Account Manager Spotlight: Stephen Dunne

For this installment of our Account Manager Spotlight, we travel to Derry, Northern Ireland, to catch up with Stephen Dunne. Stephen recently joined ModSquad and is based out of our Derry Operations Centre. On his off hours, Stephen spends most of his time with his family. “My daughter is part of the Northern Ireland Junior Archery Squad, so we spend a lot time travelling around taking her to competitions,” he explains. “And the wee fella, well, he’s just an awesome bundle of energy.”

Stephen’s also passionate about the volunteer work he does as chairperson for the Northern Ireland Kidney Patients Association. “Eighteen months ago, I received a kidney transplant, which transformed my life. Now, with the rest of the committee, I do as much as I can to help other people across Northern Ireland in varying stages of renal failure.”

Tell us about your background and what led you to ModSquad.

I’ve spent most of my career working on either the vendor or client side at many companies, from managing day-to-day operations to building an outsourced international customer service footprint. My roles have allowed me to travel the world, through Europe, Asia, and North America, and I’ve gotten to meet many wonderful people on this journey so far. ModSquad lets me virtually meet even more awesome people across the globe with our remote working model and our varied list of global clients. I became aware of this opportunity through Steve Henry, ModSquad’s VP, Client Services. Once he talked me through the ModSquad model and culture, I was sold. I couldn’t wait to join. I haven’t looked back since.

What are you doing in your current role?

As an Account Manager, I am responsible for the ongoing relationship between ModSquad and our clients. It is my goal to ensure the success of the projects, and continued happiness of the amazing clients I work with. I am genuinely lucky to have superstars working across my projects.  As part of my role, I interact with the great bunch of folks here, helping to build the ModSquad culture and spreading the news of the great work we do.

Can you share a rewarding experience you’ve had here?

We work with a very large tourism client. Upon reviewing our first year with them, our team not only delivered on a complex project, but also helped the client transition from a traditional phone-based contact system to focus more on email, social media engagement, and community building. It’s been a great journey and a terrific success for us and our client.

I recently got the opportunity to attend Shoptalk Europe with one of our sales VPs in Copenhagen. It was a great chance to see a beautiful city, but more than that, it was a great opportunity to share the ModSquad story, network with other vendors and conference attendees, and share the benefits of our business model and how we put that into practice every day.

What sets ModSquad apart, in your opinion?

Determination! Everyone I come across is determined to do a great job and find ways to improve. There’s a real can-do attitude, and everyone is prepared to pitch in and share experiences when needed. We are very adaptable, which is great for clients, as we can flex around their changing needs. For instance, one of our gaming clients came in with a quick ramp-up schedule and a short project duration. We held our first meeting on June 1 and had Mods in place by June 3. The game took off and our requirements almost tripled within the first few weeks, and the Project Manager and her team demonstrated real strength and flexibility. The best thing? That short-term project extended their engagement and is still with us today!

Any great stories that stand out in your memory?

What can I say? I arrived during a good year! We celebrated Derry’s second anniversary and ModSquad’s tenth anniversary by throwing two parties. It’s been great getting to meet the folks who don’t work out of the operations centre. Meeting the great bunch of people who make up the services team, including the other Account Managers, has been a highlight. Everyone has such varied backgrounds and it’s great to throw ideas around with such a diverse pool of people.