The ever-evolving changes in the business world demand adaptation to meet the needs of modern times. Often businesses struggle and fall short of matching up with these changes putting themselves in jeopardy. It requires strong leadership to lead organizations through these transformations to develop and execute innovative growth strategies while cultivating robust relationships. Akin to such leadership is Meredith Caram, the Chief Revenue Officer of JS Group. She is responsible for business expansion leadership for diverse sales and marketing teams. As an experienced veteran who has held multiple leadership hats over decades, from sales to marketing, Meredith’s distinctive approach has proven to deliver results while championing and sponsoring progress in technology solutions.
Over the years, Meredith has garnered various experiences that impacted the industry with her expertise and foundational values. Her efforts were recognized, which led her to earn 5-Star Channel Program Awards, along with a long list of accolades, with the recent being The Top 10 Influential CROs for 2021 and Top 10 most Impactful Women in Technology for 2020.
Meredith’s love for technology aligns with her business and leadership to disrupt the status quo that helps tech firms expand to newer markets and shake up growth sectors to win additional business. She asserts, “We are at a critical time with the dawn of the fourth industrial revolution, powered by 5G, which gives us low latency, high-speed digital technology. Smart technologies like edge computing and connected devices shape a new future for all of us. This revolution is expected to impact all disciplines, industries, and economies.”
Improved Channel Performance
JS Group was launched in 2018 and has become one of the industry’s leading consulting firms responsible for creating impactful go-to-market strategies and channel activation programs for technology firms. The company helps its clients capitalize on tech innovation changes, customer buying behavior, and evolving distribution and resale models.
When Janet Schijns, the Co-founder and CEO, saw tech companies struggling to identify their fundamental value proposition to end-users, that meant the channel couldn’t survive. She learned that about 50% of partners go out of business or retire. With these many consolidations coupled with challenging conversations between vendors and partners regarding shady deals, the battles for leads, and a hidden list of protected accounts were coming out in the open. Noticing these shifts that lacks transparency from the days of “mystery breeding margin,” JS Group was born to lead the industry through its transformational solutions.
With the addition of Meredith Caram to the roster, JS Group learns from their leaders’ journeys to lead some of the largest businesses in the world to grow while helping the technology industry achieve record growth.
JS Group swears by innovation to develop the next-gen channel framework and growth strategies that go well beyond theory to deliver accurate results. It is known for its routes-to-market, branding, sales programs, and solution development. The firm also provides Channel Evolution, Strategic Planning, Channel Marketing, Sales Enablement and, Talent Development services and studies the industry every day. The selective approach engrained in the company’s core values allows it to seek talented people with the same amount of passion, energy, and competitive edge. The company offers its clients an average improvement rate of 17% in the running cost of channels and >40% improvement in channel performance.
Technological Norm
Meredith states that when technology changes, the channel changes with it. What sets JS Group apart from the rest is its focus on #digitalnormal, as it has become critical for the survival of many companies. #digitalnormal includes the company’s social selling program, which assists partners to find new leads and close more sales, creating a remarkable opportunity for the channel that helps organizations to harness growth. Utilizing the latest technology to its fullest, JS Group also provides its clients with an “as-a-service” business model, security, IoT, enterprise video, cloud, and mobility services.
So Long As
Every one wishes to change the face of the industry that they operate in. Meredith expresses that she would love to help various organizations enable their channel, whether startups or existing brands. JS Group carries out a complete study of the clients’ full channel route-to-market. It examines its arsenal to find the right program and strategic design and asks questions, “What is their framework? Their benefits? Their requirements?” The firm looks at partner-readiness coupled with product development from an alternate focal point of this new #digitalnorm that in and how the channels advance and change towards this with regards to sales enablement. This tactic facilitates the client to re-evaluate their choices in the market; however, JS Group’s approach includes partner recruiting, onboarding, and activation.
Embracing Potential Alterations
Meredith mentions that JS Group was focused on digital and emerging channels of distribution long before the pandemic. It led the firm to create programs to help its clients create demand, capture sales, and evolve its prowess in an increasingly digital world. It allowed it to capture share during challenging times and positioned itself to continue to win in the future.
JS Group is doubling down in areas like edge computing and 5G to enable the adoption of exciting emerging technologies and seeks in areas like AI and security. Meredith notes, “This year more than ever, everyone is focused on demonstrating value in a world that has shifted and will never go back, which means partners’ business models need to change.” The company’s programs solve these challenges with how to provide the technologies, market the technologies, and sell the technologies to make sure the channel remains relevant in the coming years as we move into another evolution.”
Maximizing Revenues
Adapting and embracing the new changes as soon as possible has become essential. Growth is now the name of the game. JS Group has evolved its offering to ensure channel acceleration in the market while simultaneously being a good partner and excellent industry member.
Meredith asserts, “Our goal is to build creative new ways to maximize channel capacity while maximizing growth and crafting new ways to generate high margin revenue for their clients.”
Inspiring Future Generations
One of the challenges Meredith noticed in her career that stuck out to her was a lack of confidence in women. However, the root of the problem lies beneath another layer that several firms lack confidence in women. She was often stereotyped and was suggested by these mindsets that the role of woman is secondary. Meredith put her passionate methodologies to advocate such situations to make the change from secondary to primary. She became bold about these changes and addressed gender-biased issues by communicating with stakeholders to create beneficial business action.
Meredith’s prominent voice for women in technology inspired other women leaders to share their journeys, offer career-building advice, and lead thought-provoking discussions. She says, “The world is full of people who are trying to find ways to sell their solutions through the indirect channel.”
“It is a rewarding but difficult journey that requires true expertise and guidance to make it work. This is an area that firms need to invest in, focus on, and engage experts in to win,” Meredith concludes.
