PPB October 2020

MATTHEW WHITELEY Global Head of Sales BAMKO Nashville, Tennessee Matt Whiteley has been managing sales teams for more than a decade. During his nearly 20-year career, he’s managed sales and business development for several companies in the software industry before joining distributor BAMKO in 2017. At his most recent previous employer, he led three separate sales organizations housed under one corporate umbrella. BAMKO, based in Los Angeles, has hundreds of employees in 11 cities across four continents. “My experience managing software sales offers me a unique perspective on the sort of solution-based selling that is becoming increasingly important in our industry these days,” Whiteley says. Lindsay Alcorn, one of four nominators, calls her boss a teacher, a doer, a therapist and a winner. “I have never wanted my sales manager to attend a client meeting with me in the past,” she says. “With Matt, I rearrange my meetings to make sure he is there. The value he brings is absolutely amazing.” Nominator Dana Sussman appreciates Whiteley’s leadership style. “I consider my boss to be one of the best because he leads from the front. He is always the first person to volunteer to get on a plane for a meeting or a call to help me try to close a deal. I’ve never had a boss who invested in my financial success before.” Her co-worker and fellow nominator James Silberman shares a similar sentiment about Whiteley. “He is excellent at identifying why we are having trouble closing a specific program and addresses the issues head-on. Most importantly, he walks the walk. Matt doesn’t ask us to do anything he won’t or does not do himself.” Nominator Brett Marz adds, “He’s so humble. He just does the work. He’s the hardest working guy in our organization. When he pushes me to work harder for my own success, it comes from a very authentic place. He’s working so hard for me; how can I refuse to work hard for myself?” MatthewWhiteley on his best boss. My best boss has been BAMKO’s President Phil Koosed. He has empowered me to be the best version of myself. Phil is a great communicator, sets clear expectations and leads through service. He sets a great example for me and the rest of our management team. Phil challenges us to set high expectations for ourselves and then helps put us in a position to meet or exceed those expectations. BAMKO’s performance over the past few years isn’t a coincidence. We help people get more out of themselves and Phil has certainly helped me find another gear. The most valuable lesson he’s learned frommanaging others. The most valuable lesson I have learned in managing others is that there are three sides to every story, “yours, mine and the truth.” The truth lies somewhere in the middle. This helps me come to conversations and discussions from a position of understanding rather than a place of judgement. His best advice for being a great boss. The best piece of advice for being a great boss that I consistently give is to lead by example. I will never ask my team to do something I have not done, nor will I ask them to do something I would never do. I have found that making myself available and putting them first shows that I am willing to do what it takes, that I am willing to get in the trenches with my team and demonstrates that we are in this together. Tina Berres Filipski is editor of PPB. Best Bosses 2020 | FEATURE | OCTOBER 2020 | 29