With a deep pool of potential medical sales rep candidates to choose from, one would think that hiring the right individual to share your products with medical providers would be a breeze.
Unfortunately, overabundance often results in more confusion, and costs more time as you try to determine which candidate to move forward with. If you are looking to identify and bring the very best candidate to join your team, it pays to be strategic in your hiring methodologies.
Whether you are hiring the individual yourself or relying on a professional third-party medical device sales recruiter, paying attention to these 3 tips will help you identify the best candidates for your particular role.
1. Have a clear idea of the right candidate at the BEGINNING of your search
Don’t go in blind or with just a vague concept of who you are looking for. Before initiating the search, develop a list of criteria, based on what the role requires.
The following suggestions should help you create a clear picture of your ideal candidate:
- Taking a good look at your current team, and evaluating the skill sets that translate into success, will give you a good idea of what to aim for in your new hire.
- Strong candidates will have a HISTORY OF SALES SUCCESS.
- Depending on if you have the training abilities to provide product knowledge, you can dramatically increase the pool you are fishing from if you open your search up to star performers within the sales arena as a whole, as opposed to having to stick to candidates that already have the exact medical devices sales experience that they will need in your role.
- Determine if looking for someone that has pre-existing RELATIONSHIPS WITH DECISION MAKERS is critical for success when hiring. In some cases, companies already have those relationships, so finding someone that already has relationships with decision makers, regardless if they are selling a similar product or not, is critical to success. Other times, in cases where a new territory is being opened, finding someone that has current relationships with key decision makers and knows their way around the procurement process within your targeted customer base can enable someone to leapfrog way ahead of the competition and save you valuable time in getting your product in the hands of the end-users.
In short, be as choosy as the candidate pool allows. Having a clear picture of your ideal candidate at the onset of your search, will put you miles ahead in the hiring process.
2. Create an Ideal Candidate Profile based on Mandatory Qualifications, and Preferred Qualifications
Remember to look at the big picture and be FLEXIBLE. When hiring medical device sales representatives, be cautious not to reject someone for things like 2 years of experience when you initially stated that you wanted 3 —and miss out on the fact that they have blown every sales quota out of the water.
Create a list of skill sets on your ideal candidate and break it down into two columns, listing your mandatory requirements and preferred skills. This will help you decipher what is truly critically important for your new hire to have, and what would be preferred, but not mandatory.
Having a list of mandatory and preferred skill sets, you can quickly screen out unsuitable candidates, and culminate your search by hiring the most qualified individual for your needs much more efficiently.
3. Step outside website, social and job board postings
When looking for a medical device sales rep, often times hiring managers are stuck with navigating through possibly hundreds of resumes, which is a tedious task. Plus, your ideal candidate may be out there…just not on any of the conventional digital platforms you are using.
Consider hiring professional medical device/equipment sales search consultants. Given that our job is building relationships with top performers within the medical device sales arena, our sole focus is connecting with stellar candidates within the industry, and introducing those individuals to our clients.
In addition, medical sales recruiters have invested the time to develop relationships with exceptional talent within the industry, that often times are passive candidates. Passive candidates are those individuals that are not actively looking to make a change, but may very well be open to it, for the right opportunity.
One of the primary reasons that companies utilize 3rd party recruiting agencies is because it gives them access to passive candidates, typically from direct competitors, that they otherwise would not have had the opportunity to speak with.
International Search Consultants has been a leader in medical device sales recruiting since 1999. To gain access to exceptional candidates, and to have a strong pool of candidates at your interview table ready to fill your next hiring need, simply fill out an online job search form with us. As a team of seasoned medical device headhunters, ISC makes it effortless for you to find experienced and driven medical sales professionals!
