What does it take to work as a sales rep at one of the top medical device companies in the world? recently asked Mark Calkins, Director of Sales for Stryker, about what he looks for in candidates and what Stryker sales reps do that makes them so successful. MR: Stryker consistently pops up on several “Best Places to Work” lists, including the MedReps list of the Best Places to Work in Healthcare Sales. What do you think makes Stryker a great place for sales professionals to work? MC: A lot actually. We constantly attract and maintain talented professionals because of our culture. We are all high-energy, highly motivated and constantly challenge each other to maximize our performance and exceed sales expectations. We are like a big brotherhood and sisterhood that constantly goes to bat for each other. Stryker is also known for promoting from within, not based on seniority, but performance, so there’s a lot of room for upward and lateral mobility. I have been here 10 years and started as an assistant sales rep, so I would say 5 moves in 10 years speaks to they way the company likes to reward its best performers.

MR: Can you give us an overview of the hiring process at Stryker? MC: It mostly starts as a typical hiring process, but it can be long and arduous. The first step once a candidate is tracked for possible hire is a screening interview over the phone with a hiring manager. Next, we often conduct a Gallup type interview to really get a sense of an applicant’s personality, their business acumen, relationship skills, their business strategy and if they are performance oriented. These first two steps of the interview process give Stryker a good sense for the candidate’s skills and knowledge, experience and talent. Assuming these factors align with the position, the candidate would then go through another series of interviews such as a ride-along to spend a day in the field, which gives the candidate a “day in the life” experience. After all that, then there may be a few more meetings, including a final interview with the sales director. The whole process can take between one to three months.

MR: How can a qualified medical sales job candidate make sure their resume gets noticed by a hiring manager? MC: Typically I want to see a performance-oriented resume that also includes a good track record of success, a four-year degree and GPA – because we want to know if a person is smart – and an objective that matches the position they are applying for. But, I will say, I don’t just hire a person based on paper. I want to know that someone has conviction, skills and passion and also why they want to be in medical sales. MR: What mistakes do you see candidates making during the interview process that may eliminate them from consideration? MC: First the usual stuff – being late, coming unprepared or not preparing  interview questions or acting disengaged or uninterested in the position. But mostly, really a candidate has to be able to close the deal. They have to be willing to sell me on why they are the right person for the job within the first five minutes.

They need to “have me at hello.” MR: Does Stryker ever consider hiring candidates without medical sales experience? MC: We actually always do. I have hired an offensive line coach, a flying fishing guy, a pro baseball player, a guy who worked on oil rigs and a pharma guy because they all showed me they had positive relationship building skills, passion and conviction and a desire to work in healthcare sales. MR: What is the best way for potential candidates to research the products they would be selling at Stryker?best coverage for sliding glass doors MC: There are a number of good resources, but really our website is the most comprehensive when it comes to an overview of our products. top track for bifold doors is another great place to look at videos of our devices in use. sliding glass door craigslist

However, a candidate doesn’t need to come in here rattling off a bunch of statistics from our website in order to get a job, but I do expect someone with medical device sales to know a bit more than other applicants. MR: What characteristics do the most successful Stryker reps have in common? MC: We all have the ability to build deep, long lasting relationships from the top down, including clients, healthcare providers, distributors and users. second hand fire doors liverpoolWe all have strong work ethics and the ability to perform. garage door for sale in johannesburgWe also all are able to wear a lot of different hats – from sitting in on a C-suite level meeting to dealing with the supply chain – we can walk the walk and talk the talk.garage door openers ri

MR: Any last words of advice for sales professionals hoping to work at Stryker? MC: Yes, be aggressive, creative and persistent. The hardest part is being able to cut through the red tape to get an interview, so they need to use social media to network and think outside the box. Sometimes we will even slow down the hiring process just to see how determined and aggressive a candidate is -sometimes it’s just part of the process. Mark Calkins has spent more than a decade contributing to Stryker’s success, first as a sales rep, then as a marketing manager, training manager, regional manager, and currently as Director of Sales. garage door for sale johannesburgHe oversees 12 Regional Sales Managers and 130 sales professionals covering the Western U.S.The most important person on a sales team is arguably the VP Sales. As a business manager, customer manager and people manager, they are responsible for all of the key drivers of profitable revenue growth.

As ZS Associates correctly states, a great VP Sales is “the force behind the sales force.”But with this volume of responsibility comes a top-tier pay grade that corresponds to the amount of work, their existing level of experience, and the results they actually produce.According to PayScale, the nationwide average for this role is about $124,193 per year – and, according to Indeed, salaries for this role are at an all time high. Our own wage data tells a similar story, with CSOs earning 16% more than they did two years ago.But we wanted to go deeper and examine 5 sectors to uncover some of the average salaries for this role, as well as how variables like location, experience, qualifications, expectations, and company size impact earning potential. It should be noted, however, that base salary and on-target earning potential varies significantly between companies, and that bonus ‘splits’ are impacted by company size, growth potential, and sector, and are typically offset by company equities.

Sales professionals within the software industry have some of the highest commission payouts of any industry (upwards of $1M), and therefore have some of the highest annual earning potentials. show that software & networking salaries for top sales executives are more than 10% higher on average than in every other industry. Our data confirms these findings, with software sales leaders earning ~12.5% more than their peers in the industrial, manufacturing and professional service verticals.Business Insider examined salaries for sales professionals in this industry in 2013, and found that a VP of Sales who delivered on-target results earned approximately $400K per year.But on our end of the spectrum, we’ve seen top reps go far beyond this earning level.Our CEO, Eliot Burdett, told Business Insider, “In a really good year, a top salesperson at these companies can earn $1M.”For top-tier software companies like Oracle and Microsoft, great sales reps can earn a salary of more than $250K each year (including commissions and bonuses).

However, for start-up software or software as a service companies (SaaS), pay incentives often come in the form of stock/equity for player/coach roles. Starting base salaries for a VP of Sales at these companies begins in the $160K-$175K range plus equity.There is variance between different locations and varied experience levels, so here’s a glimpse at what a VP of Sales could earn in areas throughout the U.S. according to Business Insider data and our own:Earning potential can greatly vary depending on the company, however. Looking at salary reports from Glassdoor, a VP of Sales working for Matrixx in Mountain View, California earns an average income of about $105,104, while one working for AvePoint in Jersey City earns $127,788.Here is a quick breakdown of average base and on target earnings across 10 major U.S. markets according to our own data, irrespective of company size:Based on national averages, the salary for a VP of Sales for mid-sized manufacturing companies can range from slightly below the national average to well above for this job title.

, the average VP of Sales earns a base salary of approximately $200K, with a variable OTE depending on the specific market.Overall, a VP of Sales in this industry could expect to earn an average base salary ranging between $190-250K.Fluctuations in salary may be due in part to the fact that the manufacturing industry is still recovering from the recession, as one report notes that manufacturing (on the industrial production side) still has to increase by 3.4% to reach pre-recession production levels.Over the past five years, manufacturing growth was slower than expected, averaging only about 1% growth each year, as noted by the MAPI Foundation. Total growth since 2010 was 4.5% slower than last reported, with the largest downward revisions occurring in 2012 and 2013. Future growth is also expected to maintain a slow and modest upward trajectory, as shown in the table below:The foundation’s data that indicates both iron/steel products and mining/gas field machinery manufacturing industries have taken particularly hard hits recently.

to find that a VP of Sales in the manufacturing sector typically earns a base salary between $170-210K per year in different locales across the U.S.When we think of telecommunications and Information Technology (IT), we think of companies like IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Verizon, and AT&T. Rapid growth over the past 10 years on the mobile side of telecommunications has created an aggressive sales market, as seen in the data from IBM below:So what can a VP of Sales expect to earn at large and mid-sized telecom and information technology companies? We examined some of the averages on Glassdoor and found variances based on company size and location. indicates that the average base salary is about $80K, but that OTE can include an additional $100-200K annually (as telecomm is an industry with intense competition for market share).Studies from PayScale show that in the telecomm industry, a proven VP Sales, with 5 to 10 years of experience, earned an average of 7% more than his or her peers, one with 10 to 20 years of experience earned 14% higher, and that late-career executives earn about 16% higher than the national average.

It’s important to note that stock options almost always tie-in to the VP’s total income within this industry, since many telecommunications and IT companies are publicly traded. But across the board, a total annual salary of $250K+ is standard – even for mid-sized companies.Looking at the 2015 Pharma Salary Report that reviewed data from more than 3,000 medical and pharmaceutical sales professionals, hiring managers can get a comprehensive view of what a VP of Sales in this industry can expect to earn.It’s interesting to note the difference between salaries within this industry for pharmaceutical versus specialty pharmaceutical, however, it shouldn’t be surprising to see higher incomes in the specialty pharma category (as specialty drugs for less common diseases typically come with a higher price tag.)In this industry, age and experience are key variables that affect the industry’s average salary. The survey found that, regardless of position title, those under 30 years of age typically struggled to break the $100K salary range, and that the largest salaries went to those who fell into the 51+ age range.

So how much does experience impact the average salary in the pharmaceutical market – as well as commissions and bonuses?Those with 20+ years of experience, on average, earned a base salary of $100K or more, with additional annual compensation of $40K+ on top of that. In comparison, those with less than two years of experience earned a base salary of around $66,172, with additional bonuses of about $19,453. Frequency of travel is also a factor – and the numbers show that the more travel that is undertaken, the higher the average income can be earned.With a title of VP of Sales for this industry, the study reports an average salary of $158,750 per year plus as much as $58,929 in bonuses–for a total of $217,679 per year.The good news for VP Sales candidates is that the average incomes within the pharmaceutical sales industry is on the rise, with a 5% increase over 2014. According to the report, 2015’s average total incomes were the highest they’ve been since 2011.Sales compensation has an enormous impact on attracting the right VP of Sales.