A Year In Lockdown. Has the medical device industry changed forever?

A year ago, this week the UK was put into its’ first COVID Lockdown. I have taken some time to reflect over these 12 months on the dramatic change to my working life and how I see the transformation of field sales in the future. Before I get down to business, I would like to take this time to say a heartfelt thank you to all healthcare workers during the pandemic, what you have all done is heroic and as a nation we are in your debt. Furthermore, my thoughts go out to the families who have tragically lost a loved one during this time.

The last year could not have been further away from the previous 8 years of my professional life, probably a reality a lot of people reading this can identify with. My role working in field sales for a medical device company means I travel most days to meet different customers around a large region. I chose to work in a sales environment because I enjoy meeting new people frequently, traveling to new places to gain new experiences and generally being out and about. I enjoy having the ability to create my own diary, see who I want to see and feel unrestricted (within reason). The only predictable element of my working week is that it’s unpredictable, during normal times, and that is something personally I love. I know it’s not everyone’s vision of Eden, but for me and many industry colleagues, it’s a real perk of our job. So, what have I done for the last 12 months that has been so different?

The last time I was in a hospital was the 12th of March 2020, and by that point Coronavirus was well and truly publicised through the media and filtering through into my working channels. I knew my Italian colleagues were told to stay at home, with rumours emerging that this would be happening across Europe imminently. I however continued until told otherwise, as it was such a peculiar time, and I didn’t really think it would ever play out like it did. At the time of being in hospital I was in a Cardiac operating room. A huddle was forming in the corridor outside and I could hear the whispers of C-19 positive patients were in the ICU, the next department along. Shortly after I agreed with the theatre manager that I should leave and temporarily abandon the product evaluation. I packed up, got changed out of my scrubs and said my farewells, thinking I’d be back in 2 or 3 weeks. I followed the government advice, washed my hands and left to go home.

The next day almost felt like a snow day, my planned hospital visits for the next few days were put on hold and I didn’t have anything to fill my day on such short notice. Instead, I sat at my kitchen table with just my laptop working through what I could whilst watching the news unfold. Later that day I had an urgent phone call put in my diary; it was clear we were to stay at home unless it was a complete emergency. I’m sure this wasn’t an easy call to make, but it was the right decision and safety was paramount. My work WhatsApp group was blowing up with questions and worries about the ambiguity of the situation. All woes that really couldn’t be answered there was still very little information; we just had to stay at home. This situation I’m sure can be echoed by most, and it was such a bizarre place to be in. We knew people were being infected, we knew people were dying but we were just staying home to ‘help save lives’. I felt utter guilt that there were key workers putting their life’s in danger. Especially the medical teams I normally work with day to day, people I’ve built an incredible relationship with over the years who were facing the pandemic front on while I kept safe at home.

For my entire professional life, the arrangement has been for me to travel to see our customers, going out of the house everyday to service hospital clinicians. The entire backbone of my job had turned upside down, I was not seeing customers, or out on the road. The first week or 2 felt unorthodox, it was so alien to me and was hard to grasp what this would mean going forward. Part of me thought it would only last 2 to 3 weeks, so enjoy the moment. Another part was worried about the reverberation of the pandemic, other countries were still in dire straits, countries who had it weeks before the UK. Would I still have a job if this continued for months? If I had to go into hospital could I transmit Covid? And how would I handle this guilt if I did. I was extremely grateful; my company were supportive and gave me the tools I need to work remotely. The guidance was clear, support customers where we can, but remain safe. I was fortunate to be in this situation, I appreciate that a lot weren’t.

The initial two weeks had passed, it was clear I would be working from home for a longer period than originally anticipated. I had to carve out a new way to work and transform my interpersonal skills, honing my inter-virtual prowess. This was no mean feat. I had to keep reminding myself about that not everyone had the opportunity to work remotely, or even be in work during this time. Nonetheless I set new goals, created an action plan and got to work.

Before now, I’d never had the need for a dedicated workspace at home, as I often spent little time there during my working week. If I needed to complete admin, I’d find a flat surface for my laptop and crack on. It was different now, I had to work from home full time and the kitchen table wasn’t cutting the mustard. In-between the aching back, and the endless amounts of banana bread brought to me by my furloughed wife I knew it was time for a radical change. It was time for a home office. After mounting trade talks with my wife, we (she) decided that I could turn the spare room into an office, but the bed had to stay. So, like seemingly half of Britain I set up to find suitable ‘compact’ office furniture that would suffice what was looking like a long bout of working from home. I’m not sure if you’ve ever tried to look for an office chair, but the options are endless. I eyed up what I thought I needed: ergonomic design, pull up arms to push under the desk when not being used and even measuring up the best lumbar support. This was all only to be quickly soberized to that fact we were in a global pandemic and no one had any stock. With the help of some friends, I managed to source some suitable home office equipment and in turn be proud of the new place I could work from. I was slowly turning into an office worker.

With the weeks now turning into months, the memory of my extraverted world was becoming a distant thought. How I’d dealt with my customers flipped on its head over night, the face-to-face meetings, the morning coffee over a training workshop and even the dreaded 5am wake up calls were no more. As an industry we had to adapt incredibly quick in how we conducted business, a style that is decades old and one that quite frankly works. Of course, we’ve had emails, virtual meetings and WhatsApp’s but they’ve always been there to compliment the physical meeting. You cannot read emotion in text, you read it with body language and what’s not being said. Connecting on an emotional standing is why any of us use a particular product or service. As I work in a commercial setting this is vital for me to conduct my work thoroughly. Despite everything I moved on with the situation controlling what I could, it was difficult to pick up on emotion ques, but I still offered the best service I could. As we all had to adapt to this style of work, it made it easier. After a while it was just the norm, offering a team invite rather than a meeting request. A norm that included snoring dogs and children bursting in as you’re delivering your sales pitch. Thankfully everyone understood.

The biggest challenge I have faced during the pandemic is trying to bring value to my customers. The healthcare community are under immense pressure, what could I and industry do to help? I would like to think that I don’t just offer a transaction sales service, but more of a partnership, a business relationship offering support and development. With that in mind, I was at a crossroad as I could see first-hand the burden healthcare workers had to carry, and I didn’t want to feel I was a distraction or irritant. With only the digital resources at my disposable I emailed my network offering solidarity & appreciation for what they’re doing and assistance if needed. For the most part I stayed at the end of the phone ready and waiting to assist when called upon. Globally there was monumental shift in product demand, trying to source any type of PPE was the focus and we had to do everything in our power to fill in gaps. It was a testing time for many, especially the sourcing teams within hospitals.

Adjusting to the new way of working was smoother than I initially thought, face to face meetings converted into video calls, and the corridor chit chat now became WhatsApp GIFS. We even socialised over many, many online pub quizzes (I’ll be honest I really like these and I’m still doing it now 12 months later!). The true test was how could I perform with new customers? Sure, I could manage existing customers in this remote way through necessity but servicing new customers in this format might be tricky. The tactics I’ve used to develop rapport and an understanding of a customers needs were defunct, could my enthusiasm translate over a zoom call? Would I fluff my lines if zoom decided to cut me off halfway through a call? I personally didn’t find this to be the case; it was simple enough to change my style and adapt it to make it work. There were some teething issues, but when you’re forced into a situation you must adjust. I would like to think we all did. We were all going through a lot this year, there was a higher degree of empathy with all my interactions, and unspoken understanding. None more than healthcare workers, so compassion was needed.

Throughout the year I focused a lot more on asking more about wellbeing and mindfulness, offering another avenue to talk through what they were experiencing, if it helped. The business side of the conversation was speedy, but extremely productive either via a Microsoft teams or a detailed email. From a sales perspective it continued to give meaning to my work and proved we can adjust. This new virtually forged relationship could work, to a certain extent. The pitfalls were with product support and training, I sustained virtual education with a degree of success, but it will never replace the real deal. The finer tips and tricks, or detailed scientific data overview need to be in person. I’m sure you only need to look at the situation faced by teachers and school children to show that working over video call has its limitations. This was all still new to me, using technology as my primary source, I’ve upskilled myself to cater better to customer needs and offer solutions.

Put aside the efficiencies and working style, the biggest change for me has been the quality of family life. In September I was lucky enough for a healthy and happy baby daughter enter my life. During her first 6 months I have yet to miss one bath time, and I’ve had the opportunity to discover my new passion of story time before bed. I know if I had been out on the road as usual, I wouldn’t have had the enriched experience of seeing her grow up as I have. For that it’s made me a much happier person. I wish every parent this feeling, it truly has been a blessing and I’ll be thankful for this time. In some ways it feels like I’ve got my cake and I’m eating it, a fulfilling professional career, with an unforgettable amount of family time.

There has been a universal shift in remote working due to the pandemic and the benefits are clear, with many large companies offering flexible working hours for employees. Two-thirds of employers have seen an increased productivity with home workers. While 98% of Carbon incurred during the working day comes from the commute. The writing is on the wall, we have proved it can work, so where is the resistance? The younger workforce approval ratings for working from home are significantly higher than the older generation of workers. I can appreciate this, it’s a huge shift from how they’ve always worked before. They’ve had to endure longer working hours, working in offices or out on the road, a system they’re accustomed to. Now though, Millennials are the largest group in our workforce population, and the rate of change to a new model will be accelerated. This week Junior Bankers have pushed back on the traditional 95-hour work week in favour of a better quality of life, even if it means less of a pay cheque.

As I conclude, I once again would like to mention the incredible work of all the NHS, and key workers. This country owes you a debt of gratitude which we will never be able to repay. The sacrifice you’ve made for our safety is inconceivable, thank you a million times. I know it’s been said many times, but the pandemic has put us forward by 5 years in the way we work. The immense advancements in technology have enabled us to seamlessly work in a remote fashion. I could never have thought I could operate within a sales function at home, but slowly I can see the advantages. My productivity has increased, I have been able to support more customers, and something that is important to me is I was able to work in a more sustainable way by traveling less. The transition back to a normal work environment will be the acid test, how will companies function when there are no restriction? I envisage a mixed bag, some companies will want everyone back to ‘normal’ while others adopt a blended style. I believe generally a remote style will be offered, perhaps constituting of working week split 3/2 between the office and home.

I don’t think in a forward-facing sales role you should fully work remotely, as you can’t yet interact on an emotional level, virtually, or I don’t think you can. Maybe in the future of holograms that might be different, but for now it’s a no. The deeper understanding of your customer’s needs, and the relationships that comes with it demands to be in person. If you ask me, a hybrid approach to remote working is the best of both worlds, more time using data to configure our views but still able to relate in person. The technological revolution is here to stay, but the human part of all our jobs still need to remain at large, human.