Yeah as a former Bard PV rep I would also have to say my quality of life and income consistency are much better where I’m at now though it wasn’t easy to get there. My experience at Bard was key to winning the job I have now, thoguh, and that’s the one good thing you will get at Bard: Experience.
Avg rep where I’m at now is $220K (as are most gigs with quality reps that have 5 years + experience) and I have one 30 minute live phone conversation with a week with my boss a week. No BS spreadsheets or ra-ra voicemails to clog up your day, either. The last voicemail that was sent out was the Sales manager wishing everyone Merry Christmas and Happy New year. Now that's enough rope to hang yourself if you suck but that's why they hire the right people.
Bard can be great if you get into presidents club, build a big base, get optimum, etc but most don’t. I'd say your chance are the same as winning your local American Idol try-outs. There will, however, always be some winners and those are the people who get on here and can't understand why 80% had a bad experience at their company. The Bard pay structure will always lend itself to big up years and big down years.
A recruiter told me in 2006 that Bard was not a place that most really good reps stay for more than 3-5 years without going into management and I said he was wrong and that I was the exception. Well he was right. You don’t think guys like Ammerman and Mike Bordovsky are happier at the St. Judes, Strykers, W.L. Gores, Karl Storz and Medtronics out there? There are more for-real med sales high level gigs besides Bard. That’s why Bard usually hires entry-level sales people (2-3 years of outside sales or pharma). A chance to make $120K at plan? Shit, they say. I’m in. Whenever you have that constituency as a big part of a sales force management will always be able to get away with shit that they could not get away with if the sales force was 75% 5 year+ Device reps. They'd be like, are you fucking kidding me? Pharma and ADP people don't know any better.
