Market Research & Sales Internship, SandboxAQ Public Sector

Context

SandboxAQ is an enterprise SaaS company combining AI and quantum technologies to solve problems impacting society. Spinning out of Google’s Moonshot Factory in 2022, SandboxAQ became a stand-alone company to develop commercial-grade quantum computing tools. In my role as an MBA intern at SandboxAQ, I worked on the Public Sector team, building out the strategic vision of where to expand our market internationally.

During my internship I completed several initiatives to:

  1. Formulate the international business strategy

  2. Scale a growing start up with Agile methodologies

  3. Align product planning to sales objectives and customers

  4. Direct meetings with international public sector customers

International Strategy Development

What did I do?

I conducted research on the international market for our technology and contributed to SandboxAQ’s international strategy. My research focused on the different policies and budgets for quantum opportunities for countries around the world. With the research I conducted, SandboxAQ’s team had prioritized business cases for different countries that would most effective to target from a sales perspective.

I was also able to observed sales calls with international customers all over the world, such as Deloitte Canada & Australia, European Quantum Flagship, and NSSIF UK.

Takeaway

As a User Researcher who is used to talking with users 1x1 for insights, I developed a newfound appreciation for secondary & market research. A lot can be learned analyzing commercial press releases, market reports, and government statements. The strategic work came in when I began to look at all the research gathered and make decisions on where to best place our time and resources.

Transitioning Product Teams Over to Agile

What did I do?

As a growing startup, I worked with product teams to scale their work streams. This was done by holding informative sessions, educating teams about agile and scrum frameworks, and aligning teams on the adoption plan for this framework. By presentation these sessions, I aimed to get buy-in from the team regarding these new processes.

Together with Product Managers, we also developed project management processes for each team to use moving forward, such as adopting Confluence and Kanban boards, sprint planning meetings and retrospectives.

Takeaway

People will almost always be resistant to change, and it takes work on the part of the leader to manage change. Communicating the “why” in addition to the “how” of the change will help individuals understand the benefits of the change. There is also an aspect of “show don’t tell.” There will likely be growing pains associated as individuals adjust to the change. Ultimately, the hope is that after these growing pains, they are able to see how the change benefits them.

Working at a startup requires professionals to wear “multiple hats.” Although my internship was focused on market research and sales, due to my background in working in agile environments, I was given the opportunity to run agile learning sessions to various product teams.

Launched Quarterly Business Sales Reviews

What did I do?

I created the framework for SandboxAQ’s quarterly company-wide business reviews. The review covered metrics for Year-over-Year growth for Public Sector’s prospects and customers, highlighting top opportunities to close on by End-of-Year.

After creating this framework, I organized the first quarterly business review at the end of Q2 2023. This review helped create transparency across the company with our sales pipeline and milestones. It also allowed our team to celebrate wins and tell the story of how the company is growing each quarter.

Takeaway

I was able to observe the sales process from start to finish. This pipeline (unqualified → qualified → pursuit → pre-proposal → proposal → submitted → closed won/lost) was not something as a User Researcher I had exposure to and this provided perspective on the process that it takes for a prospect to become a “user.” In my future research initiatives, I will aim to pull in sales to help tell the story of the user to make a more compelling story.