Our guest in this episode is James Isilay, the CEO and Founder of Cognism, a B2B sales enablement platform which helps companies find new markets. With background in software development, James tells us how he started Cognism, and when, how, and why they expanded to the US. He shares key things that helped his company open an office in New York and acquire new clients. From building systems and company culture, to having the right advisors and being visible to foreign investors, James outlines the path that brought success to Cognism in America. He also cautions against expanding before a company nails its home market. “Sales people in general just want to get rich, so as long as you give them a great product, and they are hitting their numbers, they are happy.” – James Isilay Time Stamps: 01:30 – James’ background and how he founded Cognism 03:30 – What benefits clients have from using the Cognism system 05:20 – How Cognism collects all the real-time 07:00 – When the company was founded and where their offices are 08:21 – How they expanded to the US by being visible to foreign investors 10:15 – Why it’s so important to have the right advisors 13:00 – How investors discovered and approached Cognism 16:50 – How to transplant the company culture into a new country 20:36 – The typical hiring mistake that companies make when expand abroad 24:32 – Why they chose New York as the location for the American office 27:25 – What are the reactions of customers and employees 31:10 – How they segment the market in America 35:56 – Planning is key if you want to expand 38:10 – What James learnt about systems and processes from living in Switzerland 39:30 – Do’s and don’ts for expanding to the US: bring your culture, plan in detail, don’t move unless you have a good reason to do it Send us questions you want answered to [email protected] Resources: Cognism Mount Bonnell Advisors Connect with James Isilay: LinkedIn Connect with Sebastian Sauerborn: Website Connect with Nastaran Tavakoli-Far: LinkedIn