Hearing Aid Manufacturers

[TheAuDfather]

I'm curious if anyone out there has any experience working for a hearing aid manufacturer. I'd like to get some info on what that side of audiology is about. How is the pay? what are the hours like? Stress level? Job satisfaction? etc.

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[TheEarDoc]

I haven't worked for one. Interviewed with a couple in the past.

The pay is amazing, but be prepared to do lots of traveling (many cover multi state territories with hundreds of accounts they see each month, required travel to the US headquarters usually quarterly, traveling to territory workshops, traveling to conferences in your territory), also be prepared to be work at least a 60 hour work week.

It's an awesome way for a younger audiologist to bank good money, meet hundreds of contacts for future jobs, and if you love to travel it's great.

I interviewed with a couple of companies right when I first started dating my wife. I only didn't take the jobs because I wanted to stay close to my wife at the time since I knew she was the one so my career took a backseat for that opportunity.

Oticon treats their employees very well. Most of the reps I've known who worked for other companies seem to always stay at Oticon once they join up with them.

So if you're younger, love to travel, kind of a workaholic, and you have relatives you can live with who live near a major airport then it's an awesome way to meet lots of people, travel a lot, and bank a lot of money to pay those loans down.

 

[BrianaGrace17]

I haven't worked for one. Interviewed with a couple in the past.

The pay is amazing, but be prepared to do lots of traveling (many cover multi state territories with hundreds of accounts they see each month, required travel to the US headquarters usually quarterly, traveling to territory workshops, traveling to conferences in your territory), also be prepared to be work at least a 60 hour work week.

It's an awesome way for a younger audiologist to bank good money, meet hundreds of contacts for future jobs, and if you love to travel it's great.

I interviewed with a couple of companies right when I first started dating my wife. I only didn't take the jobs because I wanted to stay close to my wife at the time since I knew she was the one so my career took a backseat for that opportunity.

Oticon treats their employees very well. Most of the reps I've known who worked for other companies seem to always stay at Oticon once they join up with them.

So if you're younger, love to travel, kind of a workaholic, and you have relatives you can live with who live near a major airport then it's an awesome way to meet lots of people, travel a lot, and bank a lot of money to pay those loans down.

Great advice EarDoc! Are there any jobs in research? Do you know how you would get involved with a company like Oticon?

 

[TheAuDfather]

Hey EarDoc,
I appreciate all the info! Do you know if the sales reps are the same people on the phone when you call the hearing aid company for technical assistance, or is that a separate job category? Are these types of jobs the kind you get by talking to a sales rep, or do these jobs post on company websites? (i've browsed online for sales rep positions out of curiosity but haven't found much)

Also, I'm sending you a PM regarding VA audiology, because I think you've mentioned that opportunity a few times in the past.

 

[TheEarDoc]

Great advice EarDoc! Are there any jobs in research? Do you know how you would get involved with a company like Oticon?

Yes there are jobs as research audiologists for Phonak and Oticon, but usually they are for PhD/AuD folks, but I am sure if one got on board with a company like Phonak or Oticon and got some experience that they could probably switch into the R&D side of things.

You can check the phonak USA and Oticon USA websites for employment opportunities or the easier thing would be to contact your local sales reps for each of the companies and they could get you in contact with the regional manager and they would know of any openings for audiologists.

 

[TheEarDoc]

Hey EarDoc,
I appreciate all the info! Do you know if the sales reps are the same people on the phone when you call the hearing aid company for technical assistance, or is that a separate job category? Are these types of jobs the kind you get by talking to a sales rep, or do these jobs post on company websites? (i've browsed online for sales rep positions out of curiosity but haven't found much)

Also, I'm sending you a PM regarding VA audiology, because I think you've mentioned that opportunity a few times in the past.

Sorry for the late response, it's been a crazy few weeks in my personal life and in my work life. I sent you back a PM about the VA system.

As for your question, not usually the same folks answering the phones at the hearing aid companies as the ones who are sales reps. The folks answering the phones are usually dedicated troubleshooting staff (usually audiologists). There are trainer positions at hearing aid companies where your job is to run workshops and educate audiologists and hearing aid dealers about new products and how to use the software. They are usually regionally based jobs without as much travel required or sales requirements as the sales rep jobs.

Most people get hired on as sales reps then as they get more knowledgeable about the company they can move into trainer positions. That's not to say that you cannot jump right into a trainer job straight out of school. I have a friend who works for Cochlear Americas (amazing company to work for BTW!) as a trainer and got her job straight out of graduate school.

 

[salesrep]

I'm curious if anyone out there has any experience working for a hearing aid manufacturer. I'd like to get some info on what that side of audiology is about. How is the pay? what are the hours like? Stress level? Job satisfaction? etc.

Manufacturers rep here. Base is 60-70k with about 80k in bonuses. Average rep makes 140k. Range is anywhere from $120-170k although last year our top rep made over $200k. Also excellent benefits, health insurance. Flexible schedule and ability to work from home...the boss lives hundreds of miles away! Some territories require travel and some overnights in hotels (all expenses paid) but other territories are smaller and the rep can go home every night. So it just depends. They also pay $600/mo for your car (which is taxed) and give an allowance for mileage or reimburse gas receipts. They also reimburse you for your licensure. It's a great job and I highly recommend it!

 

[hipar1]

Manufacturers rep here. Base is 60-70k with about 80k in bonuses. Average rep makes 140k. Range is anywhere from $120-170k although last year our top rep made over $200k. Also excellent benefits, health insurance. Flexible schedule and ability to work from home...the boss lives hundreds of miles away! Some territories require travel and some overnights in hotels (all expenses paid) but other territories are smaller and the rep can go home every night. So it just depends. They also pay $600/mo for your car (which is taxed) and give an allowance for mileage or reimburse gas receipts. They also reimburse you for your licensure. It's a great job and I highly recommend it!

Hello! I've actually been wanting to learn more about this side of audiology for a while. I am new to the whole field of audiology and I want to learn more about the different aspects of this field before I make my decision to apply to AuD programs.

So if you don't mind, may I ask you exactly what a manufacturer's rep does? What's the purpose of this career? Is it more business oriented? And how does a rep use his/her training and skills obtained from audiology school in this job?

And are these jobs relatively easy to get or are they super competitive?

It sounds like a very interesting part of audiology which is why I'm so curious! lol I hope you dont mind all the questions

 

[sweetaud]

Thanks for sharing.