What first attracted you to J&J?
Before sales, I was a sportsman playing professional rugby in Newcastle. I was exposed to J&J through a teammate’s girlfriend who worked for the company. I saw an opportunity for me so I did my research into the company and almost immediately made the decision this was the place I wanted to work eventually, but I knew there was a journey to J&J that I needed to take first. See, I wanted to be the best sales rep I possibly could be by the time I joined, and so I spent the years beforehand to sharpen the tools in my toolbox.
One of these tools was relationship management, and my first role working in medical sales for another healthcare company gave me a real taste of supporting the NHS by utilizing these skills to build long term relationships with my customers whilst working on large capital deals. It was the start of my passion in this area, and now I work in the Strategic Capabilities team at Johnson & Johnson MedTech to help the NHS drive theatre efficiencies, create capacity and treat more patients.
How did your previous non-sales experience benefit you in the sales world?
My time in sports really helped to shape me from a business perspective. In sports, it’s all about the work you do behind the scenes that makes a difference to your performance on the pitch. In sales, that means I studied the products and services inside and out to make sure I knew my stuff 100% and when an opportunity arose, I was ready to take my chance.
As a sportsman you also have to be pretty adaptable – team changes, leadership changes, colleague changes – but ultimately, it’s about winning together, as a team, and not on your own. It can be easy to lose sight of that in this industry.
Before my sports or sales career trajectory, I studied Human Geography at Northumbria University, and it taught me a lot about the human psyche. That’s also something that definitely supports me in the role I’m in today.
What has been your J&J career journey?
I started as an Ethicon Energy sales specialist, then moved into Endomech sales space. I have been in sales for over 10 years, before working at J&J, I captained, coached as well as led teams, and ultimately that’s where I want to be longer term – supporting people to be the best they can be in their roles.
To be a good leader at J&J MedTech, I knew I had to diversify my skill set outside of sales. I wanted to understand more about the digital and tech space because that’s the current world we’re living in, and what we as a company want to do more of. It’s why in 2020, I took a secondment with the team that were looking at new technology. It was a risk at the time – new technology was still a niche in the business – but I did this for 18 months before fully integrating as part of the Strategic Capabilities team.
Longer term, I want to move back into sales but in a leadership position. I’m spending time with mentors in the business to learn more about how to be just that and understand what leadership in a business sense looks like.
Why is the ambition for leadership important to you?
No matter where you look in the industry, you’ll find that diversity thins out towards the top in sales leadership teams. I’m passionate about breaking that ceiling so that in the years to come, when someone that looks like me joins the business there is clear visibility, representation and a defined path into leadership roles for them.
Sales can be a lonely role at the best of times, but as a black man there are many instances where I’m the only person that looks like me at congresses, or on customer sites. I’ve had to remain confident in my abilities and remember that my diverse background also shapes me into a great employee and gives me additional drive to trailblaze and break those barriers.
At J&J, we’re lucky to have employee resource groups that means we are seeing changes, but there is still definitely some way to go.
What makes you proud to work here?
My heritage is Nigerian, and in our culture there is a pressure to be in a “successful” job that makes your parents proud and to repay the sacrifices they’ve made for us to achieve this. Working for a Credo-led organisation like J&J, allows me to fulfil my family responsibilities, but still have pride in what I do by helping healthcare professionals. My work, helps them to fulfil their roles in saving patient lives and that motivates me each day.