|
|||||||||||||||
A Profile of Shaun Fitzpatrick and ProActive Learning (2010)
Business Philosophy
Shaun’s business philosophy is rooted in his commitment to these values that he strives to live each day: Integrity, Caring, Enthusiasm, Service, Accountability and Results
In the beginning…
Shaun earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at Concordia University in Montreal and followed this with a degree in Sales and Marketing Management from the University of British Columbia in 1980. By 1989, he had established himself as an accomplished sales professional with an impressive track record of success in the publishing and broadcast industries.
Sales Training / Sales Management Training
It was then that the British Columbian Institute of Technology (BCIT) Continuing Studies invited him to instruct their introductory sales course. His success in this area was soon followed with an invitation to instruct BCIT’s advanced sales courses and their program on Sales Management. Over a 20 years period (1989-2009) he has facilitated some 50 sales and sales management programs. This has given him the opportunity to interact with a great many BC organizations. Also, during this period Shaun was delivering programs in the continuing studies programs at Simon Fraser University in the areas of Sales, Sales Management and Marketing.
In 1997, he was chosen by the Canadian Professional Sales Association (CPSA) to facilitate their “first ever” three days course on Professional Selling. He has continued twice yearly to instruct the CPSA’s Professional Selling Skills course in British Columbia. He also acts as examiner for the CPSA’s core sales competencies certification process leading to the designation CSP (Certified Sales Professional). In 1998, the CPSA introduced their “first ever” program on Professional Sales Management leading to the designation CPSM (Certified Professional Sales Manager). Again, he was chosen to act as course facilitator and certification examiner and he continues in this capacity.
At the same time as he was delivering these programs on behalf of BCIT, SFU and the CPSA Shaun steadily built his own company, ProActive Learning. Starting ProActive Learning in 1997 the company’s initial focus was on customized training and consulting for organizations with needs in the areas of sales and sales management. Gradually the company’s product offerings were expanded to include a much broader area of subjects. For example, training was designed and delivered in areas such as Team Building, Negotiation, Train the Trainer and more. In 2005, for example, ProActive Learning was contracted by a large organization to conduct a year long Train the Trainer program for their newly appointed Corporate Sales Training Manager so that he would be fully functional in that role.
Over the past dozen years Shaun has trained hundreds of salespersons and managers from dozens of sales organizations across a broad cross section of industries in Canada, the U.S. and the U.K.
Professional Speaking
His audiences have provided feedback in which they have consistently reported the following reactions: “sessions that are fun and highly interactive”, “presented by a dynamic and motivating speaker” who is “highly knowledgeable on the subject matter presented”.
As ProActive Learning progressed he was more and more in demand as a speaker at annual industry conferences and meetings. In fact, in 2001 he achieved Professional Member status in the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers. After a successful single speaking engagement at the The Western Fireplace and Hearth Products Forum in 2003, he was invited to deliver all four similar speaking opportunities at the 2005 Forum.
Certified Business Coach / Management Coaching
Increasingly organizations had begun to call on Shaun’s expertise to provide advice in more and more areas of their business. In response to this, he prepared himself and successfully became a Certified Business Coach in 2002. Over the past five years he has worked “one on one” with a number of business owners. Problem issues are identified and remedial strategies are developed and coached on a week to week basis. This has required Shaun to develop content and solutions for his clients in a wide variety of areas – for example, subjects as varied as company vision, sales promotion, performance planning and reviews, financial analysis, succession planning and so on.
The process begins with a thorough examination of the business in its’ current state. A Value Development Plan is then established which outlines the specific actions to be taken to move the business from its’ current deficient condition to its’ ideal state. Sometimes the objective is raising capital for expansion or selling the business. We work with strategies in three areas : increasing sales, increasing profits and increasing the confidence factor for the potential purchaser. Our focus is on Sales (revenue), the Team (people) and the Systems (financial, information technology and operational). A business owner’s lifetime of focused effort and commitment deserves that he or she get all the return possible from the business. Working with his strategic partners, Shaun has the people and processes to ensure results.
HiringSmart.ca
He is firmly established in his ability to offer significant value in the roles of sales training, sales management, business coaching and management coaching. Nevertheless, Shaun felt that there was just one more area that he would like to target so as to offer a complete suite of services to his clients. When delivering training or coaching sessions he often felt that he was training the wrong people in roles that represented poor “job fit” and who were working under managers lacking the skills and resources to address the situation. Consequently, he strategically aligned ProActive Learning with Tim Brennan’s HiringSmart.ca (www.hiringsmart.ca) This allows Shaun to offer expertise in the areas of attraction strategies, managing your employment brand, hiring, increasing employee engagement, determining and executing “job fit” in the organization, succession planning and utilizing cutting edge tools and methods to manage effectively.
Personal Performance Coaching
Mr. Fitzpatrick has worked with numerous individuals to assist them in achieving personal breakthroughs. Areas that are addressed include : Vision, maximizing personal potential, time management, conflict resolution, functional relationships and much more. The process begins with Assessment where the Destination and the Current State are clearly identified. Goals for achievement are established, obstacles identified, strategies and timelines developed. Weekly meetings support the process of taking the individual from where they are to where they want to be.
Contact ProActive Learning
To summarize, ProActive Learning offers a broad suite of services to meet an organization’s needs. It all begins with a no charge or obligation first meeting. Shaun Fitzpatrick can be reached at 604.985.8515 or sfitzpatrick@proactivelearning.ca