Making People’s Dreams Come True with Education
As someone who was born into a family with limited education, Doni learned from his parents that education can change lives for the better. Despite his ups and downs during his time in sales, his aspiration to make students achieve their dreams and his supportive team have led him to continue his journey at Quipper to bring the best education to every corner of the world. Let’s get to know Doni Yudha Arif Setiawan and follow his journey at Quipper which made him one of Quipper’s MVPs in 2022.
Could you please share your day-to-day activities at work as a Head of Sales?
I usually start my day with prayer. After that, I review the previous activities and check and recheck the daily plan and mid-term plan if it needs to be adjusted to achieve the target. After that, I coordinate with the sales team and regional head and provide coaching and assistance for important matters that need to be resolved quickly. After that, I do a field visit to be able to get insight into the market changes that are happening. Lastly, I review my daily goals for my activity that day.
What’s the biggest challenge in working in sales for you?
I have had many different experiences in different business models, from B2C to B2B. The biggest challenge in working in sales is how to be able to provide solutions to every need and problem faced by partners and how to build sustainable relationships based on empathy, not just business profits.
What motivated you to work in an education technology company?
I am passionate about education. I was born in a family that is not economically secure and has very limited education. But one thing I learned from the way my parents raised me is, through education, our lives can change for the better. I have experience as a math tutor when I was still studying at a fairly large tutoring institute. There is a feeling of happiness that cannot be exchanged for anything when hearing that students have achieved what they dreamed of. So helping them achieve their dreams and change their lives is my biggest motivation to work in this sector.
There must have been ups and downs during your journey in sales. How do you deal with them and still perform well despite the huge responsibility you hold?
Consistency and strong will are the keys to every success. I am grateful that apart from the bitterness of the experience that made me grateful for every result of my efforts, I am in a positive environment. I have colleagues who are very supportive, who constantly remind me of the importance of maintaining consistency in effort to achieve goals, and play an important role when I am in a slump or facing failure.
From what we can see from your experience, you have been working as a leader for a long time. What kind of leadership style do you want to implement to deliver the goals together with your team?
For me, leadership is no longer a stance to give a mechanical compliance impact on our subordinates. Leadership is more about efforts to help maximize the potential of each person, provide solutions, and try not to become part of their problems. Providing inspiration, providing the widest possible opportunity for everyone’s creativity, and inviting them to better understand the end goal of an important part to maintain the focus of each person on the team is the leadership style that I want to implement in my team.
It’s been more than five years since you worked at Quipper. What made you stay long at this company?
Quipper helped make my dream and the dreams of many other people who have big concerns about education in Indonesia come true. In addition, I am in a positive environment and have colleagues who are like family and who are always there in every ups and downs. In this company, I also got to feel how work-life balance should be. That way, I am able to spend more time with the most important thing in my life which is family.
