Meet Bans, Our September 2023 Confluent Champion

When Bans Sagoo was looking to transition into a role in the data streaming space, he accepted a “great career opportunity” at Confluent. Two years in, Bans currently dons the role of a manager in the Commercial Solutions Engineering Management team.

Let’s learn more about how Bans and his team drive better outcomes for their customers—and hear how Confluent fosters a culture of growth and development.

Tell us about your path to Confluent and what made you interested in working here? Tell us about your team and what role do you play? 

When the opportunity came along to join Confluent, the decision was an easy one. First, it was an exciting technology with the potential to make a global impact. Second, I didn’t want to miss out on my chance to work with all the smart and humble people—whom I can learn from. And most importantly, I was driven by my desire to transition into the data space and work alongside developers and architects. Overall it presented a great career opportunity. In hindsight, I was in the right place at the right time.

I've been working at Confluent for over two years now—most of which I spent as a Solutions Engineer. Earlier this year, I transitioned to a Solutions Engineering Manager role and now support our UK business and other EMEA geos. 

My role is more focused on supporting and empowering my team to perform their best. Part of that entails letting go and giving others the space to pursue success in their own way.

Tell us about an interesting project that you are currently working on.

Currently, I'm partnering with regional SE leaders to build a global enablement program for Solutions Engineering. This is specifically designed to help our solutions engineers build practical soft skills and learn from the field. This will not only help drive personal growth for our teams, but will also help us provide better outcomes for our customers.

What does a typical day look like as a Confluent Solutions Engineering Manager? How do you stay engaged with your team as a remote employee?

The best part of my role is the people I work with and the variety of activities I get involved in.  

In a day, I could be meeting with customers, strategizing with account teams on how we make customers successful, having growth conversations with my team, partnering on cross-geo initiatives or learning about the latest and greatest capabilities on our platform. 

It's a fast-paced environment where no two days are the same. 

How would you describe Confluent’s company culture?

Our ability to do great things starts with having a great team built on core values. 

Even though our team has grown and evolved over time, I love the fact that we can be open and honest with each other. I trust my team to act autonomously and if someone feels passionate about driving an initiative, they have the support and guidance they need. 

We are a collective of knowledge sharers and are always happy to learn, share, get feedback, and refine to make a meaningful contribution to the knowledge pool.

What’s one thing you would want to see Confluent do differently?

Confluent has a great culture with some of the best people in the industry working here. We can use these natural strengths to make a positive impact in the communities around us. This can be volunteering on community projects or educating students. Some of this is already happening and I'd love to see that accelerated as part of our ESG drive.