The Med Tech Rep Archetype: Which One Are You?

Recently, I came across this  post from my LinkedIn connection, Patrick Jamnik, President of Episurf Medical. It had me laughing out loud, first, because it’s clever and well-written, and second because it’s accurate. As someone who has presented at countless national sales meetings for medtech companies, Patrick’s humorous categorization of the different types of “guys” is spot on!

Patrick gave me permission to share the post with you here. I hope you enjoy it. You can connect with Patrick on LinkedIn.

While you’re on your 8th cup of coffee at one of Orlando’s finest Marriott’s, be on the lookout for these different types of “guys.” Could certainly be a woman but I say guy because I’ve never seen a woman fit any of these profiles. Added a few from a similar post last year with the person who offered them up tagged afterwards.

1) Big Bag Guy. Originally identified years ago by Joe Majewski and Jake Bartnicki. Everything’s digital these days, and it’s just company people at these meetings, but old habits die hard, and he can’t resist getting on an airplane and hauling a full bag of samples around with him everywhere he goes.

2) $30 million territory guy. Some false reference to territory size is how this guy begins every sentence. He knows he’s lying; you know that he knows he’s lying; and he knows that you know that he knows he’s lying. Yet somehow, it’s always easier in the moment to just nod along when you end up in a conversation with him.

3) Angry Question Guy. My personal favorite. Sits diligently in the front row throughout a 90 minute carefully thought out marketing presentation. Then immediately hijacks the Q&A demanding answers as to why a totally unrelated product was backordered for a week last April. Unsatisfied with the response given, he just leaves and goes home, saying for the 25th straight year that this company “just doesn’t get it.”

4) Purposely overdressed guy. They say golf shirts and dress pants, but the CEO is there, surely he’ll see me in a crowd of hundreds wearing my three piece suit and immediately make me his protégé. Purposely overdressed guy is often also Big Bag Guy – a double score for your bingo card.

5) Backup Rep. Guest Speaker Guy. People are a little tired of hearing from the same company high performers, so they decide to go a little further down the list this year for variety’s sake. Starts out fine, but within five minutes, this guy is leaning way too hard into the “we’re at war” and “every day is a battle with my competition” analogies. Somehow his shirt gets ripped along the way.

6) Old school guy. Nothing this guy does is in anyway transferable or translatable, yet the new hires hang all over him. Still calls competitive companies their by their pre-1992 acquisition name, confusing everyone he speaks with. Constantly complains about how “this industry isn’t what it was,” and reminisces about the “good ole days” but conveniently forgets he was only making 25% of his current income then.

7) Scrubs guy. Shows up on the first night in a sport coat with scrubs, neglecting to understand it also takes time to put on the sport coat. If you were as busy as he was – you’d understand. If you see this guy boarding your flight, take all measures to avoid. There are few people you’d want to be stuck next to on a plane than scrubs at the airport guy. 

Am I missing any others?