Welcome back to our Meet the Postie series. Each month I sit down with a fellow member of the Postie team to ask them questions about work, life, and everything in between. These posts are loaded with relatable stories, tips on stress management and work/life balance, fun photos, and more. Last month we sat down with Sandy Brackbill, the leader of our Ops team. This month you get to meet Josh Pierce, one of the very first Postie hires and a high-achieving member of our sales team. Josh is a lover of peanut butter (and peanut butter cups), music, cars, and his family. Let’s dive…
Name: Josh Pierce
Location: Highlands Ranch, CO
Title: VP Strategic Sales
How long you’ve worked at Postie: 8 years
Favorite Food: Skippy Creamy Peanut Butter (for breakfast, lunch, dinner) Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (for dessert)
If you could travel to space, who would you take with you: My Family and Suni Williams
Pets: Sydney, 8yo Australian Shepherd (who likes to sit and stare at me while I work)
Find Josh on LinkedIn!
What inspired you to join Postie?
In 2016 Dave and I had been talking about his idea to transform the direct mail channel. Him and I had both been involved in other startups and the idea of working together, getting to be involved in a new marketing technology, and being part of the core team was very attractive. I spent the first 8 months of my time with Postie working as a sales contractor while traveling the country on an extended RV trip with my family. Postie gave me the opportunity to help get this amazing company off the ground while experiencing the trip of a lifetime.
What do you love most about your job?
Prior to Postie, I had always been involved in my own startups and business ventures. What I love most about Postie is that I still get the excitement of building something new, developing processes along the way, working with incredibly smart team members, learning new things all the time, and having the same challenge of bringing in new business that I enjoyed with my own companies… but this time, I don’t have to be the CEO.
What are you most proud of, professionally, since joining Postie?
I’m most proud of being able to contribute to the success of the company. I not only have helped bring in and grow some of our largest clients, but have had the unique opportunity to help develop other team members, create processes and standards along the way and add to the amazing company culture.
Tell us something about your professional development journey.
I have always believed that with work taking up most of our waking hours, you need to really love what you do. And if so, you can become an expert in just about anything and wake up each morning excited to do your job and be better than the day before. I have jumped around in my professional career from being a professional DJ, to owning an event production company, a dance studio, launching a tech startup focused on lost and found technology, running an overnight camp, and now working in marketing technology. I’ve learned about many different industries along the way, and figured out how to transfer each set of new skills to the next adventure.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced since joining Postie?
Dealing with market changes and variables outside of our control, that change a client’s ability to market with us consistently month over month.
What have been some of the most important lessons you’ve learned throughout your career?
First of all I’ve learned that when you come across a new challenge or something you haven’t done before, stop and take the time to think through the most efficient steps and create a process that can be repeated the next time you have to do the same task, or overcome the same challenge. Second, I learned early on in my career how important it is to stay as organized as possible so things don’t become overwhelming as responsibilities increase and the business scales in size.
How has your role evolved since joining Postie?
When I joined there were 4 of us at Postie. My role has gone from being an independent contributor, to being part of an evergrowing team. The companies we focused on 8 years ago are not the same type of companies we focus on now and our product has evolved incredibly over that time.
Where do you think you can have the biggest impact in your role?
Educating direct to consumer brands on the benefits of direct mail and Postie’s platform, and helping those brands grow their businesses over time.
What’s your favorite memory from working at Postie?
There are so many! I would have to say after closing deals with amazing new clients, traveling to fun places for full team meetings, and hitting major milestones over the 8 years… my favorite memory may have to be hanging from the ceiling of a warehouse in a Postie Ninja Warrior battle with 2 other team members!
Do you have any strategies for dealing with stress at work?
Stop for a minute. Create a list of everything that needs to get done, prioritize it and block out time in the calendar to make sure there is space to get it all done. Then grab a Dr Pepper and a peanut butter cup and start getting through the list.
What tips or advice would you give someone starting a new job in your field?
Learn as much as you can from the people around you and start prospecting right away. It will take time to book meetings, get through sales cycles and build a pipeline. Hitting the ground running will help you in the long run.
What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
Playing music and outdoor action sports. I am in an 80s cover band called One Way To Rock and enjoy skiing, rock climbing, camping and mountain biking.
What would your perfect weekend look like?
Busy with adventures around Colorado.
What type of books/movies do you enjoy?
80s movies are the best! Karate Kid, Back to The Future, 16 Candles, Adventures in Babysitting, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Top Gun, Die Hard, Goonies, Airplane, Lethal Weapon, Field of Dreams, Blues Brothers, Xmas Vacation… and then of course Armageddon from ‘98.
Do you have any creative outlets or interests?
Anything music or classic cars. I love playing guitar, piano, drums, or singing, going to concerts and being involved in local classic car shows and clubs.
What’s a cause that you are passionate about?
We’re big on animals in our family and have had dogs, fish, hamsters, turtles, frogs, newts, and more. We support the Denver Zoo, ASPCA, Humane Society, World Wildlife Fund and other animal non-profits.
What’s something you’ve always wanted to try/learn?
I wish I was better at harmonica. And being a stunt driver would be pretty awesome.
What is the best thing that has happened to you this year?
Fun trips with family. We had the chance to visit Italy for the first time over the summer and do a winter vacation cruise with the extended family.
What is something that you are proud of about yourself?
Being a great girl Dad to my high school daughters. I love getting involved in their interests, teaching them about things I love and helping them chase their dreams.
If you could pick any superpower, what would it be and why?
Being able to fly would be pretty cool. I’d travel a lot and see some amazing places around the world if I could go faster than a speeding bullet whenever I wanted.
Anything else you’d like to add?
Thank you Dave and Jonathan and the whole Postie Team for the opportunity to be a part of this amazing company for the past 8 years!
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That was fun, Josh! With that, I’ll see you all next time! 🚀
