to the above poster, if you have any contacts in the OR (nurse, tech, MM, purchasing, dr buddy in general, colo-rectal, uro), I would bet u anything they would say Applied is tolerable or ok at best, terrible to deal with, and/or the average rep is a joke. 80-85% of their products are sold through GPO contracts because they are commodity products that a trained monkey could use. The only reason they are still in business is because their CEO cried to Congress 14+ years ago that they weren't getting a fair shot to play (think like the nerd who couldn't get a date to prom). Although this is a generalization, you will find the average rep/associate here is under 28 y/o and couldnt sell a bottle of water to someone dying in the desert. The managers are leftover hacks from the "heyday" that did well but have come to accept this is their life because they've been hand selected by JD, DG, TS, etc so they're lifers trying to move up the corporate ladder (avg age 33-42). The specialists could be either leftovers that weren't ready for management or really old has-beens that came from Covidien/Ethicon back in the day so they run the gamut in age. The senior management team here is the biggest joke i've ever run into in my professional career. They're 52+ in age, have been with Applied for 15+ years, are severely out of touch with reality, could never get a job with a reputable medical device company because they've burned so many bridges professionally, and walk around like their %#*^ doesnt stink. But don't ask me, do your HW and ask around. I would venture to guess most people would agree with this assessment.