Please welcome Darren Fennell, our new Account Manager.
In this blog, we outline many reasons why our local government clients in particular will find Darren an invaluable addition to the team. We also give you the background info you need to start getting to know our latest recruit.
A brief intro to Darren
Darren comes to us fresh from a 25-year stint at Conwy County Borough Council. His last job title was IT Analyst but his specialism was the management of spatial data and technology across the council.
Our shared history
We first crossed Darren’s radar when he was researching the web mapping industry with a view to migrating Conwy’s ageing solution. Roll on a few years to 2023 when he had a crash course in all things Astun when Conwy adopted iShare in the Cloud, our end-to-end GIS. This followed a relatively straightforward procurement using the G-Cloud 13 framework.
What attracted Darren to the role
iShare is a popular choice for local authorities in Wales, so Darren was able to join the independent Welsh user group and share information with his peers as well as his colleagues at Conwy.
When we advertised the Account Manager position earlier this year, he became tempted to use his new powers for a greater good, one which would have an impact beyond the border. Our “reputation for providing proven spatial services” helped convince Darren that the move would be a good idea.
How Darren will support our clients
Like our other Account Managers, Darren will help customers realise the full potential of the Astun services they have subscribed to. In essence, it’s similar to his role at Conwy but on a much larger scale and with the potential for greater impact.
Customers will be relieved to know that he can put together a mean presentation (our interviews are hands-on affairs) and has a lot of experience delivering training.
Having onboarded with Astun relatively recently – some clients have been with us since 2005 – Darren will also be able to share wisdom gained during Conwy’s implementation. This will help us refine the procurement and onboarding processes for new clients.
The voice of local government
A key part of Darren’s job will be taking on the vital ‘Voice of Local Government’ mantle. This is currently held by David Renn, who plans to succumb to the temptations of retirement in a few months. As for David before him, Darren will be supported by Moira, who also completed a lengthy stint in the public sector before joining us.
To advocate for customers effectively, Darren will spend much of his time talking to customers about how they use spatial technology to deliver services to their colleagues. In return, he’ll share insights harvested from his time at Conwy or other clients. He’ll also demo our software and deliver iShare training. We hope this makes it a win-win situation for all.
Fitting in with the team
As with any new starter, Darren is busy getting to know his colleagues, some of whom he met at our User Group last year. To his relief, he’s already found us to be as ‘friendly’ and ‘approachable’ in ‘real life’ as we are when hosting events. We can assure you that we find him equally personable and he shares our all-important commitment to ‘never selling you a service you don’t need’. Long before he applied, he gave us this feedback at the 2024 User Group:
“Astun continues to be passionate about their product and I enjoy their no-sales-pitch approach.”
Darren’s also getting to know our back office systems and processes as part of his 30/60/90-day training programme. His experience with iShare has allowed him to skip a few steps, so he can hit the ground running. So much so that he’s already earmarked to deliver his first webinar for Astun in May. We’ll publish more info on our blog shortly.
Reallocating our customer accounts
Once Darren has settled into the post, we’ll assign him some accounts to look after. If Darren will become your new Account Manager, we’ll let you know.
Assuming we can tempt Darren away from his home office and the beautiful North Wales coastline, you’ll have the chance to meet Darren at various events this year, starting with the GeoPlace Conference on 22nd May.
A life outside GIS
When not at work, Darren tries to wear out two energetic dogs. He plans to take advantage of our flexible working policy by giving them daylight walks all year round.
Family commitments aside, Darren also likes to read sci-fi books, listen to his favourite rock bands and play the odd computer game with friends.
Get in touch with Darren
If you’d like to contact Darren, you can contact us. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn.