Being a salesperson isn\u2019t easy. It requires a combination of interpersonal and technical skills to engage and establish trust with the right people. These also happen to be business skills required in virtually every sales position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Finding great salespeople isn\u2019t easy, either. According to the Harvard Business Review<\/a>, the turnover of salespeople in the US is as\nhigh as 27 percent. That\u2019s more than twice the average of other professions.\nAnd there are a few reasons for that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the biggest, according to Forbes<\/a>, is a lack of\nproper training and mentorship, which leads to poor performance and,\nultimately, departure from the company. Without the necessary training,\nguidance, and motivation, salespeople are set down a path of missing goals and\nlow morale. This is bad news for everyone, as US companies spend<\/a>\nmore than $15 billion a year training salespeople and $800 billion on\nperformance incentives. Every lost salesperson is a lost investment\u2014and a big\none at that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s why Thermo Fisher Scientific<\/a>\u2014the world leader in\nserving science\u2014introduced their Sales Development Program. This program is\nwhat every sales role should <\/em>be built\non: They guarantee training, coaching, mentorship, and the kind of experience\nrequired to have a successful career in sales. And since sales skills are\ntransferrable to other disciplines and are foundational for almost any role you\ncould have at a company, gaining that kind of experience early on in your\ncareer is invaluable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sales teams are, at the end of the day,\nresponsible for driving revenue and ensuring that a business is successful.\nGiven the important work that Thermo Fisher does, this takes on an even deeper,\nmore important meaning. Without their sales teams, they wouldn\u2019t be able to\nwork toward their mission of enabling their customers to make the world\nhealthier, cleaner, and safer. That\u2019s pretty high stakes, right? <\/p>\n\n\n\n We spoke to Brianna, a graduate of Thermo\nFisher\u2019s Sales Development Program, about why the company invests so much in\ntheir sales team, what the program is like for new grads, and why they can help\nyour career. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Sales is a field with a surprising number of\nspecialized skills. You need to understand territory research, building a\npipeline, identifying pain points, problem-solving, and\u2014of course\u2014negotiation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As you might\u2019ve noticed, many of these skills\nrequire a mix of art and science. And that\u2019s why the Thermo Fisher Sales\nDevelopment Program focuses on a combination of direct learning and guided\ntrials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe first part of the program is spent\nlearning about the company, the mission, and, what we do,\u201d says Brianna, who\ngraduated in 2018 and began a Sales Development Program shortly after. This\nfirst part of the program is more than just sales training. \u201cIt’s preparation\nto be what a Thermo Fisher employee should be. Living up to our mission every\nday,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt’s more than just something that fills our\ndays. At Thermo Fisher, our work has a purpose. Our work requires passion and\ncreates meaningful outcomes. Our work matters. We’re sharing our expertise and\ntechnological advancements with customers, helping them make the world a better\nplace\u2014whether they’re discovering a cure for cancer, protecting the environment,\nor making sure our food is safe,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In addition to learning about the company and\nthe products, both of which are essential for any salesperson, they also\nlearned about sales-specific methodologies and skills. Brianna and her cohort\nlearned about the process required not only to close deals, but also to\nmaintain a healthy pipeline of potential deals and relationships. Doing so\nensures they\u2019re successful in the long-term.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After the initial learning period, Brianna\nsays, you start hitting the phones to hone the skills you\u2019re acquiring. \u201cYou\u2019re\nmaking phone calls to get the nerves and jitters out,\u201d she explains. All of\nthis training is focused on one goal. \u201cIt\u2019s so that, once you step into the\nfield, you’ll be ready,\u201d Brianna says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As your phone and technical skills develop,\nyou\u2019ll start taking on a temporary territory\u2014a region where you\u2019ll pursue leads\nand turn opportunities into customers. And that combination of learning by experience\nand learning through formal coaching and mentorship will continue until it\u2019s\ntime to explore your next step at the company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The culmination of the Sales Development\nProgram is an interview process that connects you with potential managers who\nwill guide you once you\u2019re promoted to a permanent team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Brianna and her class, most of the\ninterviews took place at a major sales conference. She and her peers were able\nto not only attend the event and learn from senior leaders, but also interview\nwith those same leaders and find their next step at the company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe’re investing in you. We want you to be not\nonly a good fit for the company, but a good fit for the job. We want you to be prepared\nwhen you get there,\u201d Brianna says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Brianna and her peers identified managers,\noffice locations, and departments that were best suited to their skills and\ninterests. It\u2019s much more of a matchmaking process than an intimidating\ninterview procedure. The company has, after all, invested as much of their time\nin you as you have in them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And once you and your future manager find the\nright match, you\u2019ll be promoted and take on your next step at the company. When\nthat begins, you\u2014and Thermo Fisher\u2014will really start to see dividends on the\ninvestment in your growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since Thermo Fisher is on a mission to make\nthe world healthier, cleaner, and safer, they develop tons of new products and\nservices that help accomplish that goal. Still, none of that innovation matters\nif it doesn\u2019t reach the hands of science professionals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is why the company\u2019s investment in the\nSales Development Program is so large: The mission means everything to the team\nat Thermo Fisher, and there couldn\u2019t be something more mission-critical than\nmaking sure the products reach the professionals who can use them to change the\nworld for the better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As one Thermo Fisher Senior Director, Chloe,\ntold us, \u201cNot every sales professional has the opportunity to sell products\nthat make such a meaningful impact on improving the world. What we sell helps\nfind cures for cancer, makes sure the air we breathe is clean, the food we eat\nis safe, and delivers life-saving treatments to market faster. That\u2019s extremely\nimportant.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And she\u2019s totally right. Thermo Fisher\nproducts have an immediate effect on the world around them and the people who\nrely on them. That makes selling Thermo Fisher products different than your\nnormal sales process. It\u2019s not that you need to convince people to buy things\nthey don\u2019t need. The task is primarily reaching the right people and\ndemonstrating value to them in a way that thoughtfully addresses their\nproblems. That, by the way, is exactly what you learn to do over the course of\nthe Sales Development Program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Contributing in such an important way to an\norganization responsible for Nobel Prize-winning feats of science<\/a> as well\nas global STEM education philanthropy is exactly why Brianna and her colleagues\non the sales team feel so much purpose in their roles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Interested in learning more about sales and\nother development programs? Learn more about<\/em> <\/em><\/a>Thermo Fisher on WayUp<\/em><\/a>!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Thermo Fisher Teaches You The Skills You Need To Succeed<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Learn Where You Fit In The Company\u2014And Why Your Role Is So Essential<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Become An Expert And Drive A Multibillion-Dollar Company\u2019s Mission Forward<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n