Published:
Ryan Cusack, PT, DPT, is National Director of Sales for Evolution Devices, maker of EvoWalk. EvoWalk is an FDA-cleared dual-channel functional electrical stimulation (FES) device to assist with mobility and reduce falls in individuals with neurologic dysfunction.
Co-founder and CEO Pier Mantovani built the first version for his father, who has MS, out of a box taped to his leg and a flashlight battery. Today it’s about half the size of a smartphone and can stimulate any two muscles in the leg, so a therapist can start with the tibialis anterior and move to the glute med or calf as a patient improves.
If you’ve ever discharged a patient with foot drop knowing they’d keep tripping at home, EvoWalk is meant for them. Clinics buy it to use in sessions, and patients buy their own, mostly out of pocket because Medicare doesn’t cover it.
Ryan is a non-clinical physical therapist in medical device sales, and he leads the company’s Clinical Territory Managers, clinicians who each cover a region. Evolution Devices is a Go Non-Clinical hiring partner and posts those openings on its careers page. If you’re weighing a similar move, you can work through it with others in the Go Non-Clinical community. Ryan gets into what coaching wheelchair rugby had to do with getting this job.
This post may contain affiliate links or codes. This won’t increase your cost, but it helps keep TNCPT alive, and free of annoying ads! Thank you for your support. 🙂
What is your full name, title, and company name for your current, primary role?
Ryan Cusack, PT, DPT — National Director of Sales for Evolution Devices
What additional roles do you currently have?
Head Coach, MedStar United Wheelchair Rugby Team
Where are you located?
Washington, DC.
Where did you go to PT school, and what year did you graduate?
George Washington University, 2017.
What did you do when you first finished school, and for how long?
I worked in an outpatient neuro clinic outside of Washington, DC, Inova Loudoun Hospital Outpatient Rehabilitation Center. I worked there for four years.
In what setting(s) did you work, and what types of patients did you treat?
I treated a typical neuro outpatient caseload, individuals impacted by CVA, MS, SCI, and TBI. I also specialized in bracing clinic, FES clinic, and wheelchair/seated mobility clinic.
What did you enjoy about your early roles? What didn’t you enjoy?
I heavily enjoyed working directly with patients and utilizing mobility technology to immediately improve outcomes. I did not enjoy documentation or insurance dictating clinical decisions and plan of care for my patients.
What else have you done since then, prior to your current role?
I worked as a Senior Clinical Territory Manager at Bioness in Virginia.
When and why did you decide to do something non-clinical?
I decided to leave Inova and work for Bioness in 2021. I was already working with their technology with many of my patients, and when the opportunity presented itself and the company reached out to me, the job seemed like a perfect fit.
What are you doing these days?
I transitioned to the National Director of Sales role at Evolution Devices in November 2024. The job presented an exponential growth opportunity for me in terms of leadership skills and personal career growth.
I also coach the MedStar DC United Wheelchair Rugby team and have served as the head coach of the team for seven years.
Are you still treating patients, or are you solely non-clinical?
Solely non-clinical, but I do see neuro patients with EvoWalk. These visits consist of me evaluating patients with EvoWalk and training them on how to use it. I do not directly bill insurance, but still get my necessary fill of direct patient interaction and care.
How long have you been in your current National Director of Sales role?
November 2024.
How did you find your job? Did you apply or find it through a connection?
Through a connection. My friend that owns her own PT practice introduced me to the CEO. She and I met mainly through some of our mutual connections. Many of my wheelchair rugby athletes are patients at her clinic.
My volunteer participation in wheelchair rugby has helped advance my career through personal relationship building as well as learning soft skills necessary for patient interaction.
If you advanced through a company to get to where you are, what are some of the things you did to stand out, take initiative, and advance in your career?
What helped me advance the most in my career is being a critical thinker both clinically and non-clinically. Using my clinical expertise to solve unique patient presentations and problems has been a foundational skill that advanced my career.
Also, being open to any learning opportunity has been critical to my success. For example, I landed this director of sales position now because I decided to volunteer my time to learn more about SCI care through my participation in wheelchair rugby. The relationships I gained through that led to career advancement later in life.
Never say no to an opportunity where you can immediately expand your knowledge and skillset.
How have people reacted to you leaving patient care?
Peers, colleagues, and patients have been excited and fully supportive of my move to a non-clinical role.
What’s a typical day or week in the life like for you? What types of tasks and responsibilities fill your time?
Now, I see patients about 20% of the time. My weeks now mainly consist of assisting my sales team with patient troubleshooting, improving access to EvoWalk for patients and clinicians, and helping my team grow their own clinical and sales skills.
What are some of the rewards of your National Director of Sales role? What are the biggest challenges?
Helping others grow their own leadership and professional skills. The biggest challenge will always be growing product awareness for clinicians about EvoWalk and emerging rehab technologies.
How did your clinical background prepare you for this role? Which skills transferred?
Gait analysis skills. Gait training and treatment skills. Soft communication skills with neuro patients and their caregivers. Soft skills of building credibility as a skilled clinician with patients, their families, and colleagues.
What type of person do you think would do well in your National Director of Sales role?
A strong clinician that is comfortable seeing extremely complex neuro cases. Also, someone that can problem solve patient access issues and make EvoWalk work for as many people as possible.
Someone that is comfortable with being told no and moving on to other business opportunities.
Do you work remotely or onsite?
Remote.
Does your organization hire PT, OT, or SLP professionals into non-clinical roles? If so, what type of roles?
PTs and OTs.
What is a typical career path for someone in your National Director of Sales role?
Starting off as a clinical specialist or clinical territory manager. Moving into further sales roles such as a VP or Director of Sales role. There are also really cool opportunities within organizations such as Evolution Devices to pursue passions such as marketing, product development, and research.
What is next for you? What are your high-level career aspirations?
Moving into a VP of Sales role and continuing to help build organizations that help patients gain access to rehab technology.
What to read next
- Deborah Tingey’s spotlight at Evolution Devices — the company’s regional field sales job, from the neuro PT who holds it.
- Josh Mickle’s spotlight as Director of Sales at Bioness Medical — a director-level sales job at another rehab technology company, from an OT.
- The Non-Clinical Jobs Report, from Go Non-Clinical — the latest hiring data, with sales and business development tracked as its own career path.
- How to get a non-clinical job, from the hiring managers making the decisions — what they screen for when a clinician applies.
More resources for your non-clinical career
If you’re finding your own way through the non-clinical transition, we’ve created these FREE resources to help you get your bearings.
- Our weekly jobs newsletter: 100+ fresh non-clinical job postings every week, plus new spotlights, our latest articles, and hiring partners recruiting straight from our community.
- Four Secrets to Landing a Fulfilling Non-Clinical Healthcare Job: our free mini-course, delivered to your inbox.
- Our free career quiz: 15 questions, and you’ll come out with a much clearer picture of which non-clinical sectors suit you.
If you’d rather follow a step-by-step roadmap than piece this together on your own, that’s exactly why we made Non-Clinical 101. It’s our course & community teaching rehab pros how to make the switch in half the time with twice the confidence.
