Roxanne Hughes

My Background

I have a Tourism Studies BA from Bournemouth University. After graduating, I worked in various roles in Tour Operations in London. The highlight was working as a Product Manager, visiting hotels and resorts around the world. After the credit crunch, I decided to change industry and joined Hitachi Consulting in 2010 as Receptionist and Executive Assistant. Not long after joining, my potential was recognized by a senior co-worker who mentored me and encouraged me to join his team as Junior Project Manager on a large and prestigious project for the NHS. Once the project came to an end, I moved into Sales Operations – initially to cover long–term sick leave but I grew into the role and really enjoyed working in a thriving sales environment. I have now progressed to Sales Operations Manager and expanded my role to include One Hitachi collaborations with the sales teams in a number of our different business units – Digital Infrastructure, Lumada, and sister company GlobalLogic.

Women in Sales Finalist

This year I was honored to be nominated for Sales Operations Manager in the Women in Sales Awards, this role is integral for any sales team, so being shortlisted and becoming a finalist felt amazing.

Participating in WISA has been a remarkable experience, both exciting and rewarding as well as incredibly empowering. It felt great to be supported and encouraged by all my colleagues and peers. I am proud to be representing Hitachi; I owe thanks to a very supportive and inspiring Manager who nominated me for this award and truly believed I could win.

I have worked at Hitachi for 12 years, and I have grown my career and progressed through several different roles, learning so much about the business along the way. Sales Operations is a great fit for me as I enjoy being part of the sales team and supporting collaboration across all parts of the business. I am privileged to work in an organization that embraces a culture of innovation and celebrates diversity.

The Women in Sales process has pushed me to think about my accomplishments and feel proud of what I have achieved to drive enhancements and encourage best practices across our sales team. The judging day was such an inspiring event, stunning venue, and brilliant presentations/panels; the highlight was meeting the other finalists and making some lasting connections. I will recommend nominating colleagues for a WISA award in the future as the whole process is rewarding, and even to be nominated, is very motivating.

Succeeding as a Women in Sales

From my experience, women can encounter self-doubt and the fear of getting something wrong if they speak up, this does ease with experience. My advice would be to prepare for any meeting, do the research, and the reading before you arrive. Think of some insightful questions in advance. Always be assertive and confident, speak up during meetings and be sure of where you add value and ensure that is noted by others. Put yourself forward for actions and next steps, and always follow through on what you say you are going to do. Your contribution and reliability will be recognized and will be appreciated if you do what you say consistently.