Delivering the Kalibrate Standard: Kent Schlesselman

Kent Schlesselman began his journey with Kalibrate in 1982, answering a newspaper ad for an entry-level position. Since then, he’s held a variety of roles from client service and international field operations to consulting and solutions design. Today, Kent serves as a Senior Solutions Consultant, supporting the sales team as a subject matter expert.

Tell us a little about your role

I’ve been in Solutions Consulting for about five years now, but the work I’m doing today has really been part of my job for decades. Supporting the sales team, helping shape solutions, and ensuring the client gets exactly what they need — that’s what it’s always been about.

Solutions consulting sits at a pivotal stage in the sales process. I help match clients with the right combination of Kalibrate’s software platforms, consultancy services, and bespoke modeling. I make sure that every recommendation we make is aligned with real-world client needs.

How does your role interact with the rest of the team?

I work closely with the sales team to help prospective clients understand the value and capabilities of Kalibrate’s offerings. While the sales team handles contracts and negotiations, I focus on making sure the client is set up for success. We offer multiple software platforms, as well as bespoke modeling, analytics, and consulting capabilities, so selecting the right solution is imperative to the success of our clients.

I also coordinate with implementation and modeling teams to ensure a seamless transition from solution design to delivery. Regular internal knowledge-sharing sessions like the “Learn and share” sessions for KLI keep me up to speed on the latest updates and innovations across the Kalibrate product suite. Our teams are constantly enhancing the tools to deliver value to clients, and they do a great job of making sure that knowledge is easily shared and accessible across the business.

What types of problems are the clients you work with trying to solve?

Retailers in the fuel and convenience store space are challenged with existing in an increasingly competitive market.

They’re asking: Where should I grow? How quickly can I grow? How do I improve my current network’s performance?

Whether it’s identifying prime locations for expansion or understanding how to make the most of existing assets, clients look to Kalibrate to provide clarity and confidence in their decision-making.

Some clients grow through acquisition and want to understand the value of competitor sites. Others are seeking guidance on how to improve performance and prioritize investments across their networks.

Give us an example of a particularly challenging client question

We had a large client approach us with a complex project. With over 1,000 sites, the client had capital available for investment, but needed to determine how to get the highest return.

They weren’t asking where to build or acquire. They needed to know how to optimize what they already had. It was a high-stakes question involving large-scale investments.

And how did you solve that?

This was a great example of using everything in our toolkit to get the best outcome for the client. We utilized the best of our analytics capabilities from different areas of the business to build a model for the client that assessed their current and potential performance.

We identified the key drivers of performance at each site which allowed us to create predictive models that segmented their network. Showing them which sites were already excelling, which had room to grow, and which may not offer long-term value.

We developed tailored forecasting models that factored in multiple market characteristics, providing clear, data-driven insights into the return they could expect from these investments. It gave them a strategy they could act on immediately.

Typically, my role concludes once the solution is defined and the sale is agreed, when I hand over to our Client Success or Account Management teams. That means I don’t always get to see the results first-hand. But in this case, the client returned for follow-up projects, and we have had a chance to continue working with them, validation that the solution we delivered made an impact.

What’s the most rewarding part of your role?

It all comes down to getting the fit just right. When the client is happy, they see real value, and we’ve helped them make a smart decision — that’s the best part.

Over the years at Kalibrate I’ve worked with major oil companies and fuel retailers of every size. Often, in the US, family-owned companies come to us needing to grow to stay competitive in a market that is changing quickly. Helping them evolve and stay relevant in a tough market — that is very rewarding.

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From the U.S. to Japan, I’ve had the opportunity to learn, grow, and contribute in ways I never imagined when I first answered that newspaper ad. In four decades in this role the industry has changed a lot, and Kalibrate has changed as well. The business environment continues to evolve rapidly.  Kalibrate will also continue to evolve and innovate, with our clients’ goals at the heart of our development.

Want to know more about how Kalibrate delivers solutions tailored to your goals?

Connect with our team today.