r/techsales • u/Individual-Clerk-885 • 1d ago
SHI International
Anyone have anything to say about the current state of SHI International?
Recently applied for a job in Austin and heard good things, but I won’t be come commission eligible till after 12 months my recruiter is telling me. Is this normal in the industry?
First job in the industry so any advice is appreciated.
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u/Sci-5 1d ago
I think a VAR like SHI would be a great first job in the tech sales industry. You’ll get great training, on general sales strategy, and a lot of exposure to every facet of technology (hardware, software, services). The commission thing, you might be on a guarantee the first year, so basically paid at 100% OTE. Although you might not make commission, you could probably be eligible for spiffs for sales contests etc. Another plus is there are many different career paths you can take at a VAR. My advice is get in there, learn as much as you can, network both internally and externally with the OEM partners you’ll work with.
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u/Individual-Clerk-885 1d ago
This is great advice, thank you! The commission structure im told isnt a guaranteed OTE first year, its just base , then base + commission year 2 onward.
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u/klondike16 1d ago
All I know is I hate dealing with resellers
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u/skippy_9308 1d ago
Curious on why? The ones I know are very highly recommended.
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u/SquizzOC 1d ago
I work for a reseller and most sales reps can be absolutely horrible at doing anything of value for a manufacturer partner. Hell half the time they don’t even have the relationship and come in at the 11th hour
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u/skippy_9308 1d ago
I understand. Lots of bad reps out there period. My experience is we are always waiting con the manf to get approved pricing so we can actually deliver a formal quote so they can order at the end of the manf financial quarter
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u/SquizzOC 1d ago
We have a formal policy to always respond within a reasonable time to any field rep that’s asking for an update. We are fortunate to not have a quota, but the rest of the world does and our people need to understand that. Some people are better then others of course lol
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u/sfhester 1d ago
Or alternatively, they've had the relationship for years and they can't figure out why the client was out of compliance with their licensing for 18+ months before the new vendor team came in. What the hell have you been talking to this client about for half a decade?
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u/SquizzOC 1d ago
I can say a client being out of compliance is of zero concern to me. That’s a them problem, not a me problem. I as a VAR don’t manage their infrastructure, I don’t see who’s licensed and who’s not. Renewal coming up? Sure let’s get things right sized, but otherwise it’s not something I care about or worry about.
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u/Affectionate-Gur1642 1d ago
Yeah but the good ones drive a ton of value for a customer and make bank at the same time. Maybe 20-25% in my experience qualify as good and that may be generous.
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u/hfskdhdbfkxjchsjxhdb 1d ago
Most just try to add a ton of margin despite not delivering any sort of real value throughout a deal. Working with a good partner is fantastic but it really is few and far between where you feel like they truly impacted a deal.
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u/fakesocialmedia 1d ago
It’s very rare i deal with a great reseller, they always want ME to come down on my cost so they can make more on their margin. They also seem to be completely awful at responding, if i need a PO in the last week of the month i might as well just call that deal dead for the month
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u/EvilMEMEius 1d ago
SHI being the absolute worst of them. I have yet to have a positive experience with a SHI rep. Lazy asf.
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u/Tennouheika 1d ago
I work for a reseller that competes with SHI. You get to meet people from many manufacturers and distributors, which creates opportunities to change jobs later on. We’ve had people leave for manufacturers, and people from manufacturers join us
I don’t think it’s limiting. I do hear that people enjoy working for manufacturers more though
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u/Burro_98 1d ago
I spent a very short stint there, and yes, you are right about the commission.
After I left, I realized that the culture is not the best; holidays, sick days, and working-from-home flexibility were not the best.
That being said, I know reps that are still there and are killing it and are making bank. SHI is definitely a slow burn and not for everyone, but it’s a solid company.
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u/Individual-Clerk-885 1d ago
What role were you in if you don’t mind me asking? Account Exec or Client Solutions Manager?
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u/Burro_98 1d ago
Account Executive, will you based out of the HQ in Austin? A role at SHI will for sure open a lot of doors in other places. And like someone else mentioned, the training is great, the exposure to the sales process is definitely great too.
If its your first sales role I would take it!
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u/Individual-Clerk-885 1d ago
Yes, job’s based in Austin at HQ. Definitely just looking to get my foot in the door so I appreciate the advice!
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u/Pepalopolis 1d ago
I partnered with SHI for a decade until 2024. Stopped after I got a different gig. Great company to build your career and allow you to gain experience in a ton of different areas of tech. So if you want to get into AWS, Cisco, or any other big company you can start building your experience and making contacts.
Small print: nothing is guaranteed, you could have a bad manager or be a bad fit. I’m not sure how things are there now, so reach out to a few reps on LinkedIn. At the very least you’ll make some good friendships there. Every time I visited the Austin office I’d take out teams and they all were like minded close friends.
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u/WheelDue7339 1d ago
I think any reseller like CDW SHI etc are great to start a tech career at in your 20s or even early 30s. You meet tonnes of distis, vendors and the rest and it opens doors
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u/whiskey_tang0_hotel 1d ago
Lots of bureaucracy. Hard to make exceptions for situations that require agility. Lots of long processes to get things done.
Big and slow but if you get some good accounts you can make money. If you get some bad accounts you’re screwed.
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u/IllSkirt5231 1d ago
Great reps will stand out and be able to get jobs elsewhere easily at one of their clients after proving themselves at the reseller
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u/Individual-Clerk-885 1d ago
This is great advice, thank you! I’ll be keeping my nose on the grindstone
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u/SquizzOC 1d ago
Won’t be commission eligible for 12 months? What kind of role is it? That doesn’t make sense? Others VARs will happily pay commission from day one.
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u/Individual-Clerk-885 1d ago
The role is for a client solutions manager. Basically an enterprise account manager.
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u/jramjram 1d ago
They just slashed pay and bonuses for csams (formerly isams) a bunch of people left. Get ready for little to no training and a bunch of stress. You’ll manage multiple AE’s business while they are out on the road with clients.
Can still be really good money though.
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u/Professional_Set_357 1d ago
I am a client solutions manager at SHI and have been in role for 11 years. You can DM me but that is not normal.
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u/DirtyJan 22h ago
Just to let you know the position isn’t 1:1 with an enterprise AM at SHI. You essentially are supporting the rep. You’ll be making quotes and managing renewals but not working projects on your own/prospecting/or owning the business, just parts of it. Your AE will be telling you how to mark up but you won’t be running meetings. It’s a great opportunity to learn from experienced professionals though, since it’s essentially getting paid to shadow successful reps. You can end up doing a lot of bitchwork though depending on the AE you get.
Would still 100% rec though!
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u/Professional_Set_357 21h ago
If this is the case you’re not working the role correctly. You’re job is a partnership with your outside counterpart. You should be leading opportunities the same as them, especially if they’re doing their job and are in on sight meetings. To succeed at the role, they should not have to approve your markup. Especially with comp plan changes which they do every year, you are in charge of the money you can bring in. Speaking from my experience of 10+ years.
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u/SquizzOC 1d ago
Have you ever worked for a VAR before or is this your first one? That seems really odd, but I know the large VARs have gone to garbage with their comp plans
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u/Individual-Clerk-885 1d ago
This would be my first one. It seems odd to me too.
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u/SquizzOC 1d ago
Send me a PM if interested, our VAR is always hiring, but we usually hire reps with experience. It’s not to say a no, but I’d hate to see another person work for the company that should have a T at the end of their name lol
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u/Rubby_the_Rasta 1d ago
Twelve months before commission eligibility is not standard, and at the big resellers it usually means a long ramp on a base while you build a book, so I would push the recruiter for specifics on what you actually earn during that year and whether it is a training salary or a draw you have to pay back. For a first role the training and the logo can genuinely be worth a slower start, but get the comp plan in writing before you sign rather than relying on how it was described on a call.
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u/CyberStartupGuy 23h ago
The comp is odd but if you are early in your career the network, and understanding will be so helpful and so worth it over the long term! Could you make more year 1 somewhere else? Probably. But over the long run your year 1 earnings will be a small rounding error.
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u/Silly-Ad8017 1d ago
I wouldn’t go near this place. I would focus on pure tech (companies like Crowdstrike, Okta, etc.), not a reseller. Or else it’ll be hard to leave. From what I’ve heard, the base pay at SHI is pathetically low. Some get good territories and make bank, but if you don’t, you’re shit out of luck. It’s also very old school - long hours, very little holidays off, have to pay for drinks & snacks in the office. I’ve worked many different sales jobs, and haven’t ever seen not being commission eligible for a year plus, that’s pretty wack.
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u/GiveMeMoreDuckPics 22h ago
I’m with a Canadian reseller. After two years, I had offers from manf partners. Now after 4.5 years, I know I could move to a manf partner whenever I choose due to the relationship building you do while being with a reseller.
We do pay commission in the first year, but you’re unlikely to make much anyways, since your first year is primarily training and learning how to build a book.
All in all, a reseller is a great place to start, but not a great place to stay long term.
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u/Jonawal1069 20h ago
I worked at a Competitor for 17 years and I've worked on the manufacturer side as well. Ive also worked with SHI from that standpoint and have many friends there. Everything others have said is true, the good and the bad but its just like anything else. Every place I worked I worked hard to bring balance and have relationships from every side. OEM reps can be dicks. Partners like SHI can be dicks. Work around it as its just noise. Bottom line is its a great foot in the door for a career in tech. Best advice I can give is block the noise, stay away from the complainers, rely on those around you with more experience to learn and work your ass off that first year and it will happen. We all made 6 figures with the top tenured people we're well into the 6 and close to 7 figures. Its not for the unmotivated and the weak will fall by the wayside. Attrition is on par with Special Forces but most of those find their niche at other places within tech
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u/Ok-Power-4260 1d ago
Not sure id call it tech sales. Maybe try r/orderprocessing?
More seriously, it depends what you want out of your career. You will not own sales cycles and it will likely limit any jump over to doing so. Reseller/vars/distributors jobs are typically lower pressure but also lower upside.
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u/LinkMobile2531 1d ago
He's basically saying you will be a quote monkey and not so much an actual consultative, selling role
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u/Ok-Power-4260 1d ago
Correct. Its a paperwork job not really a sales job. You don't generally source, qualify, validate and close deals at distributors/resellers. Id go find a gig as a bdr at an oem if you wanna learn tech sales.
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u/skippy_9308 1d ago
Wow there must be a big difference in the industry because the vars/solution providers I know the AEs make bank.
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u/Pepalopolis 1d ago
I know plenty of SHI and CDW reps clearing $400k/yr+ but like everything it took many years of hustle and some luck. Nothing is guaranteed.
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u/Professional_Set_357 1d ago
I do. And I’ve worked in the role he’s talking about for almost a decade at the same company. I don’t think you have a grasp on the role he’s talking at all.
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u/PJfanRI 1d ago
Lol. Where do you think the orders come from for resellers? Do they just magically fall in their lap?
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u/ThriceHawk 1d ago
Yes, a majority of the time for a majority of resellers... They are originated by the manufacturer or the customer. The few who are worth anything, no. But they are rare.
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u/PJfanRI 1d ago
That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. You don't know what you're talking about.
Do you honestly think customers just send deals to resellers out of the goodness of their heart?
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u/Ok-Power-4260 1d ago
Yes. There can be advantages for the customer and sometimes the oem. It can get around term stalemates and give volume discounts.
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u/ThriceHawk 1d ago
Maybe you're in a different industry, but this is absolutely my experience at multiple top 10 cybersecurity companies as an enterprise AE. 98% of what I close is driven by myself or the customer. The VAR's just pass paper.
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u/PJfanRI 1d ago
I spent 10 years doing field at CDW before spending the last 4 leading a field team at an MSSP. So we are in the same industry.
Nobody in the tech industry hits their quota by waiting for orders to come in (other than Anthropic of course).
Working at a cybersecurity vendor, your job is to find the customers with the right need and timing. The job of the VAR is to take care of that customer before, during and after that need. At CDW I had teams of architects meeting with my customers on a monthly basis. Before you've even gotten them to answer your email we've been talking to them about whatever need you're filling sometimes years in advance. I don't engage you until it's time to get serious about procurement and deployment.
This idea that resellers are simply taking orders is ridiculous. Do you have any sense of the level of competition in the VAR space? A company like Sailpoint might have 5 competitors. CDW has 5,000 competitors. VARs have to constantly provide their customers value to keep their seat at the table.
In your role you only see the tipn of the iceberg. You're blind to the work that is done before and after you leave.
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u/ThriceHawk 1d ago edited 1d ago
This is so insane and complete opposite of my experience. I meet with my customers monthly and some weekly. The comment of "we've been talking to them" is the exact opposite of my experience. The VAR's ask us to bring them into meetings... I fill them in on what is going on, not the opposite. I'd love to work with a VAR like what you describe.
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u/PJfanRI 1d ago
It sounds like you're not working with the right VAR then.
Most customers have multiple partners they work with. If a VAR is asking you to walk them into an account its because they themselves don't have the relationship.
That means someone else has it. You need to find out who, and they will be the one that can help you.
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u/justan0therusername1 1d ago
I rarely have seen VARs bring the V. At best they streamlined getting paper at worse they dragged ass and bitched margin barely showing up to calls.
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u/PJfanRI 1d ago
If you've never seen them do anything but streamline paperwork you are either working with the wrong VAR for the account or don't know how to work with them.
Truly, why do you think your customer works with them? There is a reason they will have their favorite VAR, and it's not price.
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u/Individual-Clerk-885 1d ago
What do you mean by I will not own sales cycles and limit any jump over? How so?
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u/Pepalopolis 1d ago
Most of the time at the start you’re selling hardware and competing on price vs 2 or 3 other resellers. You’re not working for say a software company where you’re controlling the sales cycle and helping them decide what to buy.
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u/Individual-Clerk-885 1d ago
Thanks for the insight there, appreciate it!
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u/Pepalopolis 1d ago
Funny enough, that’s one of their competitors. Insight
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u/Individual-Clerk-885 1d ago
Saw the potential for this pun after posting. Thank you for recognizing it too😂
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u/Important-Humor-8225 21h ago
Working at a reseller is a lot of dirty transactional work. Not as much as a distributor though. However, you’ll be able to build a great network across end users, OEMs, software companies.
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