Michael Hogan

Background

About Michael Hogan

My plan was to be a coach or a teacher. Things changed early in my career when someone said, “I know you don’t have much experience in sales, but I like your background and I think you’d be good at this.” As a small-town kid with a degree from a good school but not a fancy school and virtually no connections, having someone recognize my potential and make an introduction changed the trajectory of my career. It was my entry into sales and HR. And he was the first of many mentors who would encourage me to stretch, help me navigate corporate life and give me the guidance to develop in my career. These experiences taught me three things: 1) Everybody can be an A player if they're in the right role, 2) People rarely succeed without the support and encouragement of others, and 3) Being a CRO isn’t about the numbers. It’s about the people. In sales, it's all about hiring, developing and nurturing talent. My passion is to help uncover and cultivate people’s strengths. A lot of my time is spent making sure the people around me feel empowered, supported, engaged and recognized. And I believe I can never stop learning to be a better leader. Because that’s how we hit the numbers. So if you think about it, I actually did end up becoming a coach and a teacher.