In this 6‑question, 7‑minute interview, Professor Pete Alexander talks with Amos Burdine, Vice President of Sales at TennHealthcare, a St. Louis‑based infectious‑disease laboratory. Burdine explains TennHealthcare’s role in providing a wide range of diagnostic tests—including a newly launched COVID‑19 assay—and its mission to improve patient outcomes. He discusses the urgent problem of antibiotic resistance, outlining three contributing factors: overprescription, agricultural antibiotic use, and dwindling natural sources for new drugs, and stresses accurate diagnostics as a way to curb unnecessary antibiotic use. Burdine highlights forecasting as the most critical skill for small‑ and mid‑size companies, describing how mis‑ or under‑forecasting can jeopardize cash flow and growth. He shares sales philosophy: break big goals into bite‑sized, repeatable actions, embrace rejection to build resilience, and maintain daily “golden selling hours.” He recommends another executive, Dan Houghton of BuilderTrend, as a podcast guest, and shares a personal anecdote about his first job shoveling gravel, illustrating his humble beginnings. The interview ends with contact information and a call to follow the podcast on social platforms.
Chapters
This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast, where executives share their insights. It is 6 questions in 7 minutes because successful business leaders are busy and rarely have more time to spare. So let's get to it. Question number 1: In a few sentences, please tell me who you are and what you do.
My name is Amos Burdine. I'm the Vice President of Sales for TennHealthcare. We're an infectious disease laboratory based right here in the central part of the United States here in St. Louis, Missouri. We test for a myriad of tests, uh, infections, whether it be women's health or wound infections, upper respiratory infections, or urinary tract infections. We're bringing new methodologies and new testing procedures to the market. It improves patient outcomes and allows for doctors to be able to diagnose and treat more accurately.
Excellent. And would the COVID-19 be something that you guys are working on?
It is. Yeah, we've added that test. We've brought that to market. Bittersweet. It's good for business, but you know, obviously we want the problem rectified as fast as possible. As much as anyone else.
Absolutely. Question number 2: What's the best thing about working in your industry?
I think being creative, you know, having the ability to be creative, to utilize the minds that we employ, some brilliant minds, to be able to bring some new testing methodologies to market. Right now, I mean, we're combating antibiotic resistance. These pathogens are growing resistant at an astonishing rate. So it's almost a three-pronged approach, right? We're overprescribing antibiotics. The agricultural systems has way too much antibiotics, which breeds these pathogens being overexposed, so they create a genetic mutation to make them resistant to the antibiotics we currently prescribe. The second prong is the pharmaceutical companies don't want to spend R&D money new antibiotics for them to become resistant in a relatively quick pattern and within a relatively short time frame. And thirdly, if we want to create new antibiotics, those are derived from the rainforests, which are being destroyed at an astonishing rate. So it's really not an if but when, you know, more things like COVID-19 and coronavirus creep upon us. So what we're trying to do is diagnose more accurately to reduce the amount of antibiotics that are being prescribed to the general mass population.
That's a very noble effort, and I'm, I'm crossing my fingers you guys are completely successful in that. Question number 3: I have a book with all the answers to business. What chapter would you think most companies should read?
First off, I want to buy that book. Where can I find it? Secondly, for startups, You know, small mid-cap businesses, I think forecasting, that's what's most difficult. In our own brains, we have the magic elixir that's gonna solve the world's problems, and then we go out, we sell it to the world, and it falls on deaf ears. Changing behavior is a tough thing. It's a tough thing for any walk of life in any aspect, whether it's diet, addictions. Just, we're creatures of habit, so Being able to forecast those changes and then also to be able to kind of keep your ear to the ground. For example, coronavirus, it's impossible for us as a business to forecast this coming. Yes, we can watch what's happening in China, we can watch the flu pandemic in Australia, which ultimately worked its way up to the US, but being able to forecast and really have a good handle on market projections, I think that's important for for small to mid-sized businesses, just simply because our capital, our— the revenue that we have to spend, if we go and spend and we think that, you know, the great tidal wave is coming and it doesn't come, now we still have to pay those bills on the things that we bought and the headcount that we got and the buildings that we built. Meanwhile, if we do the opposite and we underbuy, we don't get ready, then the wave crashes over us and we drown, and we're not successful as a business. So I think keeping that forecasting temperature just right would be the perfect chapter for us and for folks in my position.
Yeah, I couldn't agree more. You've stated it very well. Question number 4, other than generic work harder, have a great attitude, or care for the customers, what advice or insight would you give to other business leaders?
Well, 'Cause I, honestly, I think what keeps us moving forward is we all have the pie in the sky, the goal that we wanna reach and we wanna attain, but it's much like a marathon runner. Once you get started, you're on the start line. 26 miles is a long way away. But if you think about it as mile by mile by mile, mind you, I've never run a marathon, but I can only imagine. I would— the way I would gobble that up would be mile by mile. And so I always joke around with my sales team, I'm a master of clichés, but I think clichés are clichés for a reason. They have meaning. So I think taking that big goal and chopping it down into bite-sized pieces, you know, repetition is the mother of skill. So get really, really good at it. The only way you get really, really good at it is by doing it over and over and over and over again. Secondly, it's the blocking and tackling of life. You have to wake up. There's things that are going to affect you no matter what. From 8 o'clock until 5 o'clock, which is what we call our golden selling hours, we have to be out doing the things that can drive business forward, moving the needle. And, you know, lastly, it's, it's just being able to be okay with no. But making sure that we get told no enough to where we grow this, this sense of armor around our body that it doesn't affect us anymore. You know what you're doing is for the greater good, and our greater good is trying to prevent more or reduce the amount of antibiotics written in order to be able to precisely get the diagnosis correct for the patient to be able to be treated more accurately, quicker. Hopefully that kind of made sense.
It does, it does. And I like the point that you make about, you know, being okay with no, because if it's no, that saves you time as a salesperson as well. You're not wasting your time with a prospect that is not going to buy.
100%, I mean, it's shots on goal. I mean, we're in a very fast transactional business, so it's a one-call close for us in most circumstances. So when we sit in front of that doctor, and that's what I tell my reps, we've got 100— if you talk to 100 different doctors, you have 33 that are not going to give a hoot, you got 33 they're going to say that's a great idea, maybe we can work it into our practice, and you have 33 that are going to be like, wow, this is really So, shots on goal. You may hit 30 of those that don't give a darn right out of the gate, but you still have to put your shoes on and tie your laces and walk out with your chest out, chin up, knowing that what you are doing is right. It is good, and you are replacing an antiquated system. So, having just that, like I said, the intestinal fortitude to wake up and do it again and again and again and again. And slowly you'll start to see the snowball take effect.
Excellent. And with 1 minute remaining, question number 5: What other executives like yourself should be on my podcast?
You know, I would say Dan Houghton with BuilderTrend out of Omaha. They've got a great company going. Any small and mid-sized business, I think, has a great story that's shown success. They've all come from the trenches.
Great. Thank you for that referral. I'll reach out to them. And question number 6: Please tell me about your first job.
Oh gosh, shovel and a wheelbarrow and 5 tons of gravel every single day. Oh my goodness. Shoveling from the driveway to the backyard, building these putting greens and really nice houses. And so I thought, hey, I need to rethink about what I'm doing with my life and how do I get that? And not quite there yet, but working on it.
And a lot of work from that boy. It's a great story. Oh my gosh, Amos. Thank you so much for being on the show. How can people find you?
Just Amos Berdine. There's not too many of us on LinkedIn.
Perfect. All right. This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast. For more insights and ideas, please go to LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, or iTunes and search for the Winning at Business and Life podcast. Thanks for listening.
