Dennis Wilsmann

Critic
DISC Type : C

Senior Sales Director CEMEA at VMware

Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

Overview

Dennis is an accomplished technology sales leader with over two decades of experience, currently serving as Senior Sales Director for CEMEA at VMware. He specializes in DevSecOps, cloud, and cybersecurity, with a track record of building global go-to-market strategies. He holds an MBA from the University of Düsseldorf.

He has a keen interest in the practical application of emerging technologies, particularly in software development. Dennis follows the evolution of AI coding tools like ChatGPT and Claude and actively engages with developer communities, such as those focused on Java and Spring.

Dennis has a truly global background, having built high-performing sales organizations and negotiated complex contracts across Europe, CIS, Asia, and Latin America.

Personality Overview

Objective Thinker

Information Seeker

ROI Driven

They prefer to do logical analysis and value evidence over emotions.  They enjoy working alone and do not rely on others very often. Unless the value is proven by data, they are unlikely to value fancy features.

Topics They Care About

Cybersecurity Sales
His career is centered around cybersecurity, from his time at Cisco in consulting and global sales to his current DevSecOps focus at VMware.
Sales Methodologies
He explicitly mentions training and implementing sales strategies like MEDDIC and MEDDICC in his leadership roles at both VMware and Kubermatic.
AI in Development
He shows a hands-on interest in AI's role in coding, sharing posts that compare the effectiveness of tools like ChatGPT and Claude for development tasks.

Media Appearances

VMware rejigs leadership team in EMEA. Featured in ITWeb

See Now

Work History

6-2023
Senior Sales Director CEMEA at VMware
6-2022 - 6-2023
VP of Sales at Kubermatic
6-2021 - 6-2022
Head of Sales Engineering - Central, Eastern Europe and Russia at Cisco
9-2019 - 6-2021
Manager Business Development - Cyber Security Consulting - ASEAN at Cisco
1-2015 - 9-2019
Global Cybersecurity Sales Specialist at Cisco

Education

2009 - 2011
MBA from University of Düsseldorf
2002 - 2005
Dipl. Wirt. Inf. (FH) from Fachhochschule der Wirtschaft (FHDW)

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 21 Location : Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland Job Level : Senior Designation : Senior Sales Director CEMEA at VMware
URL has been copied!

Insights For Selling To Dennis

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Leverage facts and figures wherever possible; use percentages, numbers etc.
  • If you can, show them industry reports or analyst comments instead of sharing anecdotal stories
  • Tell them what ROI they can expect

DONT's

  • Make extra effort to not seem pushy or confrontational
  • Don’t rush them till they have clearly gotten all the necessary information
  • Avoid pushing them too much to involve other stakeholders unless it is critical

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Dennis is

  • Strong evidence of ROI, effective pricing, and proven data points matter the most to them.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Dennis

  • It is not very hard for them to say no if they are not convinced about the decision.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Dennis move?

  • Their decision-making is neither very fast nor very slow, they are somewhere in between.
  • Can Dennis take some risk or not?

  • They can take risks if their analysis shows that it would be worth it.

You And Dennis

Personality Compatibility


Other VMware Employees

Explore more public profiles from related professionals at the same organization.

More Profiles

Discover additional public profiles from our index.

Search more profiles

Looking for someone else? Search here for anyone.

Or visit Humantic AI to know more.