Meet Your Sales Team
Melissa Wagner, Vice President, Sales and Service
Melissa Wagner is a veteran in the dental benefits industry, bringing more than 25
years of extensive dental industry knowledge to DenteMax. Melissa began her career
in Dental Office Management and went on to excel in Member Services, New Business
Development and Account Management positions with United Concordia. As a result of
her varying experiences, Melissa is in the unique position of being able to
understand the dental industry from three important perspectives: the dental
provider, the administrator, and the dental network manager.
Since 1999 Melissa has managed all aspects of client relationships, including major
accounts, as well as guiding the strategic direction for both Sales and Marketing at
DenteMax. During her tenure as Vice President of Sales and Service, Melissa has
assisted existing client partners in developing programs to retain and grow their
dental business, as well as establishing new and innovative client partner
relationships, resulting in strong revenue retention and growth opportunities
for DenteMax.
Melissa has customized DenteMax’s approach to both sales and service by developing a
focus on market segments. This focus has allowed for the creation of customized
solutions for client partners based on the specific needs of their segment with a
concentration on network recruitment strategies ensuring dental claims savings for
the member, group and administrator, in addition to the growth of the DenteMax
network. This has contributed to DenteMax being recognized in all business segments
as the largest leasable dental PPO network in the country.
Amy Foster-Centers, Senior Sales Executive, Business Development
Amy Centers, Senior Sales Executive in charge of Business Development at DenteMax,
has more than 15 years of sales experience, almost 7 of which have been in the
healthcare industry. She is well known for her enthusiasm, reliability and her
team player attitude. She has held a variety of roles in sales, working her way
through the ranks of DenteMax. She has personally forged relationships with a number
of the company’s largest clients, and initiated the relationship that led to the
first network conversion in DenteMax history. During this time she has received
seven awards for her commendable work.
In 2003 Amy initiated first conversations with Genworth, a possible new client
partner. She helped Genworth see the benefit of DenteMax and signed them on to
become a client partner. Genworth had its own dental PPO network but wanted to
discontinue network administration. DenteMax and Amy took this opportunity to
suggest that Genworth convert its network to DenteMax. Network conversion began in
early 2004, with Amy communicating with Genworth daily by email and in weekly
conference calls. DenteMax converted 80% of Genworth’s network, causing minimum
disruption to Genworth employee patients. Three years later DenteMax and Genworth’s
relationship continues to thrive, through the ongoing efforts of DenteMax network
development and service staff.
Amy was a key player in the creation of DenteMax’s custom-created client
recruitment software, FROG, in 2005. This software continues DenteMax’s reign
at the forefront of the industry technologically. Beginning in 2006, she uses the
program daily to track efforts for prospective new clients for DenteMax.
The creation of the software and Amy’s efforts are paying off in the receipt of
new client partners to DenteMax.
Christina Hix, Major Accounts Liaison
While Christina Hix, DenteMax’s Sales Major Accounts Liaison, has only been
with DenteMax for 5 years, she has seen several sides of the business in her
experience in multiple departments. She has had a variety of roles throughout
the organization beginning in Customer Service, leading the Administration Team,
moving to the Marketing Department, and now in the Sales Department.
When Christina first came to DenteMax in 2001 she worked on several project
teams in Customer Service with a variety of tasks including reorganizing all
company files and contacting dental offices directly for information.
As Coordinator of Workflow Processes on the Administration team she was
responsible for supervising the entire Administration staff and worked directly
with the Customer Service Manager to successfully implement a new paperwork tracking
software. In her role as Client Communications Specialist in DenteMax’s Marketing
Department she answered all Requests for Formal Proposals (RFPs) which gave her a
complete knowledge of all departments in the company. She also revised and created
new marketing reports and tools which have served her well in her current role in
DenteMax’s Sales Department as the Major Accounts Liaison. In this position
Christina services several major clients, problem solves claim issues, provides
various reports, gives presentations and anything else our valued client partners
request.
She is currently pursuing Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan’s Leadership Academy
training program and is a graduate of Lawrence Technical University in Southfield,
Michigan. She has received several recognition awards including the company’s Bravo
Award and Most Resourceful Sales Representative. She is known for her leadership
within and outside of the organization and her inquiring mind which she uses to
dig to the heart of every issue she takes on.
J. David Hetrick, Business Development Executive
J. David Hetrick, Business Development Executive, has more than 20 years of
experience in the healthcare industry. He is well known for his successful
business development strategies and his leadership.
He has held senior management roles as Chief Operating Officer at DenteMax,
Senior Planning Analyst and later Product Manager at Blue Cross Blue Shield of
Michigan, and as Corporate Sales Manager at Heath-Zenith Computers.
As Chief Operating Officer at DenteMax, he was a key member of the senior
leadership team responsible for three-fold revenue growth, tripling network
size in four years and engineering the sale of the company to a major insurer.
In his current role as Business Development Executive, he has had great business
development success increasing key segment revenue by 600% in three years
and contributing 75% of new corporate revenue.
His current success in business development fits well with his passion to develop
and implement key product and process enhancements and to anticipate and respond
to market demands.
He received his BA in Economics and Political Science from the University of Michigan,
along with his Master of Health Service Administration and Master of Business
Administration.
Heather Schiappacasse, Sales Consultant
Heather Schiappacasse, Sales Consultant at DenteMax, has over 15 years of sales,
networking and promotional experience. She is well known for her strong
interpersonal relationship skills, saying that she loves "to meet people,
talk to them, find out what their needs are and help them in any way possible."
She has worked her way up through the ranks of several organizations. When she first
arrived in the DenteMax Sales Department she launched a project to update the
entire sales database, improving the database for the entire company.
During her time at DenteMax she has received several Bravo Awards in recognition
of exemplary service to internal and external customers.
Heather is a high energy person who is passionate about community outreach. She
launched DenteMax’s participation in the March of Dimes Walkathon which has
become the company’s largest annual fundraiser.
Howard Chapman, Senior Sales Consultant
Howard Chapman, Senior Sales Consultant, has over 15 years of experience in sales and
management. He is known for his knowledge of the dental PPO industry with a
specialty in the dental discount card market.
He joined the DenteMax team in December of 1999 and has since helped to increase
and improve the client base of the company. He is an essential part of the
DenteMax Sales Team, operating a full service, customer contact facility that
assists in pre-qualifications to perspective clients. Howard’s drive, ambition,
and ingenuity are major contributing factors to DenteMax’s continued success.
Howard graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in Finance/Insurance.
Joanne Randolph, Senior Sales Consultant
Joanne Randolph, Senior Sales Consultant at DenteMax, has more than 25 years of
experience in sales, marketing and underwriting in the healthcare industry. She
has experienced all angles of the industry in her roles at a major insurance company,
a Dental HMO, a TPA, and now at a Dental PPO. She is currently a licensed
Health and Life Agent for the State of Michigan. Joanne is well-known and depended
upon for her broad experience and extensive knowledge of the healthcare industry. She
has held a variety of management roles in sales and marketing at DenteMax and at
previous companies. In her time at DenteMax she has been pivotal in the development
of many of the processes and procedures used in the sales and marketing departments,
and has won the DenteMax Salesperson of the Year for two years running.
Joanne’s passion also comes into her personal life in talking about people with
mental disabilities and how they survive in a world that is very unknown to
them and how we as a nation take care of them. Joanne is the proud mother of 3
women, one of whom lives with the challenge of autism and mental disability.
Joanne feels that she is always learning a lot about this subject and that although
she is no “expert” in the field of disabilities, she is able to give her personal
thoughts, feelings and experiences.
Larry Sigle, Senior Sales Consultant
Larry Sigle, Senior Sales Consultant and responsible for DenteMax’s Dental Solutions
Value Card Program, has more that thirty years of experience in the insurance
industry in personal sales, sales management, and product development. Ten of those
years were focused work in the dental benefits industry. He is well known for his
leadership, vision and mentoring, his gifted negotiation skills and for understanding
the wants and need of others, and putting those items in terms that others can
understand as well.
He has held sales manager, product manager and vice president roles in several
major national insurance companies. Larry is responsible for successfully managing
DenteMax’s new Dental Solutions Value Card Program which was the company’s first
foray into a proprietary discount card program.
His current role promoting DenteMax’s Dental Solutions Value Card Program fits well
with his passion for assisting families in obtaining affordable health care
benefits and for providing alternatives for groups and families who are losing
health care benefits.
Larry has both a Bachelor of Science and a Masters in Business Administration from
Kansas State University. He is also a Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) and
Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC).
Robert Kustasz, Sales Consultant
Robert came to DenteMax in 2006 with a strong background in Sales & Marketing. His
previous positions have included working for Timex selling their watch and medical
products in the Midwest, a position with Sharp Electronics as a Regional Sales
Manager; and National Sales and Marketing Manager at Delphi where he was responsible
for their launch of XM satellite radio among other consumer electronic products.
Most recently, Bob was Director of Sales & Marketing with Gilson / Eyeneo a
privately held corporation that manufactures medical combinatorial chromatography
testing equipment and specialized video products.
Bob has a passion for giving back to the community and has found an outlet for this
passion by working with the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary for many years.
His on the water activities have included responding to medical emergencies,
collisions, fires and pulling people out of the water who have abandoned their
vessels.
Robert’s previous experiences in medical sales translate well to his new role
working in the Third-Party administrator market segment at DenteMax. Robert’s
direct-to-consumer experience also allows him to provide Sales and Marketing
insight for DenteMax’s value card product.
A native Detroiter, Bob earned his BA with honors degree in Mass Communications and
Psychology at Wayne State University.