John Sapone ’93 has been selected to the Syracuse University iSchool Board of Advisors, hoping to add value to the school from his experience in technology sales.
Sapone had his heart set on being accepted into the Whitman School of Management, but he wasn’t selected. He decided to pursue technology in the meantime and transfer into business later.
“I’m so delighted that I actually didn’t, because I’m kind of a technology guy at heart,” said Sapone, who graduated from Syracuse University’s iSchool in 1993 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Science and Technology.
Soon after graduation, the Buffalo, New York native decided to head South. Currently, he lives in Florida and Georgia.
Sapone recalls going directly to businesses to secure his first job. As he progressed in his career, he specialized in technology sales and building go-to-market sales teams for companies such as Data Domain, ServiceNow, and Snowflake. He was instrumental in taking three companies public during his career.
“I’ve always been a salesperson,” Sapone said, noting that he went from being a salesperson to sales executive during his career, always within the technology sector.
Just when he thought he was settled in retirement thinking about doing some advisory work on the side, an old colleague told him about NinjaOne—a platform that automates information technology so users can control endpoints on multiple operating systems. The Austin, Texas-based company was on the hunt for a high-performing sales executive. Sapone really liked the product and the corporate culture.
“The two founders are just fantastic,” said Sapone, who had been on the job less than one month at the time of this interview. “Fundamentally we aligned on our business strategies and core values.”
Sapone, who now serves as Chief Revenue Officer at NinjaOne, runs sales and go-to-market teams globally. Out of about 1,500 employees, he’s responsible for more than 500 of them.
Looking back, Sapone said the education from Syracuse University gave him the foundation for a flourishing technology sales leadership career.
“It set the foundation for curiosity around technology,” said Sapone, adding that his college education gave him the basis to succeed as technologies evolved and emerged.
Sapone hopes that his time at Syracuse, along with his real-world experiences, will bring added value to the Advisory Board.
“What I bring to the board is an outside perspective on areas where the iSchool can get more connected to organizations like NinjaOne,” Sapone said.
He hopes his experience in technology—specifically in sales—can give students real-world insights to equip them for successful careers.
Sapone wants to give students first hand experience about what they should be thinking about as students, and what they should prepare for when looking to launch their professional lives. He also hopes his experiences and input will help the iSchool focus on bolstering its reputation in the market.
“The goal is to make the iSchool better, and bring diverse thinking to the table,” Sapone added.