Making the Grade: The Transition from the Cath Lab to Industry

The annual turnover rate resulting from cath lab professionals leaving for industry presents a serious staffing concern. Why is this happening? Here are reasons some people may consider working for industry: 1) I feel underappreciated, underpaid, overworked and overlooked by management. (Every one of us has felt this way at one time or another.) 2) Industry looks like fun. You get to travel, dress nicely and eat well. 3) Industry benefits are good. You get a car, a computer, stock options and 401(k) plan. This all sounds great. So why isn’t everybody trying to get into industry? What are some of the perceived barriers? I also hear people say: Well, I would like to enter industry, but I can’t see myself selling. I would like to enter industry, but I’m a clinical person. I would only do it if I could be a clinical specialist. What happens if I don’t like it and I want to come back? I’ve lost all of my hospital seniority. I can’t stand kissing up to anyone. (This last excuse is the most common.) There’s good and there’s bad to each one of these position statements. Let’s look at some of the pros and cons for someone wanting to move out of the cath lab and into industry: 1. I feel underappreciated, underpaid, overworked and overlooked by management. In a cartoon from the May 2000 Cath Lab Digest showing a pager, the caption reads, My greatest fear is that if my pager grew legs, it would chase me out of the lab and say ‘You can’t get away! You get no dinner, no sleep, no vacation, and you are summoned back to work immediately.’ Okay, this may have some truth to it. However, when you’re in the cath lab, there’s a great team feeling. Everyone in the cath lab works as a team. We eat together, we play together, we work together. So even if your pager is chasing you down the street, don’t underestimate the benefits of a truly team-structured work environment. 2. Industry looks like fun because you get to travel. This is true. The reality is that if you do get to attend the European Society of Cardiology (which was held in Amsterdam last year) you would indeed get to see windmills and beautiful tulips. On the other hand, if you’re a parent, this is time spent away from your children. If you’re married, it’s time spent away from your spouse. 3. Industry looks like fun because you get to dress nicely. We look great in suits, but scrubs have their own appeal. I can walk to work in my boxer shorts if I want, put on scrubs, do cases, take off my scrubs, and throw them in a ball in the corner. Somebody will wash and fold them and they’re there the next day. 4. You get to eat well when you’re in industry. You do get nice wines and great steaks, but there’s definitely a down side. Here’s a true case example. I’ve actually seen this person’s lipid profile: In 1998, they had an LDL cholesterol of 100 and a total cholesterol of 193. One year later, they had that same finger-stick draw at the American College of Cardiology meeting. Their LDL was 141 and total cholesterol was 243. Again, there’s a good side and there’s a bad side. 5. What about all the great perks? A lot of industry people do drive around in nice, shiny cars. The reality is that some companies give you a Ford Taurus and some allot you a sum of money to get yourself a car. Ask yourself: what am I getting? Maybe you have a nice car, but the allowance doesn’t cover the entire price of the car. Who pays for your gas? Who pays for insurance? What happens if the car breaks down? Who is responsible for fixing it? What about corporate stock? What is it worth now? What is it worth in the future? What happens if I leave? I hear a lot of people say that they signed on with Company A and got 1,000 shares of stock. Well, there are a lot of companies out there who have stock worth nothing. Those 1,000 shares of stock could be worth nothing in five years. What about 401(k) plan? It’s certainly nice to have, but is the company matching your contributions? You can get it, but it may only be worth what you’re putting into it. I always tell people that if they are going to leave their current job, whichever side of the fence it may be, they should do so knowing that the grass will always be at least as green on the other side of the fence. Never leave your job thinking the grass is going to be greener on the other side. If it’s at least as green as your current situation, your expectations are neutral. Never leave with delusions of grandeur that everything is going to be much better on the other side. Perceived Barriers to Entering Industry First, there is a big change in the social working environment. In industry, you’re all alone. You might be relocated to a town where you don’t know a soul. Then there’s windshield time, airport delays, time in a doctor’s office… You used to work in a cath lab, and now you may have a home office. Well, that home office door is open 24/7 and there’s always something to do. You are always on call. Your sense of value can be shaken. In your cath lab, you may be the person everyone comes to for information. Now, you’re in a different area and nobody knows you; you are just another company representative. Now let’s examine the pros and cons of some of the perceived negative aspects to entering industry. 1. Well, I would like to enter industry, but I can’t see myself selling. If you look at our economy, you see that everything is sliding. The Dow Jones is sliding. The NASDAQ is sliding. If companies don’t sell their product, their corporate stock will continue to slide. With this in mind, industry gives incentives, such as bonuses, gifts and trips to help their people do a job that is difficult. Herein lies the problem that we see with the aggressive salesperson. We’ll talk more about this problem later. 2. What happens if I enter industry and don’t like it? I’ve lost my seniority. 3. I would like to enter industry, but I’m a clinical person. I would only do it if I could be a clinical specialist. If you look in Richmond, Virginia at Memorial Regional, we have several dozen positions available at any time. If you go into industry, these are corporations that have people around the globe and have several thousand job opportunities. What you are doing today is in no means what you may be doing two years from now. If you enter industry and your passion is research and development, you start at position A and then move to R and D. Maybe you’re a computer guru. You then branch out into computer technology. Maybe you were a trainer at your hospital you can branch off and become a trainer. Maybe you’ve always wanted to be an administrator or a manager. Maybe you want to get into corporate compliance. Once you get into industry, there is a wealth of opportunity. 4. I cannot stand to kiss up to anyone. This is probably the most common excuse, so I’ve included some thoughts on making a successful transition into industry. If a product is good, it should and will sell itself. It works on its own. The person with product in hand is simply giving the technical details of the product, and maybe some of the cost and negotiation aspects, but the product that sits on the countertop sells itself. You don’t need to be a pushy salesperson, because the product should speak for itself. Always be honest and sincere. Your word is all you have. Once you shoot your word, it’s gone. I always tell people that no product is applicable to every patient that comes into a cath lab. That’s why we have different products and different competitors. If you’re honest with people and tell them that your product is only good for a certain subgroup of people, they will appreciate your honesty. Be respectful of other people’s time. There must be 2-3 dozen vendors who approach cath lab administrators each month. If each of these vendors was given one hour of time, the administrators would have no time to do their jobs. So get in there, do your job, and get out. Finally, people in the cath lab associate the corporation with the representative. The corporation might be in San Francisco, but the people in Las Vegas don’t know anything about the company in San Francisco. All they know about the corporation is the local representative. Be an ambassador of your company and be a representative of integrity.

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