Paylocity

Company: Paylocity, Arlington Heights, IL
Company Description: As America's leading independent provider of payroll and HR solutions, Paylocity has received numerous awards including having twice been named "Service Bureau of the Year" by the Independent Payroll Providers Association (IPPA). More importantly, Paylocity has maintained an average 97% client retention rate for 10 years running, a true testament to our client commitment.
Nomination Category: Sales Department Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Sales Department of the Year - All Other Industries

Nomination Title: Paylocity's Sales Department has Record Year!

Tell the story about what this nominated department achieved since the beginning of July last year (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

Founded in 1997 by CEO Steve Sarowitz, Paylocity began with a staff of 3, and
a sales department consisting of one single member. By 2007, annual sales had
reached 3M with a department size of twelve. Deciding to focus solely on the
development of our software (Paylocity WebPay), Mr. Sarowitz brought in
industry veteran Michael Haske in September 2007(as VP of Sales) to run the
sales department.

Beginning the fiscal year with a first annual sales kick-off, July 1, 2008
began a record setting year for Paylocity. After completing his strategic “top
grading” process; replacing 80% of the existing sales performers, our kick-off
began with a total of 15 newly hired sales reps and 5 existing sales reps; 20
in total. This combined with a new VP of Sales could have hindered Paylocity a
great deal, especially given the fact that industry standards dictate six
months of downtime for newly hired employees. Instead, the Paylocity sales
force rose to the occasion!

Positioned as “the leading independent provider of payroll and HR solutions,”
the Paylocity sales team ventured into new territories with our national sales
expansion plan. (It is noteworthy to mention that prior to July, 2008, 90% of
our business came from the Chicago area alone.) By fiscal year end 2008, 50%
of new business came from outside of Illinois. Collectively, the sales team
completed the year at 102% of quota, with a nearly inconceivable total sales
number of 6.6M. That’s more than double that of the previous year!

Spending time getting to know one another at kick-off, this team learned of
Paylocity’s open and casual atmosphere and began sharing their thoughts,
asking questions and communicating with one another throughout the year. While
our competitors report record losses for the year, our sales team’s efforts
helped us (as a company) continue to grow, despite the US economy’s down-turn.
We continue to hire as most companies downsize. This sales team really pulled
together and deserves this honorable recognition for their achievements.
It is directly because of their efforts that we (as a company) did not have to
experience any corporate downsizing, their sales helping to offset the loss of
revenue from clients continuing to lay off employees. It is worth mentioning,
their hard work and efforts continue this fiscal year, regardless of our
aggressive new sales plan. Our Paylocity sales team reached 100% of quota
first quarter!

Thank you for your consideration.

List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aEzui88kh1iM
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS95664+13-Oct-2009+BW20091013
http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/paylocity-makes--list-fifth-year/

Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader(s) of the nominated sales organization:

Mr. Michael Haske serves as Vice President of Sales and Marketing for
Paylocity. He joined Paylocity in September 2007 following an impressive 15
year career in the payroll and HR industry.

A native of Michigan, he did his undergraduate work at the University of
Michigan, where he earned his degree in Marketing and Finance. His MBA studies
in Marketing were conducted at Cardean/Ellis NYIT.