As Qobo continues to grow and hire talented new employees, we’d like to introduce our newest hire, Chris Theodorou, who joins as our Regional Sales Manager for Cyprus.
Can you provide a little background on yourself?
I’m an Australian-born Cypriot who migrated back to Cyprus at the age of 7 where I spent my adolescent years growing up on the sunny beaches of Limassol. After graduating from the private English Grammar School in Limassol I served my mandatory 2 years in the armed forces as a military police officer and then relocated for the next 5 years to the far west and the great state of California. I attended Chico State University where I received my bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a focus in Marketing, worked on campus as a Statistics tutor and added the word “dude” to my vocabulary!
Upon my return to the island, I took on a junior position in Marcus Evans as a sales representative where I quickly discovered a flair for connecting with people. I spent the next 10 years in the Telecommunications industry at MTN where I manage to advance my professional career from a Sales Executive to a Regional Sales Manager. In the process, I developed a great understanding of the important ingredients needed to succeed and differentiate yourself from the crowd. I also had the opportunity to recruit and build a sales team, mentoring them to achieve their sales goals.
I then pursued a career change and opted for a marketing role in the medical field where I sharpened my skills “off the field”. It was a much needed, 2-year break from the sales field, which helped me realise just how much I missed it and the boundless learning opportunities coming from the number of people you interact with, every day.
What was it about Qobo that attracted you the most?
Qobo offered me a challenge which is difficult to find in larger, more traditional corporations. It is an up-and-rising company with very talented personnel and innovative products that bring added value and advanced solutions to its prospective clients. Being part of such an innovative team striving to make a difference, plus an opportunity to discover a whole new dynamic industry, made it an easy choice for me.
Was there a role or a project in your career that you consider your best?
When we were expanding the corporate sales team at MTN, I was given the responsibility to head the Limassol team which, at the time, was comprised of just myself! I needed to select and recruit the people I thought were best fitted for the job and above all, that they would work properly as a team. Following the selection, perhaps even more challenging was the need to coach, guide and mentor the team to achieve the objectives set forth by the company. Being able to give back all I have learned over my years in Sales and seeing the positive results, was extremely self-satisfying. Even after all these years the backbone of that team is still the same.
Where do you envision spending your next vacation?
The plan is to go on a Euro trip starting with Ukraine (my wife’s home country) and ending up in Paris, visiting as many countries as we can along the way. I’ve always been intrigued by the different cultures and values that exist on our planet and really enjoy visiting different places, getting a taste of their landmarks, people, history and way of life.
Do you have a hobby that you enjoy outside work?
My free time is very much tied up these days with my two boys – 4 and 2 – who require daddy’s undivided attention outside of working hours. So, I try to do as much as I can with them, whether it’s going for scooter rides, visiting parks, playing with the sand on the beach or just going for ice-cream. Any time left aside for me is spent playing 5-aside football, going body-boarding when the waves permit it, watching as many Liverpool games that I can, reading interesting books and just YouTubing it.
