Q&A with Corbin Louks, Regional Sales Manager

Q. You joined Aviatrix after spending more than two years at Okta. Why did you leave such a successful and large organization to join a startup?

A. I longed to experience firsthand what it was like to not only be part of building a market category but one day, have the potential to be a category king. Aviatrix has pioneered the secure cloud networking market category, and there is no reason why we can’t be the de facto standard network and network security architecture for the cloud.

Q. You started working at Aviatrix in November 2021. What can you say about your experience to date?

A. It’s fast paced! It has been an incredibly fun and rewarding experience thus far. We are moving and innovating so quickly, and we are barely scratching the surface of our potential. I am humbled by the type of talent that I get to work with and learn from day in and day out.

Q. What can you share about the caliber of people in sales and other teams (sales engineering, engineering, CEO, etc.) that you rely on to help throughout the sales process and sealing the deal with customers?

A. The caliber of talent we have here at Aviatrix is off the charts impressive. The company employs half the Azure Global Black Belts in networking, AWS ninjas, GCP wizards, Oracle experts, security and edge specialists, automation gurus, and former customers who have continually found ways to improve Aviatrix from their previous experience, and that speaks volumes. They are leaders in their fields who get in the trenches with you. What impresses me more is that they are all willing to help and support our customers at all costs. A customer of mine—who is now a great friend and lifelong mentor—once told me, “One thing Aviatrix needs to emphasize more and sell more, is the fact that it has so many talented and credible resources to help implement best practices architectures for networking and network security across all the clouds. That holds so much more weight than y’all may realize.”

Q. There are a few regional sales manager positions open at Aviatrix. What three tips would you give job candidates applying for this role to help them succeed?

A. First, you must have the ability to learn and adjust quickly – we are building a great company with no time to waste. Second, leverage the amazing talent and specialists that you have at your fingertips; and the third would be to have the ability to swiftly identify the ideal customer profile.

Q. What do you like most about the company’s culture? Leadership team?

A. I love that we are obsessed with making our customers successful, in any cloud, so their business can move as fast as possible and truly reap the full benefits that cloud has to offer, and that the leadership has doubled down on embedding security into the fabric of the network. I’m excited to see how we continue to innovate and integrate to bring customers valuable and powerful, game-changing solutions.

Q. You started your career playing professional football in the U.S. with the National Football League (NFL) and in the Canada Football League (CFL). What skills and mindset do you think you acquired throughout those years that you’ve been able to apply to your sales leadership role?

A. I’m extremely blessed and thankful that I had the opportunity to compete at the highest level in professional sports. Although I fell short of my personal goals, I’m thankful for the lessons and the experience of being in the NFL. Those experiences have helped accelerate my career along with having amazing mentors. Below are a few things I’ve learned over the years and a few quotes that continue to inspire me.

• Be comfortable with being uncomfortable. Always compete!
• Take the initiative and think like an executive. Are the daily decisions you are making driving positive impact for the business, your team, and your customers
• Consistency matters. Bring the same level of energy, effort, and productivity every single day. My Utah Utes OC/QB Coach Andy Ludwig would refer to this as “E4”– Energy, Energize, Edge, and Execution!
• Review the game film and repeat. Always strive to find ways to improve and learn. “You are either getting better or you are getting worse, you never stay the same.” – Jim Harbaugh, Head Coach, Michigan Wolverines, University of Michigan.
• Don’t be afraid to fail. “I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life, and that is why I succeed.” – Michael Jordan, the true GOAT
• “Play Bigger!” – Jim Goetz

Q. And finally, what made you select high-tech over other career paths?

A. I’m very fortunate that I have had my father as my biggest mentor and supporter. He has been an executive in high-tech ever since I can remember. When my football career was in my rear-view mirror, he knew that the high-tech industry would fit my personality as it’s fast paced and always evolving. He encouraged me that if I worked as hard as I did in sports—from physical commitment to studying my football playbooks and game films—that I’d pick things up quickly and put myself in a position to succeed. My first taste in high-tech was more than humbling. I went from playing in the NFL, married with my first child on the way, to making call after call as a sales development representative with people straight out of college. Fast-forward seven years. I feel blessed and thankful for the mentors in my life and the opportunities that I’ve had that brought me to Aviatrix.

Prior to joining Aviatrix, Louks spent more than two years at Okta, a globally recognized identity and access management company, as an enterprise regional sales manager. He previously spent nearly three years at ForeScout, a leader in device visibility and control, where he first cut his teeth in technology. Earlier in his career, he played professional football in the National Football League (NFL) and the Canada Football League (CFL) as a wide receiver where he bounced around for five years playing with teams such as the Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, Denver Broncos, and Montreal Alouettes. Connect with Louks on LinkedIn. View the Careers page for the latest Aviatrix job openings.