Tiffany Heneks

I attribute my success to dedication, hard work, and planning. When I was in college, I always knew I wanted to be a VP of Sales at some point in my career, and I wanted to be in medical. I understood how to get there - you have to start by carrying the bag and being a sales professional with a history of launch experience and sales success. Then you have to find someone that's willing to give you the opportunity to take that leap into management. When I found that opportunity, I didn't hesitate - I took it, even though it was a pay cut. I was in that role for a year as a district manager here at Natera, and was promoted within a year to be a regional director, going from 6 direct reports to a team of 20 people.

One of my mentors told me that it's important to not get too high in the highs and not too low in the lows. When you're winning, there's always people behind you that helped you win. And when you're losing - this is all sales-driven, pretty much - there's always people behind you again, advocating for you and helping you get to that next step. The big thing is not getting too high in the highs and too low in the lows, and staying stable and humble throughout your career.

I would say be yourself, but at the same time, you have to be the example of the change that you want to create. You be the example of the change that you want to see.

The challenges in the oncology diagnostic space and medical sales are that there are so many advancements. To stay on top of all of the clinical advancements and continue to be a resource for your providers and your accounts can be challenging, because there's a lot of administrative tasks that you have to do to get your job done. But if you want to continue to be that trusted advisor and be viewed as a sales consultant and not just a sales rep, you have to stay current on the technological advancements and be a resource for your account.

Character is most important to me - what you do when people aren't looking. I think that's really important. And providing what I call a safe space - I think it's important for your employees to feel safe enough to come to you when they have a problem and building those bonds with your employees. Family is also huge for me. I have two kids and I'm 20 weeks pregnant with baby number three. Balancing career and family is always a juggling act, but it's something that I take great pride in being able to do both. I want women to believe that they can do both, and finding a career that allows you to have a flexible work schedule where you may be able to work some of the evenings or weekends when the kids are sleeping - that is just what allows you to have both lives.