Most sales professionals, even those who don't hold titles like "outside sales" or "field sales", will see periods of significant travel in their career. In 2012, I did a modest 46k miles in 27 segments on Air Canada, which was sufficient for Aeroplan Elite status and came with it Star Alliance Gold status. 

A quick reminder: Most airlines belong to one of three alliances: Star Alliance, OneWorld, and SkyTeam. You can earn miles and status miles on partner airlines of the same alliance, although the you see the best service when you fly on your primary carrier.

Unfortunately, when Air Canada announced a change to the program, it meant that my hard earned status would be degraded from Star Alliance Gold to Star Alliance Silver, losing key perks such as lounge access and priority boarding (as well as priotty baggage, extra baggage allowance, etc.).