TechBirmingham thrives through its immensely talented and diverse group of member companies. Meet our Member Companies is an ongoing Q&A series highlighting this group of movers, shakers and makers in B’ham’s tech industry.
Meet Jim Acker, Sales Director of Nimble Storage. He is originally from Warren, OH and has been with Nimble Storage for one month. Read on to get to know more about Nimble Storage and the great things they are doing in Birmingham and beyond.
Hi Jim! Let’s get started — Tell us more about Nimble Storage.
I manage and lead a sales organization across seven southeastern states and the Caribbean. With 11 sales teams in cities like Nashville, Charlotte, Tampa, Atlanta, Miami, Raleigh, and Birmingham, I spend much of my time traveling to visit clients and/or prospects to share our story and to help clients save time and money. Nimble Storage was founded in 2008 and shipped its first product in 2010. In 2013, the company went public and is currently growing at 46% annually and adding ~700 new clients per quarter. We have over 7,000 unique clients and over 12,000 systems deployed across a variety of industries worldwide. Our platform has been a disruptive force in a market that has been previously dominated by 25 year old companies.
What do you think is the biggest misconception about your field?
Data is the lifeblood of any organization..it is the crown jewels so to speak. As a result, trusting that data with next-generation technology can be perceived as risky when in fact it is not. Today, systems are built with incredible redundancy and resiliency using off-the-shelf hardware as opposed to the complex, proprietary architectures of the past. Complexity is no longer a badge of honor for storage companies. Complexity drives up cost. There is an easier answer!
What exciting news or product/service announcements does your company have on the horizon?
We will be announcing a new product in February that will be very exciting but I cannot share without a non-disclosure agreement. Sorry!!
How do you feel about B’ham’s tech scene?
Being relatively new and traveling frequently, it’s hard to give a thorough assessment but it’s clear that there is leadership here that aspires to transform our economy into the digital age and I think that is exciting. We chose to move to Birmingham from Minneapolis because we thought Birmingham offered everything we wanted. We could have moved to any city in the south but we love the rolling hills, we love the weather, we love the proximity to major cities and attractions, we love the food and music, and we love the size. Birmingham has plenty to offer the tech scene and I look forward to learning more and becoming more proactive in helping Birmingham prosper and grow.
Anything else about you or your company you want us to share?
Nimble is very cool company headquartered in San Jose, CA. Our “No Jerks” policy is an example of our culture where the goal is to win the right way and with good people. We are committed to charitable causes and volunteerism and we have fun. Our clients love our technology and our support so with happy customers comes happy employees. Be Nimble! Nimble is very cool company HQ in San Jose, CA. Our “No Jerks” policy is an example of our culture where the goal is to win the right way and with good people. We are committed to charitable causes and volunteerism and we have fun. Our clients love our technology and our support so with happy customers comes happy employees. Be Nimble!
Thanks so much for sharing, Jim!
Follow Nimble Storage online here:
www.nimblestorage.com
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