Interview Essential

Medical Device Sales
Brag Book: What to Include

Build a winning brag book with quota attainment, territory growth, awards, and account wins. Template, organization tips, and how to present in interviews.

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What Is a Brag Book?

DEFINITION

A brag book is a portfolio of your sales achievements, metrics, and awards that proves you can perform.

PURPOSE

Shows hiring managers you are not just talking - you have receipts.

WHEN TO USE

Bring to 2nd/final interview. Never to phone screen (too early).

IMPACT

Candidates with brag books get offers 2x more often than those without.

Must-Have Pages (6 Essential)

1. Cover Page

WHAT

Your name, title, phone, email, specialty

EXAMPLE

John Smith | Orthopedic Device Sales | 555-1234 | john@email.com

WHY

Professional first impression

2. Quota Attainment Summary

WHAT

Table showing your quota % for last 3-5 years

EXAMPLE

2023: 127% | 2022: 118% | 2021: 134% | 2020: 112%

WHY

Most important metric - proves you can sell

3. Territory Growth

WHAT

Before/after revenue in your territory

EXAMPLE

Year 1: $650K → Year 3: $1.2M (85% growth)

WHY

Shows you build, not just maintain

4. Rankings

WHAT

Where you ranked nationally or regionally

EXAMPLE

#8 out of 120 reps nationally (Top 7%)

WHY

Competitive proof point

5. Awards/Recognition

WHAT

Presidents Club, Top Performer, Rookie of the Year

EXAMPLE

Presidents Club 2022, 2023 | Rookie of the Year 2020

WHY

Validation from your company

6. Key Account Wins

WHAT

2-3 biggest account wins with details

EXAMPLE

Flipped $200K account from Zimmer to Stryker in Q2 2023

WHY

Story-based proof of selling skills

Nice-to-Have Pages (Optional)

Customer Testimonials

WHAT

Surgeon quotes or emails praising your work

EXAMPLE

"John's technical knowledge is outstanding" - Dr. Martinez

IMPACT

Third-party validation

Product Launch Success

WHAT

How you drove adoption of new products

EXAMPLE

First rep to hit $500K in Mako sales (Year 1)

IMPACT

Shows you can drive new initiatives

Training/Certifications

WHAT

Specialized training completed

EXAMPLE

Robotics certified, Spine instrumentation advanced course

IMPACT

Proves continuous learning

Community Involvement

WHAT

Industry leadership, conference speaking

EXAMPLE

Speaker at 2023 Orthopedic Sales Summit

IMPACT

Shows thought leadership

What NOT to Include

Confidential Company Data

WHY NOT

Customer names, pricing, margins = legal issues

DO THIS INSTEAD

Use percentages and anonymized examples

Negative Content

WHY NOT

Complaints about former employers, excuses for missed quota

DO THIS INSTEAD

Only positive achievements

Irrelevant Content

WHY NOT

College GPA, hobbies, personal photos

DO THIS INSTEAD

Sales metrics only

Too Much Detail

WHY NOT

Every single sale, 50-page book

DO THIS INSTEAD

8-12 pages max, highlights only

Example: Quota Attainment Page

Sales Performance Summary

YearQuotaActual% AttainmentRank
2023$950K$1.21M127%#8/120
2022$900K$1.06M118%#12/115
2021$850K$1.14M134%#3/110
2020$750K$840K112%#22/105

Avg 123% quota attainment over 4 years | Top 10% ranking 3 of 4 years

Example: Account Win Page (STAR Format)

Competitive Displacement: St. Mary's Hospital

S

Situation

$200K/year account using Zimmer for 8 years, happy with rep

T

Task

Break in and convert to Stryker Mako robotics

A

Action

  • Shadowed 15 cases to learn surgeon preferences
  • Arranged Mako demo at nearby facility
  • Presented patient outcome data showing 20% faster recovery
  • Offered 3-month trial with full support
R

Result

Converted account in Q2 2023. $200K annual revenue. Surgeon now Mako advocate.

Organization Tips

Use Sheet Protectors

WHY

Looks professional, pages don't wrinkle

HOW

Get clear sheet protectors and 3-ring binder

Tab Sections

WHY

Easy to flip to specific metrics during interview

HOW

Label tabs: Quota, Growth, Awards, Account Wins

Keep It Visual

WHY

Graphs > walls of text

HOW

Use charts, graphs, color to highlight key numbers

Print High Quality

WHY

Cheap prints = cheap impression

HOW

Color printer or print shop, heavy paper

Bring 2 Copies

WHY

Panel interviews, hiring manager wants to keep one

HOW

One for them, one for you to reference

How to Present Your Brag Book

Final/Second Interview

TIMING

After initial conversation, before deep questions

SCRIPT

"I brought a summary of my performance metrics if you'd like to see them."

Don't Force It

TIMING

If interview is flowing well, don't interrupt

SCRIPT

Offer it, but don't insist if they say no

Walk Through Key Pages

TIMING

2-3 minutes max, highlight best metrics

SCRIPT

"As you can see here, I've averaged 123% quota over 4 years..."

Leave a Copy

TIMING

Even if you don't walk through it

SCRIPT

"I'll leave this with you to review. Has my key metrics."

Template Structure

1
Cover Page (Name, Contact, Title)
2
Quota Attainment Summary (3-5 year table)
3
Territory Growth (Before/After with % growth)
4
Rankings (National/Regional placement)
5
Awards (Presidents Club, Top Performer)
6
Key Account Win #1 (STAR format)
7
Key Account Win #2 (STAR format)
8
Testimonials/Certifications (Optional)

8-10 pages maximum

5 Common Mistakes

Too Long (20+ pages)

WHY IT FAILS

Nobody will read it all

THE FIX

8-12 pages max. Highlights only.

Just Printouts of Emails

WHY IT FAILS

Looks lazy, unorganized

THE FIX

Create professional formatted pages

No Context for Numbers

WHY IT FAILS

"$1.2M revenue" - is that good? Bad? Average?

THE FIX

Always include: % of quota, ranking, or vs previous rep

Bringing to Phone Screen

WHY IT FAILS

Way too early, comes off desperate

THE FIX

Only bring to in-person/video final interviews

Mentioning Customer Names

WHY IT FAILS

Confidentiality violation, looks unprofessional

THE FIX

Use "Major academic medical center" or "Large community hospital"

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