From Clinical to Corporate Audiology: Panel Discussion

Welcome to this Week in Hearing.

Hello. I’m Bob Traynor,

your host for this episode,

and it’s a real exciting one

because it was cooked up by

audiology colleagues in a van on

the way back from Tijuana

to San Diego and so on.

We’re going to title this talk

Clinic to Corporate,

discussing the transition,

and many of you may have had the

opportunity to work with

corporate audiology,

and these can be maybe some

helpful insights into this

transition for you.

This is a major decision made by

many audiologists to work for

companies that supply products

to the hearing impaired or help

us with equipment and other

products that work with the

assessment or rehabilitation

of the hearing impaired.

Today my guests are

Sheena Oliver,

Chief Marketing Officer and US

Head of Marketing for the

Americas at WS Audiology,

Alan Raffauf,

VP of Marketing for WideX Leanne

Powers, Senior Director,

Professional Education

at WS Audiology

Sheneekra Adams, Senior Director,

Professional Development at

HearUSA and Gabrielle Gatto,

Regional Sales Director

for Signia.

And thank you so much for being

with us today, guys.

It took quite a lot of

orientation to get all these

very busy people together for

this particular discussion.

So thanks again for being here.

So

let’s start discussing

some of these things.

Here’s an assignment

to everyone.

Can we kind of go around the

horn here and just talk a little

bit about your journey from

audiology clinic to the

corporate world?

I will start with Alan and

see what his journey was.

Hi, Robert. Yes,

I think when I think about it 20

years ago and when

I made the jump,

I’d say I did it by accident.

I was working in a really

busy private clinic.

I was doing a lot of hearing aid

fittings and clinical testing.

And then a change in my life

led to a relocation.

And so I moved from the

Philadelphia area into New

Jersey. And at the time,

I needed to find a different

place to work.

I was looking for something

local to where we were

relocating to.

And I stumbled across

an opening at.

a manufacturer

And so it was one of those

things where whether it was

karmatic or divine intervention

or just dumb luck, I don’t know.

But I ended up getting a

position as a support

audiologist.

So it wasn’t a big jump from

what I was doing in clinic.

I was still working,

just one step removed

from the patient,

but supporting fittings.

I ended up really enjoying

the environment,

really enjoying the work,

really enjoying the camaraderie

of the office.

And 25 years later, here I am.

Wow.

And not an unusual story.

Alan. Sheneekra,

what would be your story in your

transition? Sure. Thank you.

So I started my career with

HearUSA immediately after my I

was again, as Alan mentioned,

I was a provider, dispensing

audiologist at one of our

hearing centers and actually

from there made a leap to become

a part of the local

leadership team.

So I was a trainer and all this

was actually in Southern

California.

So I was a trainer for our

hearing care providers and then

became what we called an area

manager where I managed centers.

And then I actually ended up

moving back to the northeast,

which is where I’m from,

to become what we call

a division manager.

And I managed several states and

our hearing centers there.

And over time,

through actually a

restructuring,

I had the opportunity to take on

a role at our corporate office

or support center.

And that’s actually how I became

a corporate employee through

various transitions over time

within HearUSA. Wow.

Okay, Sheena,

tell me about your transition

and we’ll see how that compares

to some of the others as we move

forward here. Sure. Again,

thank you for having us.

And probably very similar

to the others,

I worked several years

clinically and really focused on

hearing aids and aural rehab.

I loved it,

knew I wanted to do hearing

aids forever.

And I remember just being at a

training and I saw the sales

reps and the trainers and I

was like, you know what,

I could totally do that job.

And not long after that I

started working as a sales rep

for hearing aid company.

And then eventually I joined the

corporate office working

in project management,

product management,

sales and finally marketing

to where I am today.

Wow.

Gabe, tell us your story.

Yes, thank you for having me.

My story is pretty similar,

I would say to everybody else’s.

I was in the clinic for probably

twelve years before I decided to

cross the bridge to the other

side, to corporate.

But I worked for an ENT’s office

for many years and then decided

to even open a practice myself

and did that for about three

years. And just as life changes,

so did my career. Goals.

And I ended up at Siemens at

the time as a trainer,

and then have probably had

almost every job in that company

since. So 16 years later,

I’m blessed to be where I am,

but that’s kind of what led me

to where I am today in sales.

But we’re all basically

doing the same thing,

whether we’re doing it

clinically or whether we’re

doing it for corporate,

we’re still helping people hear

better and changing

lives every day.

So it’s just a different version

of what I started 27 years

ago now. Wow. Well,

it doesn’t make any difference

if we’re doing on the

hearing aid side,

if we’re doing on the

equipment side,

or even in some of the

conceptual sides that are

on the corporate side.

It all is working with the

hearing impaired and other

disorders that go along

with hearing loss.

Leanne,

can you tell us a little about

your transition and how you

ended up as one of the main

training people for Signia?

Yeah. Well,

I think that

my transition story will kind of

explain where I’ve ended up as

far as what I like in my

position and the position

I have now.

So I was a clinical audiologist

for over 16 years,

and I did a lot of work in

hospitals and spent a fair

amount of time in an

ENT office as well.

Like Gabe struck out into the

private practice world for

a little while there,

and it was there that I learned

that I really liked a training

aspect because we started to

hold at my office

lunch and learn.

And at first we would ask

for help from other,

from training support from

different manufacturers.

But it was very quickly that I

realized that I could do that.

And I feel very comfortable

teaching.

I feel very comfortable talking

about hearing and what is

important in starting your

journey to better hearing.

And so quickly started to do

those lunch and learns on my own

and found that I really,

really love that aspect.

So it’s kind of a natural

transition then into a training

position with a manufacturer

where you can take that

educational teaching

to a new level.

It’s just a different way.

You’re actually basically a

professor of Signia currently and

those kinds of things,

instead of a professor of

audiology at Armpit State

or something like that.

So this is fabulous,

and thank you guys for your

orientation and discussing your

transition. So, Sheena,

what was the biggest challenge

that you had going from

clinic to corporate?

There were many,

but I would say the biggest one

was probably just being able

to keep a pulse on reality.

I think once you kind of

get in the ivory tower,

it’s easy to forget.

What’s happening in the real

world with real hearing care

professionals and

their patients

And so I think the biggest

opportunity,

the biggest challenge was just

how do you keep that connection

when you’re working at corporate

to make sure that the things

that we’re working on and the

things that we’re developing are

actually going to add value to

the people that we’re actually

creating them for.

So I’d say that’s probably the

biggest thing. So, Sheneekra,

what was your biggest challenge

much? Gosh, ya know

when I thought about this,

I really feel like my biggest

challenge was going from working

in the business,

because I’d worked in the

business for so long,

either as a provider of hearing

care or managing providers

and hearing centers,

to really working on the

business and really determining

or understanding, myself,

how that still impacts

hearing care.

When you’re working in the

business and you’re making

decisions every day,

although you have long term

goals, right, you’re looking at,

okay,

how do I help people hear better

today and this month,

or how does my team do that?

Whereas when you’re working

on the business,

in order to support those people

in those hearing centers,

you got to kind of reshape that

to how do I help the teams and

have a greater impact?

So that was the biggest

challenge or really opportunity

for me in making the transition.

They don’t teach you that stuff

in school, do they?

Not at all.

And one of the things that I’ve

seen as a former academic

program director and as a

professorial individual is that

there is a lack of real world

interaction within the

academic community.

Once they get there,

they’re probably okay for the

first three years or so,

but after that time, boy,

things change a lot,

particularly in the

hearing aid world,

in assessments and a lot of.

So what I enjoyed about my time

was the contact with the real

world and the real people that

are actually interacting with

the patients all day, every day.

Well, Gabe,

what do you miss about the

conducting of evaluations and

seeing patients routinely

in the clinic?

I would say the biggest

thing that I miss is the instant

gratification of seeing the look

on those patients faces when you

put those hearing aids on their

ears and the communication that

you start to see between them

and the people that they love

and that love them.

So I wouldn’t say it’s

necessarily missing anything,

because I do,

at a different level,

get to see the same

amount of joy,

but it’s a little farther

down the road.

So I would say it’s just the

instant just look on their face

and the brightness in their eyes

and just getting to see them

engage again when they had

stopped for so long.

What about you, Leanne?

Do you miss any of this

clinical? Whole interaction.

My guess is you probably see

some of that with the training

programs, right?

We do. As a trainer,

you still get time to go into

offices and help people and

do fitting assists.

So you get a little bit of

that patient interaction,

which is so valuable.

But what you miss is that long

term connection to some

of your patients.

We had patients that we saw

through several generations

of hearing aids.

We have patients know,

brought in a family member and

you get that real connection

with the family,

I think

when you’re working with them in

the clinic that way. Cool.

So have you thought about going

back to the clinical area, Gabe,

at all?

It’s never crossed my

mind even one time.

How about you, Sheneekra?

You know what I have thought to

myself? I’ve thought, okay,

I never say never.

I always say Sheneekra

and never say never.

And so what I’ve thought about

is that if I went back

into the clinic,

it might be more I’ve

contemplated like as an owner,

right.

So that I could take everything

that I have learned and that

I’ve seen from others and

implement it into a clinic.

And that’s really what I’ve

thought about if I were to take

that step. But again,

it would probably be

a big leap for me,

but that’s where I would see

it landing. Okay, Sheena,

have you ever thought

about going back?

I’m right there with Gabe

know there’s something to be

said and I don’t want

to say like,

we have pure nine to five

because we certainly all work

outside of 9 to 5 hours,

but definitely not having the

added responsibility of if

you’re owning your own practice

and all of the things that come

with that and being solely

responsible for the people that

work for you financially and

knowing that you’re responsible

for their livelihood.

So from that perspective,

probably not. But like Sheneekra,

never say,

you know,

there’s always that person

who says, sorry,

I can’t come to work tomorrow,

my mother’s sick

or the patient that calls up

at 730 at night, you know,

my hearing aid just

quit working.

Can you come over and fix it?

That kind of stuff. So honestly,

those are hardcore private

practice problems that people

deal with that are in

practice each day.

And most of you guys appreciate

that for sure.

So what’s the coolest thing

about your position in the

corporate world? Alan?

Yeah,

for me that’s an easy

one to answer and

I would frame it a little bit in

the coolest thing that the

experience of working on the

corporate side for the last

20 years has brought me.

And that’s just the exposure

to the different people,

different cultures,

and being able to see

other places,

and

I simply would not have

had the opportunities.

To go to the places I’ve been

and to meet the people that

I’ve got to meet.

If I didn’t make this trip

or this journey,

I should say

whether it’s a trade show,

whether it’s a launch event.

And I was fortunate enough to

be in a situation where,

for one of my former employees,

I lived overseas for

several years.

And all those things,

it changes you,

it broadens your horizons.

I think the more people you meet

and the more diverse situations

you put yourself in,

the better person you become

internally. And for me,

flat out 100%.

That’s an irreplaceable part of

my career and something I’m

super thankful for as being on

the corporate side of the fence,

so Sheena,

as kind of a major marketing

person in the company.

How do you see the coolest thing

about your position?

It’s interesting.

It’s identical. To Alan’s I think,

you know,

just the amount of travel that

I’ve been able to do

over the years,

I’m certain I would not

have done that.

Know,

just being all over Europe,

Asia, South America, of course,

North America.

And I think the thing that’s

been the most cool, if you will,

is just being able to see both

the differences and the

similarities of how hearing care

is provided across the world.

It’s just fascinating.

And every time you go to a

different location or a

different country or a different

region of the world,

you can take pieces of that and

bring it back. So for me,

I think that’s just been the

coolest thing ever. Cool.

Leanne,

would you have some comments in

that area as well? I will.

I think I definitely agree with

Alan and Sheena and the

experiences you get,

but I would add to that being

in the corporate world,

the technology that we

get first exposure to and get to

really dive into at a different

level than you’re able to do

sometimes at a clinic.

I absolutely love where hearing

to aid technology has gone,

the advances that we’ve made

in so many different ways.

And I love being on the

forefront of that and then

learning what are the benefits

of that technology for

your patients,

and helping to wrap that into a

package that we can deliver that

people understand and that

resonates with the end users.

Well, and then also,

my guess is that you are really

involved in the digestion of

those technologies into

how it’s presented

to the clinicians and

that kind of thing.

So everybody seems to understand

it from the ones with,

and we won’t say much,

but there’s some that have

minimal orientation the field,

and others that have super

orientation to the

field that is.

Definitely something that you

have to think about when

you’re doing training.

One of the things that I found

in my experience was that

I learned, as Alan said,

so much about cultures and so

much about how the profession is

practiced in various places.

Now, in my generation,

of what we were doing

every time I went somewhere,

we always talked about audiology

and methods and so on as well.

And I know all of you

do the same thing,

and we work then kind of as

ambassadors to markets that are

not quite as developed as ours.

And I’ve had the opportunity,

and you have, too, I’m sure.

The people that come here to

study, they end up with PhDs.

They go back to their

universities,

and they train colleagues within

their own countries,

which a lot of us are seeing now

as customers or as individuals

that are working with patients

that are just like our patients,

only they’re from a

different culture.

So it’s fabulous to see that you

guys have that orientation and

are kind of taken over where a

lot of us have decided to move

on to do things like this week

in hearing corporate positions

sometime, not sometimes,

I’d say virtually always

require a lot of travel.

And how did you adjust this

between you and not just you,

but your family as well?

Because we all have families and

we all have kids and we all

have this and that,

maybe have some missed soccer

games and some missed fabulous

things that have happened in the

family and that kind of thing.

So, Sheena,

how did you adjust to that?

It’s interesting.

I started traveling before I was

married and had children.

I did have a cat,

so it was much easier to do that

then than if I were to think

about that now. So for us,

for our family,

it’s just part of our routine.

My family don’t know anything

different because we’ve always

done it that way.

But I do think it’s important to

point out that that type of

travel does come with a cost.

Right.

I’m not the primary

parent at home,

which means I’m typically

not in charge.

And my husband often reminds me,

like,

I need to play my position when

I’m home and not disrupt

the household dynamics.

And so most of the time,

I’m okay with that.

But I think it’s important to

note that if you are someone who

feels like you need to be in

charge all the time or in

control of everything even

when you’re not there,

this is probably not the type of

role that you want

for your family,

because I just think it would

be too challenging from

that perspective.

You have to be able to let go

and let other people lead.

So, Alan,

how did you and your family

handle that situation?

Yeah,

there’s two things that I think

about to make this kind of

career and lifestyle work.

Maybe it’s state and the

obvious, but you got a plan?

You hit the nail on the head.

There’s things that are coming

up. There’s soccer games,

there’s hockey games,

there’s birthdays.

And you have to make sure that

everything is planned ahead so

you’re making the correct

choices on when to say yes

and when to say no.

And when you don’t

have a choice,

that you’re making the right

adjustments, corrections,

whatever to make that work.

The other thing which I firmly

believe in is that you have to

brace it and you have

to enjoy it.

You have to make a choice

to enjoy it.

And so there’s little ways

you can do that. I mean,

it’s really easy

if you’re spending the weekend

in a warm area,

but let’s just say it’s

a typical trip.

There’s still ways to find.

Every city has something special

you might be able.

I try to get up early and jog

outside where we’re at.

If there’s a river or a

bridge to run across,

I try to incorporate that into

the plan. And the thing is,

you’re traveling so much,

you have to find.

For me,

it’s just important to embrace

the fun side of that.

Otherwise it can become a drag,

and then you’re headed down the

wrong path. So I love it.

I think it’s a great

part of the job,

and planning and embracing it is

really what made it successful

for me to adjust to that

type of lifestyle.

Again.

As the director of training,

there would be quite a lot of

travel routinely where you may

only be home on the weekends

if you’re lucky.

So how did that work with you

and your family? Leanne?

So, interestingly,

I grew up where my father was

in sales and traveled a lot.

So I grew up with someone in my

family that had a traveling job.

So I think I was less concerned

with it going in,

but very quickly found out,

like Alan,

that you have to plan so that

you make sure that you’re home

for the important things.

You need to make sure that your

family also is aware

of where you are.

And it’s the same way that

people with larger families have

to plan out all of their

activities for their children.

You just work your schedule

right in with that,

and I think it worked

out very well.

I am grateful for getting to see

so many parts of the US that I

never would have seen without

a traveling position.

Like know people in travel.

A lot of times the younger

people will travel Europe and

visit all sorts of areas,

and we don’t do that

as much in the US.

And I think that’s a little sad

because it’s so amazing to go

from New Mexico one week to

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,

the next week.

And the geography changes and

the people changes and

the atmosphere.

And it is an exciting part

of the job. For know,

it’s kind of like a big

adventure. Oh, I have a trip to,

here. Oh, I have a trip to,

you know, as Alan says,

it may be really cool to do that

in Orlando in January,

but go to Minneapolis

at 50 below zero,

it might not be so cool.

So you kind.

Going to have to take the good,

the bad and the ugly

sometimes as well.

And you go to the mall in

Minneapolis in January.

So does your corporate position

give you some unique perceptions

of audiology as a profession?

How have you seen that?

Gabe?

I think the biggest part of that

is watching how everybody

practices so differently,

how they embrace their own

structure within their

own clinics,

even,

like they had mentioned earlier,

Leanne and Alan, geographically,

the differences across the

country and how people

see their patients,

what their practices look like.

It’s always a new adventure to

me when you get to walk into

somebody’s practice.

I’ve seen everything from shag

carpeting on the floor and

people smoking a cigar sitting

at their desk to the most

pristine medical model of a

private practice and everything

in between.

So I think that just seeing the

differences and the variety

and the passion,

though at the end of the day

that we all have for what we do,

has really been the biggest part

of that for me. Great.

Sheneekra,

have you changed any perceptions

about audiology as a profession

and so on,

based on your position

at HearUSA?

I wouldn’t say I haven’t changed

my perception of audiology

as a profession.

We get in our profession to

help people hear better.

But what has changed in terms of

my perception from being in the

clinic to being in my current

role is really everything

that goes into it.

When you have that seat

in the chair,

you know what you’re supposed to

do to help people hear better,

but it’s about how do we

increase and expand access

to hearing care. Right?

And you may not think of that as

a clinician where you think of

that in a corporate environment.

What are the perceptions?

How do we help our teams hear

better or help our teams help

people hear better, rather,

and just really understanding

all that goes into that and the

importance of our role as

audiologists at that table with

our business peers and our other

peers, our marketing peers,

and that we can have a

great impact on that.

Well,

to me it’s kind of like

a big adventure.

And when you’re working with

individuals each and every day

you see the high clinics,

you see the low clinics,

you see even lower

than low clinics.

Sometimes

the shag carpet with the couch

and the newspapers everywhere,

the guy with ring around the

collar, all that stuff,

all the way to those pristine

places that look like,

like they just walked out of

something, like some.

Futuristic movie.

Now,

I’d like to have each of you

kind of give me an idea of some

advice that you might have for

colleagues that are considering

this transition,

which it’s a big one.

From what I can tell from my

experience and what I hear

from you colleagues,

is that it’s an adventure.

It’s almost an experiential MBA

program, really, in many.

So I found it that I learned

much more about the profession

by having exposure to all these

different interactions with

various people from around the

country and around the world.

And so. So, Alan,

do you have some advice for

individuals that are considering

this transition into the

corporate world?

I do.

I think the first thing

I would tell them is,

as you could tell just from

talking to this group,

pretty much everyone who’s on

the corporate side of this

profession is super willing to

give you insight on

their experiences.

So I think that’s probably the

easiest thing you can do.

Whether it’s Facebook,

whether it’s LinkedIn,

any of the other social

platforms,

you’ll know someone in a similar

role that you’re interested in,

and I can guarantee that person

will give you a complete

download of what it’s

like for them.

And then the last

piece of advice,

I would say, just go for it.

It’s been such a positive

experience for me.

And

it’s like Bon Jovi says,

you can always go home.

You can try something and go

back to what you’re doing.

Chances are a little jersey

slipping out there,

but

you’ll take that experience and

you’ll be better as a clinician

going back to that.

So I would highly encourage

them to talk to someone,

and I would highly encourage

them to give it a shot.

And the idea of being

able to go home,

that’s only been about the last,

what, 20 years, you think, Sheena?

Something like that.

Because prior to that,

you couldn’t always go home.

But now that you can,

you can bring all that fabulous

experience from all these

different places and all these

technologies and throw them

right into a clinic,

which would just be even a

progressive kind of a way to go

in and maybe out of corporate.

Sheena,

what would be your advice to

people considering

this transition?

100% agree with Alan’s comments.

I think the other thing is just

to recognize that there are so

many different ways in which you

can work within corporate.

As an audiologist. I mean,

you just heard a sampling of the

people that are on

podcast today.

But I think it’s important to

recognize that your

first position.

May not be your dream position,

right.

And so just see it as a journey

that appreciate the roles along

the way, collecting experience,

getting to meet people,

making connections until you

reach that dream job,

whatever it is,

whether it’s in marketing,

sales, training,

whatever the case may be.

Okay.

What I’d add to that is

something that Sheena,

just know.

Your first position may not be

your dream position, but really,

as you start to think about

that transition,

think about what it is that

you kind of enjoy, right.

And seek out people that

are doing that.

And then one thing that I think

can be helpful if you’re working

for a company that has maybe

multiple locations or works

in different projects and

initiatives, is to say, yes,

be a part of different

initiatives,

things that are occurring

in pilots,

because then you get to interact

with someone that may be leading

that initiative,

that maybe you want to be in a

role so much for them

in the future,

and it gives you different

experience and lets people and

your colleagues see you in a

different light as well. Well,

and I would also encourage our

colleagues that are watching the

podcast to look at some of

another series that we do here

this week in hearing called

Giants in audiology.

As Sheneekra and Sheena and Alan

so far have indicated,

nobody starts at the top.

And that includes all these

people that have had absolutely

very complete,

successful careers in

the profession.

A lot of them started kind

of at the rock bottom.

And when you go from clinic,

where you may be kind of the

pretty good person in the clinic

that knows all this stuff,

even the ENTs might like you

some days and some days not.

But the deal is that you’re

going to start likely more at

the bottom and start working

your way up.

And it’s the talent and your

capabilities that will get

you to the right spot.

What

advice would you have for young

people considering the

transition? Gabe?

I would say just building off of

my three colleagues before said,

and they took the words

right out of my mouth,

because I’ve had, I think,

seven positions,

twelve different managers,

I’ve really kind of got the joy

of experiencing everything that

manufacturing has to offer,

but I would say be nimble.

As one of my esteemed colleagues

has always said,

it’s knees bent because the only

constant around here is change.

And so you kind of have to

change with the industry.

And maybe some of the

preconceived notions that you

had coming into all of this

don’t necessarily pan out the

way that you would had expected.

But as Sheena mentioned,

there’s so many different

opportunities within

manufacturing that as you

go through your journey,

whatever that.

That looks like for

every person,

you may stay in that same role

the whole time you’re in

manufacturing or like me,

you may find the next best thing

that you’re good at and

move into that.

But just know that you’re

building on your experiences and

you’re getting better and

honing that craft.

And I would also say one

misconception that I had is I

finally got to work for one

manufacturer so I could focus on

what that manufacturer had,

and I can become a real

expert at that.

But the reality of it is it

doesn’t let me off the hook as

an audiologist to do my due

diligence in knowing what

everybody has to offer

out there.

So keep your ears perked and do

your research, do your homework,

be educated,

and spread the news about what

everybody else has and how we

compare and why we are better.

Fabulous.

Now I kind of saved the best for

last. So, Professor Powers,

how would you see

this transition,

and what advice would you give

to colleagues that are

considering the transition

itself?

I think all the questions that

you’ve asked so far kind of

lead up to this one is

to consider that it is a change

for you and your family.

So the discussion should be had.

But I wouldn’t be afraid to take

that leap. As everybody said,

you can go back these days.

We’ve had several colleagues go

back and take with them valuable

knowledge to owning their own

private practice and being very

successful with things that they

learned from spending some time

on the manufacturing side.

I think it’s very rewarding.

It opens you up to all sorts

of new experiences,

broadens your horizons,

your thoughts,

and you will go back to clinic.

If you do go back to clinic,

you’ll go back with more than

you had before to offer

your patients,

I think in most instances.

So I wouldn’t be afraid to

step into this world.

I think it is a great world.

And honestly, as an audiologist,

I always think of myself first

as an audiologist and second as

the director of our professional

education program.

And I think even for hearing

care professionals of all sorts,

whether you’re a licensed

dispenser or an audiologist,

that knowledge is

with you always.

And that becomes part of you.

It becomes part of

your identity,

regardless of who you work for,

where you work,

or in where your position has

transitioned into fabulous.

So

today my guests have been Sheena

Oliver, chief marketing officer,

US,

and head of marketing in the

Americas for WS Audiology.

Alan Raffauf,

vice president of marketing

for Widex.

Let. Leanne,

I think we would call her

the professor of Powers,

Senior Director,

Professional Education for WS

Audiology. And Sheneekra Adams,

Senior Director,

Professional Development for

HearUSA. And Gabrielle Gato,

Regional sales Director

for Signia.

You and we here at This Week in

Hearing really appreciate

your time,

energy and effort that went into

this particular session,

because I think it’s a

transition that many

people contemplate,

but they always have trouble.

Oh,

do I want to be in the

manufacturing area?

Do I want to do this?

Do I want to do that?

I think it’s less of a challenge

now than it used to be,

but it is a significant

one and one that,

as you guys have suggested,

can be fabulous in terms of

experiences learning

about cultures,

learning about the way other

people do practice

the profession,

as well as a tremendous

adventure. So again,

thanks so much for being with us

today at this week in hearing.