Blazing a trail for women in sales

By Emma Peterson. 

Hear how Desiree Huff has climbed her way up the sales ladder through a passion and determination to always be learning something new. 

In this episode of Roofing Road Trips®, Heidi J. Ellsworth sits down with Desiree Huff, Tremco’s regional sales manager, to talk about stepping into her role in the industry. Desiree has worked for Tremco for almost eight years now, climbing her way up to her current position. She described her journey, “I started as an administrative assistant, and I worked very closely with a sales rep in the Pacific Northwest region. Thankfully, I had the opportunity to be exposed to, not just the administrative side but the sales side also with several different reps in the region.” 

By being involved in the sales side she got to observe pre-cons, sales calls, customer meetings and roof inspections and learn from that exposure. And Desiree didn’t shy away from it, actively working to learn as much as she could from the different designers and contractors she met along her path. So, when she had the opportunity to join Tremco’s tuition reimbursement program, Desiree was more than ready to take advantage of it. She described her formal education experience, “I have my bachelor's degree in social and behavioral sciences, and then I decided to go for my master's in business with a focus in construction management. And so, I applied for that program, I was accepted, finished that program and learned so much.” 

All of her hard work and learning paid off last summer when she was approached and asked about becoming a regional sales manager for Tremco’s Pacific Southwest region. She, along with a couple others, are the first women to hold these positions and are blazing the trail for those who follow in their footsteps. Desiree explained a bit why she loves her role so much, “I love learning something new every day, I love working with the sales team. I view my job, as a regional manager, as doing whatever I can to make those reps succeed. Whatever I can do to alleviate a burden, alleviate paperwork, provide additional support staff, maybe just be a listening ear sometimes or providing some feedback.” 

Read the transcript or Listen to the entire episode in order to hear more of Desiree’s story and thoughts on working in the sales sector of the roofing industry.