After over a decade of successful direct medical sales with Bristol Myers-Squibb, Mike was approached by an unfamiliar company, Hillhaven and an equally unfamiliar industry - senior living. At the time, Hillhaven was the largest provider of skilled nursing services in the country and their Vice President of Sales had heard Mike speak at a national conference on wound care. The topic was "An Atypical Approach to Selling Wound Care Products" and this Vice President wondered if this unique selling approach would translate to senior living. The answer was "yes" and Mike's 28 plus year career in senior living was off an running!
Mike has served in various roles of increasing responsibility in this industry with which he had fallen in love. These roles range from Regional Sales Director to National Sales Training Manager to National Vice President of Sales. But no matter the role, there has been one consistent theme throughout. "We must see and engage with people as the unique individuals that they truly are and then sell to that uniqueness. Always remembering, if we cannot sell them, we cannot serve them!" And service has been at the heart of Mike's dedication to our wonderful industry and he often talks about how blessed he feels to have found a career that scratches his servant leadership itch. "Working with salespeople who help our direct customers make the best choices for themselves or for their loved ones is a huge responsibility and challenge." But by utilizing the atypical selling behaviors contained in Mike's programming, salespeople are empowered with a highly ethical approach to selling which also has been proven to be extremely effective.
Mike has also presented at over one hundred national and international conferences throughout his career. He is also a nationally published author and the on-line version of Mike's sales training program was awarded the "Best of the Best" Award by the Assisted Living Federation of America in 2014.
Mike is a proud graduate of the University of Kentucky with a degree in communications and marketing and also holds a certificate in pedorthics from Oklahoma State University. Mike lives in Louisville, KY and has been married for 35 years to his wife, Julie and counts as his greatest accomplishments, his two children, Bradley and Jill!
Bradley is a Physical Therapy Assistant at Beacon Orthopedics in Erlanger, KY. Bradley and his wonderful wife, Lauren have also allowed Mike and Julie to experience the joys of grandparenting. Avery is 4 and Owen is almost 2. Dr. Jill White was recently married to the love of her life, Tyler and is an Occupational Therapist at Skyline Medical Center in Nashville, TN.
Mike is also very active in his church having served as a Sunday School teacher for the past 20 years, mostly with pre-teens. Other activities include running, biking and recently, pickleball.
