We are the creators of possible: Sales. BBQ. Football. KEY Program Mentor.

Dustin Willette says he is a simple guy.

However, if you spend any time speaking to him, you will see Dustin is so much more than that.

From a love of BBQ (he and his fianceé are certified pitmasters) to a passion for football (he played in college) and from believing in the power of Servant Leadership to graduating from the BD Key Sales Development Program – Dustin is multi-faceted.

The Senior Regional Manager of Peripheral Vascular Sales joined BD as part of the C. R. Bard acquisition in 2015 as a Territory Manager. From there, Dustin has received a series of promotions nearly every year until his current role, to which he was elevated in 2022. He now covers the Chicagoland area, Dakotas, and a few other areas.

From the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to University in Wisconsin

Dustin grew up in Escanaba, Michigan. In this area of Michigan, it’s about the simpler things in life like mowing lawns, painting fences, and playing backyard football. It’s also where Dustin was taught about the importance of a strong work ethic, being resilient to change and always doing the right thing.

“It was a great place to grow up and my parents instilled so much in me about how to be of service to others, having grit and determination and getting up and working hard each day. During high school I really fell in love with football, and I earned a scholarship to play for St. Norbert College in Green Bay, Wisconsin. In college, I studied psychology because I wanted to coach football at a high school level and be a guidance counselor and work with kids,” explained Dustin.

When he dug a little deeper into the education requirements for these roles, Dustin added a second major to help round out his college degree – and ended up double majoring in psychology and business.

Area Manager to Sales at C.R. Bard

From there, his first role was at Enterprise, where he remained for five years serving as an Area Manager. Many of his customers worked in the pharmaceutical industry and came to him for fleet vehicles. The more they connected with Dustin during these interactions, the more they encouraged him to investigate sales as a career move.

“It was great that these customers had such faith in me to suggest sales as my next career,” said Dustin. I did some research and applied for a role with a medical supply company for a sales role. I took a role selling hernia mesh products, but the company was acquired so I found myself considering a move. I dug back into researching companies and found Bard was advertising for a Peripheral Vascular salesperson in Wisconsin, so I applied and got the offer. The rest is history.”

Growth, Servant Leadership, and Lots of Opportunities

When Dustin reflects on his career journey of almost a decade with BD, “growth” is the first word that comes to mind. Change and opportunities might be second and third on his list.

“The 11 representatives that I manage are my customers too. I do everything I can to make sure they are successful in their roles and have the right level of support and help in navigating issues and challenges as they arise, because they will. The difference I’ve learned over the past few years is take a more pragmatic view of issues – look at them as opportunities to do something different; solve the healthcare professionals challenge through a new perspective. I’ve learned to embrace change, embrace challenges, and learn from mistakes, which had made me a stronger leader,” shared Dustin.

KEY Sales Leadership Development Program

Dustin is a graduate of the company’s KEY Sales Leadership Development Program, managed by the U.S. Sales Enablement Team.  The intent of this program is to develop Sales Territory Managers who want to become People Managers.

“Learning about how other Business Units view their business and understanding how they absorb various ways they problem-solve was valuable. The program really identifies and puts into focus potential future leaders across all platforms. The KEY program highlights “leadership” and helps open possibilities across all divisions, helping all of BD win from a One BD perspective. I met and was able to network with so many talented Territory Managers who will be fantastic Regional Managers in the future. The networking was outstanding as well – building connections and starting to work cross-functionally with other BUs really enables us to come at sales from a One BD approach,” explained Dustin.

Additionally, Dustin calls out that participating in the KEY Program is such an opportunity for growth. To make the most of it, he suggests potential attendees prep themselves to participate by writing down 5-10 things they want to get out of the program and staying true to those objectives. Lastly, he recommends networking as much as possible, and to proudly represent their business – and share best practices and things that have worked with others.

Meat Sweats BBQ

Dustin, and his fianceé Laura, are both certified pit masters who can be found at local and regional BBQ competitions in and around Wisconsin any given weekend in spring-summer-fall. It’s something the pair have been passionate about since their early beginnings as the backyard cooks for family and friends.

“I was a lineman in football, so I love food. I was known as the backyard BBQ guy for years and during Covid, Laura shot me a note about a BBQ cooking class affiliated with Franklin BBQ, so I did that and from there, we attended our first competition. Our love for this hobby took off from there and our company is called ‘Meat Sweats BBQ’. I brought our trailer to the Vernon Hills office so the team could try it out, which from the sounds of it, people really enjoyed,” concluded Dustin.