Can you offer some information about your background?
I think I am considered someone with "a bit more life experience!" I had a 20 year career in sales before COVID hit the hospitality industry so I decided to switch gears and go into Medical Device Industry.
What interested you about the medical sales field?
I wanted to keep on selling and found the Medical Device Industry was an industry with a high potential of personal and professional development.
Where did you learn about the Med Sales Institute?
Google
Why did you decide to attend the Med Sales Institute?
The campus was in Denver so close to where I lived and the high placement rate.
What was the training experience like at the Med Sales Institute?
Instructors were knowledgeable and experienced with a set curriculum that balanced class time with lab time.
What aspect of your training most helped you find a job after graduation?
Definitely beneficial to have a number of certifications completed before starting my position. One less item to worry about while getting certified by the hospitals.
What reasons would you give people to attend the Med Sales Institute?
It was beneficial on the intricacies of getting into the Medical Device industry. The standards were set by the school that it could be a long process.
What aspect of your training did you put to use in the interview process?
I think I had an advantage on this aspect since I had 20 years of sales experience and everything that goes with it already.
What do you wish you had known before getting training and entering the medical sales industry?
It concentrated my focus on the expectations of the position especially if one was going to sell implants. You can see if one can break in and be successful, they will be set up for success in the industry with a lot of growth opportunities.
How did the training at MSI prepare you for the clinical complexities in this type of sales role?
You need to study and be fluent in the terminology as well as understand the hardware at a level much higher than everyone else in that OR. Plan to be a resource.
What aspect of your training most helped you find a job after graduation?
Persistence and grit. You will not be handed a job upon graduation. You need to treat your post graduate time as a full time job networking and researching potential opportunities in the industry.
How did placement services help accelerate your entry into the medical device sales industry?
I think offering recruiting complemented by the placement team helped me focus on what areas I wanted to go into and what opportunities were in my area.
What reasons would you give people to attend the Med Sales Institute?
If one has a passion for sales and competitiveness, working with the staff to improve the lives of others and wants to be a member of a very exclusive club (i.e. medical devices) that has unlimited personal and professional growth than it would be a good fit.
Please briefly explain your job interview process with your hiring company.
Persistence. I reached out to a friend to introduce me to Bird Medical's 1099 guy in Colorado Springs, I asked him to introduce me to Mike Bird and Vince Arena, I reached out to them both and connected on LinkedIn and asked for a phone conversation and then followed up weekly. I got a ride along with their guy in the Springs and then got an interview with Mike and Vince in Denver. I got an offer on Friday, February 19 and signed on Monday, February 22nd. The whole process took about 7 weeks.
