2020 North American Sales Meeting Recap
by Brooke M. Farrar
For the second year in a row, the US AHT, Canadian AHT and Surgical sales team came together for the 2020 North American Sales Meeting. Taking place in Jacksonville, Florida, the meeting was designed to prepare the sales team for success in 2020 and also introduced them to the theme of “Own It.” Intertwined to Own It were the steps of “See It, Believe It, Grow It and Become It.”
The meeting officially kicked off on Wednesday, February 5th and no time was wasted in recognizing sales performance and motivating those in the audience. John Nosenzo hosted the Opening General Session and brought a variety of individuals from all of the sales teams to the stage, extending appreciation for superb sales achievements and impacting the lives of patients. From the Surgical team’s incredible achievement of hitting $54M, the growth of the AHT business in the US and the successful launch of Surgical products in Canada, there was much to celebrate and recognize!
Following John’s opening message, Steven Moore – Director of Surgical Marketing, took to the stage and shared his personal story of overcoming a life threatening accident during his teenage years. Tied into the story, his message supported the NASM theme of “Own It” and how he positively transitioned from tragedy to triumph.
The next morning included mainstage messaging from Chairman of the Board, Bill Hawkins, and departing CEO, Tony Bihl. From there, presenters included various leaders – Phil Stead, Vivek Munshi, Megan Osorio, Andrew Hosmer, Anthony Doyle, Derek Hurdle and Tim Donovan. Attendees then transitioned to breakouts. Those sessions and all associated content were designed for maximum engagement and keeping the sales team connected to the most relevant topics that will impact their success in 2020.
On the afternoon of Friday, February 7th, all meeting attendees headed over to nearby TIAA Bank Stadium, home of the Jacksonville Jaguars, for an afternoon of teambuilding. Fueled by a competitive spirit that is inherent to most sales individuals, the teambuilding event included a variety of activities akin to yard games, all of which allowed participants to earn “tokens.” When all of the games were said and done, teams transitioned to a wagon building session, using the tokens they earned earlier in the day, to construct a wagon. The wagons were put together for charity – the Ronald McDonald House – which in turn, supports several children’s hospitals in Jacksonville. Congratulations to the Surgical team for winning the prize for best wagon!
The final day of the meeting included a rousing session and speech from Walter Bond, former NBA player who has since become a successful businessman, author and keynote speaker. His message was clear: “Are you a parasite, suckerfish or a shark?” It was clear to all in the audience that in order to achieve success, it is imperative to embrace a shark mindset!
Later in the day on Saturday it was time to recognize top sales performance from 2019. The awards night at a Bioventus sales meeting has a rich history of properly recognizing those individuals who have overachieved and remained at the top of all leaderboards. This year’s award presentation did not disappoint and began with bringing Sales Rep of the Year, Pam Erwin, from the US AHT team. She was the recipient of this prestigious award two years in a row which is no easy feat. The surprise to Pam and all those in the room that evening: behind the stage were her husband, Josh, and six year old son, Jennings. They gleefully brought her crystal award to the stage and from there, the evening of celebration officially began. In addition to the Marketing awards, a few highlights from the awards presentation included:
- Josh Kay – recognized as Sales Manager of the Year from the International team. His leadership skills manifested themselves beautifully in 2019. He, along with his team, turned a mid-year deficit with EXOGEN into growth by establishing a plan and then executing.
- Troy Bell & Trevor James – it was simply “too close to call” for the Area Sales Manager of the Year and both individuals accepted this award, while also receiving glowing comments from Andrew Hosmer.
- Curt Frund – tasked with rebuilding over the past few years, Curt skyrocketed to success in 2019, earning him Regional Director of the Year honors.
- Heather Thaisz – the 2019 US AHT Director of Sales of the Year. Described as a leader who acts with integrity and personifies the Bioventus culture principles, Heather and her team drove significant growth and achieved quota in all four brands in 2019.
Attendees walked away engaged, connected and ready to OWN IT in 2020!