Virtual Detailing in Life Science Organizations

Transcription

1 Healthcare Virtual Detailing in Life Science Organizations Table of Contents Problem Summary Pharmaceutical Life Science Product Sales The Deteriorating Dynamics Life Science Sales & Marketing: Between A Rock and A hard Place Life Science Sales & Marketing: Synthesizing a Solution Outsourcing: A Solution but Not a Silver Bullet Virtual Detailing A Case Study Contact Information About Sutherland Global Services Sutherland Global Services October 2012 Virtual Detailing in Life Sciences Organizations 2012 Sutherland Global Services. Page 1

2 Problem Summary This White Paper provides some insights and approaches that address four major questions facing Life Sciences sales organizations 1. Do you have a cost- efficient Business Intelligence enabled process to improve sales productivity, effectiveness and account management? 2. Does your structure allow for rapid capacity scale up and down to manage seasonality, launches and territory needs? 3. Do you have technology- enabled sales process oversight to improve compliance? 4. Do you have a satisfactory solution to address the Physician Field Sales Representative interaction restrictions? Created by Sutherland s Healthcare & Business Intelligence practices Virtual Detailing in Life Sciences Organizations 2012 Sutherland Global Services. Page 2

3 Pharmaceutical Life Science Product Sales The Deteriorating Dynamics Regulatory policies at both Federal and State levels and interaction restrictions with physicians have severely impeded the effectiveness of the prime Life Sciences Sales Channel The Field Sales Representative (FSR). Highly publicized cases of misinformation/misrepresentation and aggressive/invasive sales techniques had also cloaked the Life Science Product sales profession with a negative reputation The Physician FSR/Detailer relationship changed forever? Many physicians see FSR s only with scheduled appointments. 1 in 4 Physician Practices refuses to see FSR s altogether. Life Science manufacturers are responding to hard times with layoffs and a shift toward remote account managers. At its peak in 2007, the American pharmaceutical industry fielded 102,000 sales reps slashed down to 92,000 since then and, according to ZS Associates projections, the number will fall to 75,000 by But the cutbacks haven t solved the problem Life Science sales force COS has increased and RoI has plummeted For every Sales visit only 37% place their products in the Practice s Sample cabinet and only 20% speak to a physician in person (Source: TNS Healthcare) Profit per FSR visit fell 23% from 2008 to 2009 (Source: PWC) Major Cutbacks Wyeth: 1200 Merck & Co: 1200 Sanofi- Aventis: 650 Schering- Plough: 1000 GlaxoSmithKline: 1800 Ensuring compliance to a complex and continuously evolving regulatory regime across a geographically distributed sales force is both challenging and costly Life Science Sales & Marketing: Between A Rock and A hard Place Shrinking pipelines, heightened regulatory scrutiny and pricing pressures are forcing Life Science companies to consider new ways of managing the business. In the drive for efficiency, sales and marketing functions are adopting complex sales models based on local conditions. The implementation of these new models requires innovative solutions from sales operations and market analytics groups that provide services such as business intelligence forecasting, sales force strategy, field force alignment, targeting, incentive compensation and reporting. While sales and marketing operations need additional effort and innovation to support their complex selling models, they must do so with fewer resources due to cost- cutting pressures in the industry. Furthermore, many of these support functions require labor- intensive analytical support, which is difficult to sustain when there are constraints on resources Virtual Detailing in Life Sciences Organizations 2012 Sutherland Global Services. Page 3

4 Figure 1: Between A Rock & a Hard Place Shrinking pipelines Generic competition Regulatory constraints Pricing pressures Manage increased Complexity Localized selling environments More heterogeneity New selling models Changes in data landscape Sales Operations Market Analytics Reduce Costs and become Operationally agile Budget restrictions Reduced headcount More expensive talent for higher complexity of work But there s also some good news The percolation of generic/unbranded products presents both a threat and an opportunity. The Threat is market share erosion. The Opportunity is market- share gain through targeted messaging and brand leverage. For example, approximately 60% of Diabetes Test Kit scripts are unbranded providing a market opportunity space of $4.8 billion in an $8 billion market segment. From a strategic perspective, the Medicare market is an excellent opportunity for product influence since it s an even playing field for all brands and sales are not dictated by the traditional tiered, HMO Co- pay structure The Problem Statement Summary Major dislocation of the traditional direct personal sales process Heightened sensitivity to regulatory compliance in the sales process Ability to rapidly leverage perceived market spaces and opportunities Cost pressures aggravated by plummeting sales productivity and yield Absolute need for cost efficiency and operational agility and market insight Restrictions on Physician- FSR interactions affecting speed/rate of adoptions Virtual Detailing in Life Sciences Organizations 2012 Sutherland Global Services. Page 4

5 Life Science Sales & Marketing: Synthesizing a Solution An effective solution must necessarily address the constituents of the Problem Statement Summary defined in page 2. While the sales force headcount cutbacks have reduced costs it has added to the problem of dwindling pipeline and sales productivity. In addition operational transparency and flexibility continue to be serious challenges. The Table below illustrates an approach to a solution Problem Statement Major dislocation of the traditional direct personal sales process Heightened sensitivity to regulatory compliance in the sales process Ability to rapidly leverage perceived market spaces and opportunities Cost pressures aggravated by plummeting sales productivity and yield Absolute need for cost efficiency and operational agility and market insight Restrictions on Physician- Rep interactions affecting speed/rate of adoptions Solution Outline Create a virtual sales process and channel and account management Rigorous technology- enabled monitoring and oversight Analytics driven rapid go- to- market roll- out capability Variable and outcome- based cost structure Variable cost/capacity combined with high- end Business Intelligence and domain expertise Remotely managed multi- touch- point process Outsourcing: A Solution but Not a Silver Bullet Many companies have found that Third Party Outsourcing increases the flexibility of field promotion to meet changing market dynamics. A company can rapidly adjust up or down to meet brand, season, region, or territory needs without impacting on internal resources, cost- efficiency or morale Outsourced promotional services providers are able to offer a more permanent cost advantage over Field sales Representatives. This is due to the fact that outsource providers are able to leverage the infrastructure of fielding a team - recruitment, hiring, on- boarding, training, SFA, fleet management, etc. across multiple clients and engagements Most of the major biopharmaceutical companies are now working with at least two different Contract Sales Organizations (CSO s), to meet their varied field requirements. Many smaller, emerging companies almost exclusively use outsourced FSR s, not having the resources or risk- tolerance to support the infrastructure necessary to field an in- house team. Virtual Detailing in Life Sciences Organizations 2012 Sutherland Global Services. Page 5

6 HOWEVER Historical data indicates that there is a significant variance in the realized value and actual experience of outsourcing across any given client cluster or Industry. In- depth analysis across industries and client profiles as well as on/offshore points of service delivery has identified certain consistent and common reasons for the variance. 1. The Expectation 2 Experience Equation When Outsourcing is considered as either the last option to address a business challenge or a tactical mess for less solution the eventual outcome is often disappointing. This is because in both situations the adopted strategy is the outcome not of design but of default. In both scenarios the reactive nature of the business requirement affects the dimensions of the evaluation and decision- making process resulting usually in a self- fulfilling prophecy. 2. The Requirement 2 Resolution Equation The two core elements that require rigorous articulation and evaluation are: Client: Realistic articulation of expected outcome and related timelines Service Provider: Relevant experience, expertise and cultural alignment Sample Evaluation Parameters for Sales & Marketing Outsourcing COMPONENT Core Outsourcing Capabilities Sales & Marketing Delivery Experience Culture Fit Cost Structure Proof- of- Partnership EVALUATION PARAMETERS Quality of current client engagements Multi- shore service delivery infrastructure Breadth and depth of service range Transaction to Knowledge services Transition, technology, program management and process expertise Track record of Client business generation End- to- End Quote- 2- Cash capability Track- record of process innovation Ability for rapid ramp and compressed learning curve Track record of aligning to brand values Track record of going the extra mile Configuring costs to fit client requirements Outcome- based pricing models Proactive investments 3. The Client- Service Provider Equation Most successful Outsourcing relationships are symbiotic and structured with committed priority and focus on both the Operational and Management levels. Virtual Detailing in Life Sciences Organizations 2012 Sutherland Global Services. Page 6

7 The continuing involvement of the executive level of the Client organization combined with the committed participation of the senior management of the Service Provider are the key components of significant and sustainable value generation Sample Engagement Governance Structure SERVICE PROVIDER CLIENT Engagement Leadership Service Excellence & Business Transformation Services Customer Experience Team Support Services Command Center PROCESS 1 T1 Executive Sponsorship Team Steering Committee Delivery Management PROCESS 2 PROCESS 3 PROCESS 4 PROCESS 5 T2 T3 T4 T5 PROCESS n T5 Relationship and Commercial Management SERVICE PROVIDER CLIENT Program Lead Strategic Vision Partnership Value Delivery Management & Reviews Control & Reporting Project Management Knowledge Transfer Executive Leadership Quality &Metrics Program Management Delivery Management Subject Matter Experts Quality Learning and Development HR and Recruitment IT Joint Steering Committee Meeting (Quarterly) Joint Review Meeting (Monthly) Engagement Review Meeting (Biweekly) Service Review Meeting (Weekly) Outsourced Virtual Sales: The Do s & Don ts DO S Consider Outsourcing as an integral part of your long term business strategy & process Be sensitive to the expectations and concerns of all stakeholders in your organization Assess the changes in work orientation that will be required to be collaboratively effective Be realistic in terms of learning curve and outcome expectations in terms of time and value Define and quantify both the tangible and intangible expectations of the engagement DON TS Perceive Outsourcing as a tactical and episodic option to solve immediate problems Enforce the decision as a must do dictate down the organization Assume that internal people will align automatically to the new work paradigm Accept vendor assurances about performance without irrefutable proof Focus exclusively on efficiency and effort metrics which do not correlate to measureable business results Virtual Detailing in Life Sciences Organizations 2012 Sutherland Global Services. Page 7

8 Virtual Detailing A Case Study The Client: A global Pharmaceutical giant with revenues of $45 billion Outsourcing Objective: To build a virtual and flexible Sales Promotion Channel to drive brand recognition, incremental sales revenues and enhance account management effectiveness. Selected Partner: Sutherland Global Services Sutherland Solution: Deploy a dedicated team with relevant domain expertise enabled by a proprietary CRM Platform to roll- out multi- touch programs to a defined target base with targeted messaging and offers Complete all necessary documentation and processing as per client/regulatory requirements Provide transparency in Program Reporting and real time /remote QA/call monitoring to enable continuous performance improvement and ensure regulatory compliance Leverage Analytics and RCA techniques to drive sales productivity and yield Performance assurance driven by outcome- based pricing structure (measured by a Third Party organization) Measureable Results 300% increase in successful Doctors/Decision- maker presentations) 360% increase in sale call outcomes (samples/test kit requests, etc.) 50% reduction in cost of operations If you found this White Paper relevant and worth considering further we will be happy to collaborate and contribute to your thinking process. Please contact: Ed Katz, Global Practice Head Healthcare, Sutherland Global Services Cell: +1 (585) ed.katz@sutherlandglobal.com Virtual Detailing in Life Sciences Organizations 2012 Sutherland Global Services. Page 8

9 About Sutherland Global Services Established in 1986, Sutherland Global Services is a global provider of business process and technology management services offering an integrated portfolio of analytics- driven back- office and customer facing solutions that support the entire customer lifecycle. As a Healthcare Solutions and Services provider, Sutherland designs innovative solutions to address business challenges including those driven by the paradigm shift in member/provider care, regulation and reform, administrative and operational cost pressures, revenue cycle management effectiveness, and electronic health record requirements. Headquartered in Rochester, N.Y., Sutherland employs over 30,000 professionals and has 35 operations centers in the United States, Philippines, India, UAE, Egypt, Bulgaria, UK, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, and Jamaica. For more information, visit Virtual Detailing in Life Sciences Organizations 2012 Sutherland Global Services. Page 9