I dont know who you are, if your a Zoll employee, a former device guy, a current device guy, but....you are spot on in your assessment of and the characterization of a device rep. I have been one for 25 years and the headaches along the way have been many. Not to say that there has not been some fantastic income years, but I think when you weigh the positives against the negatives, one could argue a safe, rewarding and headache free pharma career would compare quite nicely!
Thank you for the complement.
I have about 20 years in sales. 10 in pharmaceuticals, 5 in surgical, 3 in DME, 2 in other industries, not medical related.
Pharmaceuticals has been, by far, the best industry.
Surgical is tough because the surgeons' ego is too much to deal with. You really have to be a sell out to stay I surgical or a push over or someone who puts money number one in life. I just am not that guy. I did it for the challenge and because I had a big ego as well.
Anyway, when I let my ego go, I realized that I just had to be content with selling pharmaceutical, making close to or around 100k is good enough for me. I don't spend anything, so I save a lot of that cash.
Also, DME was a joke, because there is too much paperwork and regulations. It was a great business years ago, because Medicaid approved everything.
Anyway, these medical companies are always going to do well because people with big egos and are money hungry don't understand that they are getting played and wasting their lives getting stressed out for the almighty dollar.
The youngsters, usually under 40, are the biggest victims. Trust me, when they hit 45, they know they got played. Hopefully by that time, they have enough money saved and can move onto other things.
Also, do you notice how the managers in these industries love to hire the youngsters? And, they last into their 60s, because they just sit around, train a little, do a few field rides, and ride the backs of these hard working youngsters!
finally, the other industries are definitely good to work for, but you are not making enough money to justify the micromanagement. In pharmaceuticals, we are micromanaged, but the job is not that hard (hopefully you have a smart manager) and the pay is very good.
Ok, that's it. Thanks again for your reply. I hope to hear from you again. Let me know what you think of the future of pharmaceuticals, because that is where I am staying for a long, long time!
