Career Story by Alison Billroth-MacLurg, PhD, Scientific Sales Representative for STEMCELL Technologies
A career in sales has been one of the best choices I could have ever made for myself or my growing family, but oftentimes is overshadowed by a grimy stereotype that hinders people from applying. Whether it was while buying your next car or during an important experiment in the lab, we have all met that bad salesperson that enforces the stereotype: interrupting your day, putting their needs first, acting on enforced assumptions all with big green dollar signs in their irises. This stereotype was laced in warnings when I left six postdoc offers for the job: “it’s a waste of a PhD”, “money isn’t everything” or “I just don’t want you to regret your decision.” In the interest of this career story, freshen your caffeinated beverage, put the stereotype on the shelf next to the papers you have been meaning to read, and focus on a new concept: Scientific Sales is secretly a fantastic career. I'm going to tell you a few reasons why.