I also know Wild Bill and his product mentality. He believes he can sell a pig with lipstick. And quite frankly Bill is one of the best guys I know to head up a Sales & advertising division of marketing. Given a great product with no control over the content, Bill could sell the crap of it.
Heh. I have a real ambivalence towards guys like Bill. I don't know Bill, but I know the type.
He is probably a perfectly amiable guy. I suppose if you just met him at a party and he didn't have any power over you, or wasn't trying to sell you something, then I bet he would be a hoot to share a beer with.
However, I've worked for two tech companies run by salesmen that worked their way up to CEO due to their sales prowess. And then watched both destroy the companies through staggeringly stupid decisions. I swore I'd never again work for a tech company run by a salesman. I'll dig ditches first.
On the other hand, I am currently working for a tech company run by brilliant engineers with no sales or marketing people. I always liked to think of myself as reasonably bright, but these guys are on a whole different level. These guys are truly the most brilliant people I've ever worked for or with, and I think we have a revolutionary product that could make a real impact on the world, but we'll probably be insolvent in a year or so if something drastic doesn't change. Why? Because the geniuses I'm working for (and I'm not saying that cynically) can't sell their way out of a wet paper bag.
In their mind, they should just be able to read 50 books, extract the appropriated sales techniques and then design an efficient algorithm to implement the strategy. Sadly, it isn't that simple. It's a human thing, which always makes things more complicated. Or I like to think of it like Lord of the Rings. Each member of the Fellowship was from a different race that brought unique skills and talents to the team. NO one could shoot a bow like an Elve, or have the ferocity of a Dwarf, or the wily cunning of a Human, the magic of a Wizard, or the innocent heart of a Hobbit. Each one brought a unique gift to make a complete whole.
Salesmen just have that shameless personality and gregariousness that it takes to go out and cold-call and beat the bushes until they find a sale. That is literally a different race of being than your normal introverted tech engineer. Properly harnessed and directed, they can make the difference between insolvency and success.
Every Sid Meir needs a Wild Bill. But you never let one have control, for cripes sake!