at Bold Commerce, Mike Sanchez. I would love to have Robert Smith as a mentor. He’s a genius.

What is your favorite way to relax?

Sitting by a firepit outdoors in some scenic place or my backyard.

If you could learn one new skill, what would it be?

How to fluently speak Mandarin.

What are your top 3 places in Austin to go for food and drinks?

1. Odd Duck
2. Bird Bird Biscuit
3. Bishop Cidercade