From Cameras to Customers

Account Manager · Chef Direct UK

November 2012 – January 2014 · Didcot

After life behind a camera and six months on the phones at Thames Water, my career took another turn. This time, back into account management.

I joined Chef Direct UK in Didcot, looking after customer accounts in a role that combined sales, service, problem solving and commercial decision-making.

It was less about simply selling something and much more about understanding what a customer actually needed, what their budget allowed and how we could make the relationship work for both sides.

Looking After the Customer

I managed accounts day-to-day, handling orders, back orders, credits, pricing queries and the inevitable problems that appear when customers are relying on you to deliver.

When something went wrong, the important question wasn't really "whose fault is this?"

It was "what can we do about it?"

I learned to respond quickly, give customers realistic options and take ownership of problems rather than allowing them to bounce around between departments.

Regular contact was important too. I didn't want the only conversation with a customer to happen when something had gone wrong or when we wanted another order.

Building relationships meant checking in, understanding what was changing in their business and finding opportunities where we could genuinely help.

The Commercial Side

Behind those relationships was the numbers side of the job.

I worked with pricing and supply information, managed budgets and forecasts, monitored account performance and adjusted commercial schedules when costs changed.

I also worked on growing accounts by identifying opportunities for additional products and re-engaging customers who had stopped ordering.

That taught me an important distinction between selling something and solving something.

The strongest opportunities usually appeared when you understood the customer's problem first and the product second.

A Lesson That Stuck

Account management gave me an early understanding of something that has become increasingly important throughout my career:

How quickly you answer them, how you communicate when there's a problem, whether you keep your promises and how easy you are to deal with can matter just as much as what's written on the invoice.

It's an idea I've carried into engineering and the systems I design today.

Good service fixes today's problem.

Great service is why the customer comes back tomorrow.