PatientPoint Career Growth & Development

In terms of skills development, Venkata has focused on strengthening his problem-solving abilities, which he views as essential for a leader. He emphasizes the importance of finding and implementing solutions rather than merely escalating issues. Additionally, he has learned to delegate more effectively, empowering team members to make decisions and fostering trust and autonomy within the team.

Which skills do you leverage most often in your day-to-day work?

As a vice president of enterprise at PatientPoint, I help grow our partnerships with health systems. Others within our organization “touch” each health system, including our inside and outside sales directors and directors of enterprise accounts, so the skills I utilize most are team-building and effective communication. To successfully penetrate a health system, earn trust, and grow our business, our team needs to trust one another, work together, help each other solve problems, and have confidence that we will be stronger as a team than we could be individually. 

Effective communication is the other skill I leverage the most, and I have honed it over my years in sales. Of course, effective communication is the key to building a winning team, as mentioned above. It is also the key to my success working with C-suite executives, administrators and clinicians at the health systems. Whether writing an effective email to get a meeting, providing concise follow-up with a plan of action, or presenting to a room full of decision-makers, effectively engaging with our customers to build and grow a partnership is the key to success.

How have these skills enabled you to heighten your impact on PatientPoint or grow your career?

Effective communication is the most critical skill in work and life, particularly in a sales role. Communicating clearly and concisely, driving action both with customers and internally within my organization, has helped heighten my impact on my company and impacted my career growth. PatientPoint provides a digital education ecosystem that improves health outcomes with education and creates a better patient-provider experience. Exhibiting my passion for what we offer and how we change lives through effective communication is the essence of a strong sales approach. Knowing that what I effectively do every day contributes to that mission and impacts our company’s growth is very rewarding. 

I have been in sales for over 30 years, and at PatientPoint for almost 17 of them. I work hard every day to improve and to help improve the people around me. I enjoy mentoring my less experienced colleagues in sales skills, especially effective communication. While I know their growth will also positively impact our organization, I care deeply about others’ journeys and feel fortunate to be a part of them. 

What are some resources and/or sources of inspiration you’d recommend for reps eager to refine their sales skills? Are there resources PatientPoint has provided to support this growth? 

I’ve had many excellent mentors, so my top advice for any rep eager to grow is to connect with a mentor you admire — someone who has skills you want to strengthen. A great mentor-mentee relationship requires vulnerability, trust and time. At PatientPoint, we have a mentor program and promote mentorship throughout the organization.

Early in my career in advertising sales, I was recognized for my team-building and communication skills and promoted to lead multiple divisions with growth goals — an early preview of my current role at PatientPoint. The Wisdom of Teams by Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith was instrumental in building that team and inspired training I later led to support sales growth.

PatientPoint supports our sales team with top-notch resources, including consultants from The Constance Group and sales and leadership coach Maryann Dolzani. We also hear from inspiring speakers like Jon Gordon at annual sales meetings. Our executive vice president, April Jones, is a fan of his work, and her encouragement led me to his books, The Energy Bus and The Coffee Bean. I recently reread The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People — a timeless classic with fresh insights as I grow.