I Found a Supportive (and Talented!) Team in Sales — My Best Advice for Women Who Want the Same

Senior Sales Executive Dina Marie Andrews was hired into Equinix nearly three years ago — and she doesn’t plan to leave the company anytime soon. In her own words: “Equinix is the best company I’ve ever worked for, and I hope and plan to retire here!” 

Dina says the Equinix people and culture make the company special. She loves being part of a team that always does what’s best for the customer and the company. Her colleagues are knowledgeable and supportive, and Equinix policies and practices make it clear that the company cares about its employees.

We spoke to Dina about why she decided to join Equinix, what she learned about the company after joining that she didn’t know before, how she would describe the company’s gender diversity in the sales organization, and what she enjoys most about her daily work. 

How long have you been at Equinix, and in what roles? 

I joined Equinix nearly three years ago in an Americas channel sales role. I was a partner development manager and my job was to manage the AT&T relationship for Equinix in the mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Latin America region. A few months ago, I moved to an enterprise direct field role; now I deal directly with our enterprise customers and help them solve their business challenges with the Equinix platform.  

What about the company first made you want to join? Was there anything in your interview experience that stood out? 

The No. 1 thing was the culture, which of course is driven by the people. It really came through during the interview process, and it was clear that Equinix attracted a very high caliber of people. During the interviews I noticed how willing they were to help me understand every aspect of Equinix while being kind and personable. I had interviews with a lot of people, and it was clear they wanted to make sure I was a good fit for the organization. They were looking for someone with industry knowledge who was professional and articulate and would be a great addition to the team. 

What programs or initiatives at Equinix were important to you during the hiring process?

The ones that stood out to me were the mentor and training programs — and the community involvement through Equinix Impact. 

To me, it’s very important to have a mentor and also to be a mentor. From a career-path perspective, it’s great to have a mentor who I look up to and respect. As a mentor, I enjoy passing along knowledge about how to be successful and how to navigate the company. 

The company’s training philosophy and process is very thorough, and it covers every aspect of Equinix and its people, products and culture. It’s the best new-hire training I’ve ever experienced, and I’ve been working in telecom for 25 years. 

Equinix Impact events are amazing, because they allow us to participate in events that help another person or family in need — from assembling bags of food to building bikes and gathering books. Each quarter, Equinix employees have a chance to make a meaningful difference in our global communities. 

Tell me a bit about your time at Equinix so far. What’s your favorite part about working at the company? 

Am I allowed to say everything? If not, I’d say the people — and the flexibility to run your sales organization like your own business. I feel like I can make autonomous decisions and do great things. It’s hard work, but you can make your own success. 

Do you think your company is a particularly supportive work environment for women? 

Absolutely! We have a group called the Equinix Women’s Leadership Network (EWLN) that has a monthly meeting with a guest speaker on how to be successful. Now the meetings are on Zoom, but pre-COVID we also did in-person events with motivational speakers. EWLN is a unique network and Equinix is well-known for supporting its female executives and promoting women from inside and outside the company. 

Tell me a little about your job. What about this work excites you? 

I love the daily interaction with customers — and solving their business problems with our platform excites me. I also really enjoy working with the Equinix team because the knowledge base in our organization is phenomenal. 

What’s something you find unique about the organization that you didn’t know prior to joining? 

When I first heard about the “Magic of Equinix” culture, it sounded like baloney or witchcraft — but it’s true! The company really cares about its employees and demonstrates it in lots of ways, like blocking out time on our calendars to limit Zoom calls so we have time to focus and spend time with our families — and encouraging us to schedule 45-minute instead of 60-minute calls to build in breaks between meetings. 

What advice would you give other women pursuing a career in sales? 

I would say be persistent, because it’s a long process. Don’t give up. Follow up with everyone you speak to; pay attention to detail; and be as professional as possible in meetings, while presenting and while communicating with customers and colleagues. You must be good at these things to get a job at Equinix — but once you’re in, you’re part of a fantastic team!