Cisco’s advocacy group, Cisco Insider Advocates, brings our prospects collectively and gives a manner for them to make highly effective connections, broaden their skilled and private networks, and study from high specialists of their discipline. One in every of our targets with our advocacy group is to deepen {our relationships} with our prospects. Our Q&A sequence permits us to shine a highlight on a few of our most passionate buyer advocates as we study extra about their tales and backgrounds.
At the moment, we have now one of many friendliest faces locally becoming a member of us for a chat. I’m excited to welcome Damian Erni from Swisscom.
Welcome, Damian! Let’s kick issues off by speaking about what you needed to be if you have been 16 years previous?
That’s an attention-grabbing query. In Switzerland, you often begin your apprenticeship or your research if you flip 16. At the moment, I used to be very eager about mechanical engineering or constructing development.
An apprenticeship is a really hands-on strategy to mix schooling and profession. Talking of careers, the place did you begin yours? And what skilled choice or alternative helped lead you to your present position?
That’s an extended story. I began my skilled profession within the printing and promoting enterprise as a typesetter and graphic designer. Throughout all these years, I all the time maintained and supported the IT infrastructure of the businesses I used to be working for. It was form of a pastime on high of my common job, which was nice enjoyable with a number of studying. In 1999, throughout a go to to an IT honest, I met somebody from Cisco, who was recruiting for a networking boot camp. I signed up for that chance and shortly began my IT profession as a mission engineer, constructing giant MPLS networks globally.
Wow! You and Cisco have had a connection for fairly a while. How has partnering with Cisco helped you in your profession and your present position?
All of it started with the very fact that Cisco made it doable for me to begin my profession in IT, a few years in the past. I’m nonetheless grateful for that chance. At the moment, a few years later, I proceed to be linked to Cisco as an advocate and ambassador of Cisco Insider Advocacy packages, that are incredible. For the each day enterprise, I can depend on the native Cisco group right here in Switzerland.
What’s been your greatest problem in your organization just lately, and the way did you overcome it?
My job is all the time evolving and that’s what makes it nice. In fact, there are many challenges on this fast-turning business, however one of many greater challenges we face is the scarcity of expert IT employees. At Swisscom, we have now a number of packages to draw younger expertise, together with our “junior program,” which exposes contributors to profession alternatives in a variety of fields. For instance, these in this system for system engineers can turn into licensed engineers for Cisco, Dell, or Microsoft with specializations in areas like knowledge heart engineering or community engineering.
Let’s transfer on to our buyer advocacy group! How would you describe Cisco Insider Advocates to those that aren’t aware of it?
The Cisco Insider Advocates group is a bunch of individuals which might be passionate about what they do. They all have an intrinsic motivation to study and discover expertise and are obsessed with Cisco. I met a few of them at Cisco Stay, and it felt as if we had recognized one another for a very long time. All of us had a good time in the course of the occasion and are nonetheless involved since then.
You’re certainly one of our group “Rockstars,” Damian. What made you wish to be part of, and the way has being a part of this group impacted you each professionally and personally?
I joined about 4 years in the past after I was on the native Cisco workplace for an occasion. They promoted Cisco Insider Advocates, and I used to be curious and signed-up. At the moment, I didn’t know what to anticipate. Throughout my time locally, I bought increasingly concerned in several actions, from being a part of a problem to participation at a panel dialogue at Cisco Stay. I believe for each, the private {and professional} aspect, I get extra visibility for my work, and I can depend on the assist and data of an enormous and extremely expert group.
Cisco Stay 2024 is just some months away! We might like to know extra about your expertise at Cisco Stay 2023 Amsterdam this previous February. For those who may describe your expertise in a single phrase, what wouldn’t it be? How did it evaluate to earlier Cisco Stay conferences you’ve attended?
Inspiring could be the most effective phrase to summarize my expertise. If I evaluate it to different Cisco Stay occasions, my favourite continues to be the one in Barcelona in 2019. However each Cisco Stay has its personal highlights, which I don’t wish to miss.
Through the convention, you spoke at certainly one of our buyer panel sessions. How was your expertise, and what did you talk about on the panel?
It was an amazing expertise, getting out of my consolation zone and being within the highlight. We have been a bunch of 5 advocates. We spoke in regards to the intersection of buyer expertise and buyer advocacy and the way we see that taking place in apply by way of the Cisco Buyer Expertise and buyer advocacy packages and initiatives.
You additionally had an opportunity to satisfy for the primary time or reconnect with friends from the Cisco Insider Advocates group, in addition to a few of my colleagues from Cisco’s International Buyer Advertising group! How did you get pleasure from that reconnection?
As I discussed earlier, it felt like we’ve recognized one another for a very long time though we’d by no means met in particular person. The day we met felt like seeing previous buddies. You are feeling that all of them share the identical ardour. We had nice enjoyable. I’m trying ahead to seeing all of them once more in 2024 in Amsterdam.
We are able to’t wait to host you once more, Damian! We’re virtually on the finish of the interview and we’d love to complete with three issues you may’t dwell with out?
- My household and buddies
- Having a job the place I can study one thing new each day
- A humorousness
Nice checklist! It’s been a pleasure and thanks once more for becoming a member of us, Damian!
Learn extra advocate interviews
You would possibly get pleasure from this interview with Jyrki Halonen.
Be part of us!
For our prospects who’ve already joined our Cisco Insider Advocates group, say whats up to Damian in the event you haven’t met but. And in the event you’re a Cisco buyer however aren’t a group member, contemplate becoming a member of. You’ll be capable to:
- Join with friends in a gamified, on-line group
- Have a chance to satisfy with Cisco’s executives
- Share your suggestions, questions, and finest practices
- Get entry to ‘insider’ content material and assets
- Develop your skilled and private model
- Amplify your organization’s success story with Cisco expertise
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