Pulse - December 2021 - 10

SCVMA PROFILE JIM BELL
Award Winner Loves Working
With the Veterinary Community
M
ichelle Schweizer, winner of SCVMA's 2022
Phil Steinhauer Allied Industry Award, loves
her job as a senior sales representative for Boehringer
Ingelheim.
" I get to work with the kindest, most compassionate people in
the world, " she said in an interview. " Everyone in the clinic from
technicians, receptionists and managers to doctors have such an
important role every day to take care of our animals, and I feel
lucky to work with each and every one of them.
" Having been in the industry 23 years, I feel like my role is more
that of a trusted adviser than a sales representative. I have built wonderful
relationships and friendships with my customers and I really
enjoy helping them solve problems and meet their goals. "
Michelle was nominated for the Steinhauer Award by Lisa Sherrill,
who won it last year, and Kathy Swope, the 2016 recipient.
Lisa said she was surprised that Michelle had not won the Steinhauer
award earlier. " I nominated her because of her longevity
and commitment to the veterinary industry in Southern California, "
she said. " Michelle attends many SCVMA meetings, conferences
and continuing education sessions. In addition, she supports
the veterinary community as a member of the SCVMA Allied
Industry Board and she works with veterinary managers groups
and Vets4Pets. Even though working for BI has given Michelle
many opportunities to attend events, she always does more than is
required by her job to support the veterinary industry. "
Said Michelle: " I continually try to go over and above to help
the clinics I serve by training their staffs with lunch-and-learns,
organizing team building meetings and putting on events like
tech fests to offer CE and appreciation for their contributions.
And, if my customers run out of products or need something, I
will always figure out a solution or make a special trip to find a
product locally and deliver it to them the same day.
" I'm involved in a lot of veterinary organizations and I love to
be a part of them and sponsor them, and I learn from all of them
as much as they learn from me. And, specifically in Southern California
compared to just about anywhere else in the world, we're all
here to help each other and I love being a part of that.
" I couldn't do all this without the resources that Boehringer
Ingelheim provides me and I am very fortunate to work for a
company that is so generous and passionate about our customers
and the health of animals.
" I do what I do because I love sales and building relationships
with people. In all my sales career the most down-to-earth, most
beautiful people, the most caring people I have met are veterinarians.
I love my job because of the people I get to work with.
" I have a business, advertising and marketing background so I
love to bring that to my job to help veterinarians with their practices.
A lot of doctors go to school and they become doctors and
some of them don't have all the knowledge of someone who has
my business background. I feel like I can help them with the business
side of things. That's one of my goals.
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DECEMBER 2021
PULSE
" Outside of work, I am very involved with important organizations
like the SCVMA, Vets4Pets, and Southern California managers
groups that strive to make our industry better every day. I feel
honored to be a part these organizations because we all learn from
each other and share knowledge to continually improve the veterinary
industry. "
Before she started working with veterinary practices, she said,
she liked what she was doing. Now, she said, " I have a passion for
what I do. "
She serves Orange County's veterinarians for BI. " There are a lot
of practices in Orange County but it's super competitive. We have a
lot of veterinarians, a lot of people and a lot of animals here. "
Michelle and her soulmate, Bernie Steel, a native of New Zealand,
got married last May. " Our kids had been waiting for us
to get married for 10 years, " she said. " We've been engaged that
long. " Bernie owns a machine shop in Tustin that makes parts for
the aerospace industry.
She has a daughter, Kaitlyn, who is teaching in San Diego, and
a son, Brad, who's trying to figure out what he should study in
college. Bernie has two daughters, Katie, who is in college in Syracuse,
N.Y., and Lauren, who has graduated from college and is
spending a year in New Zealand. The two families have blended
together well, Michelle said.
She grew up in Vancouver, B.C., and studied marketing at the
British Columbia Institute of Technology before coming to the
United States in 1999 and earning a B.S. degree in business at
Pepperdine in 2003.
Michelle worked variously for AT&T, Procter & Gamble and
Merck. In 2007 she moved to Merial, which later was acquired by
Boehringer Ingelheim. She spent several years in Michigan before
coming to Southern California.
She plans to continue what she is doing " as long as I can.
I'm going to stay in this industry and this job for the rest of my
career. I get to go into clinics and talk to amazing people and pet
dogs all day. " P
Pulse - December 2021

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