SFE Europe 2011: "Pharma needs to improve its ability to generate and manage information"
In a preview of his SFE Europe 2011 talk, Mark Bradleyeyeforpharmas Pharma Idol winnerprovides a territory managers perspective on the changes impacting sales force effectiveness
What is your background in pharma?
My background prior to territory management in the healthcare industry was in nursing. My first move into territory management was as a wound care advisor working in Ireland. I then progressed into pharmaceutical healthcare sales in the UK, based in Northern Ireland and focusing on GPs, and this naturally led to a progression into hospital territory management. In my 15 years experience in the industry, I have achieved numerous individual and team awards. This success has largely been down to my ability to manage my territory as a business and involve company resources as required.
Approximately three years ago, I developed an interest in sales force effectiveness and key account management in particular. Eventually, I felt there was a name being put on a style of territory management that I had been performing throughout my career. (For more on sales force effectiveness, see What's next for SFE 2011; for more on key account management, see What pharma can learn from the use of KAM in other industries and How to make KAM work for the pharma sales force.)
I started to follow the SFE conferences and the online presentations of the speakers. Everyone was presenting from the same viewpoint. The majority of speakers were in senior level positions within the industry. This is the reason I applied to speak at SFE Europe 2011 in Dusseldorf. I would like to provide an opinion from a territory manager perspective about sales force effectiveness and the impact of change on us.
What do you think of the current changes within the pharmaceutical industry?
There is massive transition in the industry at present. This will vary from country to country as the sales process and the stakeholders differ. However, we are aware that the ecosystem is changing, both internally and externally.
From an external point of view, regulations are making the role of the territory manager more challenging as we are exposed to a variety of stakeholders. We have no experience of dealing with these new stakeholders. We need to be able to alter our style and message to ensure we are engaging with them properly to understand their needs. We need to be able to capture what is working with these stakeholders and ensure that we cross-fertilize this knowledge with our company peers. The advantage of capturing this information will hasten the process. This is where we struggle as an industry. How do we capture this best practice effectively? How do we then collate it and represent it to our peers in a coaching format to ensure each territory manager is competent at dealing with customers at a higher level? (For more on coaching, see Coaching for sales effectiveness; for more on the changing role of reps, see New sales force models: Get ready for the hybrid reps and The pharma sales rep repair kit.)
From an internal perspective, the industry is moving from a noise-based model to a customer-centric model. This change in direction requires a change in style. This will not happen overnight, and this change will have a massive impact on our role. The pharma companies have got to work closely with the territory managers in this transitional phase and ensure their opinions are considered. The industry has to ensure that the territory managers have access to the right technologies that will provide them with real relevant information. The management of this information is crucial in this transition phase and, if managed properly, will generate an abundance of answers that the industry has yet to uncover as they move into these new areas. (For podcasts on customer-centricity, see Creating a customer-centric sales strategy and Creating a customer-centric sales force.)
Does pharma use territory managers enough to get the answers?
Sales people are the single biggest investment a company makes in their business yet they only utilize them to a percentage of what they could. What value do companies place on information? How much do they spend per year on information from other agencies? How much could they save on this resource alone? They cannot ask for this information.
Historically, if you ask for information you will get it. They need to develop a structure that will allow them to generate real relevant information in a format that provides value for the territory manager. This is the challenge. But if they are successful at this, they will gain invaluable information.
When a company manager looks to gain information from a territory manager who has achieved a significant milestone in sales, market share or, alternatively, a key measurement in a project, they will receive top line information. We need to ask ourselves the question: How much information, which created this significant success or milestone, has been lost and at what price? What will capture this information more effectively? How can we get the answer without asking the question?
How can pharma improve?
Lets start by saying that I believe pharma does a lot of things right. Pharma is excellent at allocating resources to improve in areas they need to improve. This will be no different in this ever-changing environment in which we do our business. Pharma companies realize the need for change, and they create the significant actions to ensure they meet the challenge. However, sometimes it is like a ship turning and is not that simple to manoeuvre.
In addition, territory managerswhether they are focusing on GPs or hospitalshave marketing strategies and marketing support that are the envy of a lot of other sales-based industries. We can call on multiple resources from within the company to assist us in our territory management.
On the other hand, pharma needs to improve its ability to generate and manage information. Companies are continually purchasing invaluable information that allows us to make decisions on territory management. This is fantastic if you know how to read this information. Pharma companies need to improve the territory managers ability to read this information more effectively and consistently to allow them to make the right decisions to maximize the opportunity of success down to account level.
There is a significant amount of information that can be generated through the territory managers that pharma companies struggle to capture. The challenge is, firstly, getting the information; secondly, believing the information; and thirdly, using the information. If they get the information through asking the questions, then the validity of the information is questionable and thus cannot be utilized. The secret is getting the answer without asking the question.
How can this information be gained without asking for it?
This is the challenge and it is a significant one. It is all about the technologies at our disposal as territory managers. The majority of technologies that we are currently using in the industry have been developed for the older noise-based model. We have been introduced to a customer-centric model, applying key account management process, but have been limited by the technology at our disposal. I have recently been asked about my thoughts on the iPad and smart technology. The advantage is that we can view information more readily due to these advances. The limitation is not the smart phone or the iPad. The limitation is the software that sits on these platforms. (For more on sales technology, see Will the iPad kick start a pharma sales and marketing revolution?.)
To hear more from Mark Bradley, join the industrys other key players at SFE Europe 2011 from March 2931 in Dusseldorf.
To see a video clip of Mark Bradley and to learn more about the Pharma Idol competition, check out Pharma Idol Winner Announced.