VitaTalk Ep. 18

elliebecker35
Aug 14
3 min read

From Corporate to Startup: Holly Cummings’ Journey in Medical Device Sales

In the latest episode of VitaTalk, our VP of Marketing, Patrick Hodgdon, sits down with Holly Cummings, Regional Vice President of the Southeast at VitaTek. In just under a year (or, as she calls it, “four years in startup time”), Holly has embraced the fast-paced world of medical device development, bringing a blend of strategic experience, patient-first passion, and relentless energy to her role.

Life in “Startup Time”

Holly made the leap from global strategic organizations like Boston Scientific to the nimble, high-velocity environment of VitaTek. One of the biggest surprises? The pace.

“What we think today is not what we’re going to think on Monday,” she says. “One quarter in a startup feels like a year anywhere else.” That rapid iteration means adaptability isn’t just a skill, it’s a survival tool.

A Market in Need of Acceleration

In her conversations with inventors and early-stage medical device companies, Holly sees a recurring challenge: timelines to market that can stretch for years, with costs spiraling along the way. She recalled a recent call with a Harvard professor who had invested over $1 million and five years, without yet having a functional prototype.

“That’s where VitaTek stands out,” she explains. “Our vertically integrated model means we can compress those timelines and reduce costs, helping innovations reach patients faster.”

Balancing Business and Patient Impact

For Holly, the mission isn’t just about profitability, it’s about changing lives. “When a company shares that equal passion for patient impact and business success, it’s refreshing,” she says. “At VitaTek, we focus on both.”

Lessons for Sales Professionals in the MedTech Space

With more than 20 years in medical device and pharmaceutical sales, Holly has distilled a few key lessons for anyone entering the space:

Understand the mission, Immerse yourself in what’s happening in the market and lead with a patient-first mindset.
Commit fully, “This isn’t a nine-to-five job, it’s a lifestyle.” Success in this field requires more than clocking hours; it’s about showing up when others don’t, including Friday evenings and weekends.
Be present, Holly’s biggest deals often started with a conversation at the end of a long clinic day. “Be there when the opportunity is there,” she advises.

From Selling Phones to Selling Life-Changing Devices

One of the highlights of the episode is Holly’s origin story. As a college student working at RadioShack during a Black Friday sale, she met two Medtronic representatives who were buying specialized batteries for a surgery. Their mission, helping a patient on the operating table, left a deep impression.

“That’s when I realized I wanted to do work that made a real difference,” Holly recalls. That moment eventually propelled her into a career in medical devices, where she’s been making an impact ever since.

The Takeaway

Holly’s story is a reminder that success in MedTech isn’t just about sales numbers, it’s about persistence, adaptability, and an unwavering commitment to improving patients’ lives. Whether you’re new to the field or a seasoned pro, her advice is simple: dive in, stay engaged, and remember why you’re here.

🩺 Interested in learning more about life at VitaTek or how we’re reshaping the medical device space? Stay tuned for more episodes of the Vita Talk Podcast!

Stay tuned for more episodes and updates, because the best ideas in healthcare are just getting started.