Dave Thomas

With 25 years of successful sales and marketing team leadership and individual contribution experience in the critical infrastructure and industrial control space, expertise lies in driving results and achieving goals. Over the past decade, honed skills in IIoT and embedded device cyber security, staying ahead of the curve in this rapidly evolving field. Thriving in a setting that demands direct sales contribution, successfully navigated startups through acquisitions by industry giants like Nortel and GE Digital Energy. As an entrepreneur at heart, possesses the drive necessary to manage and build sales teams in the markets targeted. Comfortable in roles that require direct contribution, a results-driven sales performer with a solid track record of bringing in new customers, managing revenue streams, and maintaining strong account relationships. Continuously monitoring competitors and researching market conditions allows staying responsive and successful in dynamic environments. Persuasive negotiation skills and program management abilities further enhance value as a professional.

• I am a skilled and effective sales and marketing leader who can grow revenues by developing a thoughtful digital marketing and sales strategy that takes full advantage of today's buying preferences. My efforts are firmly rooted in relationship building and creating a trusted consultative relationship with both internal and external customers.
• Came in as an early-stage sales leader and built a go to market strategy for a start up in the optical multiplexing space. Started with a single beta customer and grew the business to $200M with a sales and marketing staff of over 30 in 5 years. Navigated this business through two successful acquisitions, the first by Nortel, and the second by General Electric.
• Stepped into a software turnaround that basically looked like a start up with negative cash flow and less than $700K a year in revenue. I was sales employee #1. I built a go to market strategy and sales organization that grew it to $3.5M annual in annual revenue in 18 months. I did this by successfully putting together a 'white label' OEM agreement with a large manufacturer of smart metering and set up a national distribution agreement with the 2nd largest distributor for electrical grid products in the U.S. Also created a market strategy for renewable energy integration.
• Stepped into a SaaS start up as employee #3 and built a go to market strategy that included extensive digital marketing content. In less than 6 months I successfully closed a distribution/VAR/partner agreement for the company's Field Automation/Mobile workforce and data collection app. The business had 12 subscription customers (electric cooperatives) in the first 2 quarters.
• Developed go to market strategy for IoT, ICS/SCADA Cybersecurity and IT/OT integration solutions for the IOU and Public Power utility market at RAD ($17M USD).
• Grew Ametek's Power Instruments division by 39% over a 4-year period despite the 2009 economic downturn