U.S. Sales Communications Excellence: Resources, Structure and Processes to Optimize Pharmaceutical Sales Communications
KEY TOPICS
• Communication volumes
• Communication headcounts and investment
• Communication skill-sets
• Communication systems and training
KEY METRICS
• Number of recipients per communications FTE
• Number of field recipients per communications FTE
• Communication volumes
• Type and volume of communication vehicles
• Communications size in FTEs
• Cost per salesperson served
• FTE data for VP’s, Directors, Managers, Analysts, and Coordinators
• Salary data for VP’s, Directors, Managers, Analysts, and Coordinators
• Importance of experiences
• Importance of skill sets
• Importance of various educational backgrounds
• Intranet responsibility levels
• Training methodologies
SAMPLE KEY FINDINGS
• The typical pharmaceutical organization spends $80-150 per salesperson in salaries for communication employees. The potential time savings (and resulting increased sales time) that an effective communications group can have will ultimately far outweigh this cost.
• Most companies are still not where they want to be in terms of tracking and measuring communications. While roughly 53 percent of the Total Benchmark Class indicated that they do not track communications, and 74 percent stated that they do not measure communications, nearly all participants indicated a desire to do both.
• Experience, whether it be pharma or communications oriented, is also very important for communications employees. The best experience comes from working in a communications group and seeing what works and what doesn’t. There seems to be a general consensus that while a specific experience is not necessary for any particular communications employee, there must be someone on the team or outside of it that can be consulted.
METHODOLOGY
This research was conducted on behalf of one of Best Practices, LLC’s clients in the pharmaceutical industry and was based on survey results from 10 participants from 17 companies.
INDUSTRIES PROFILED
Pharmaceutical, Health Care, Manufacturing
COMPANIES PROFILED
Centocor, Adams Respiratory Therapeutics, Inc., Ascend Therapeutics, Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Covidien, Eli Lilly and Company, Endo Pharmaceuticals, GlaxoSmithKline, LifeScan, Merck, Novartis, Ortho-McNeil, Sanofi-Aventis, Shire, Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Takeda Pharmaceuticals, Vistakon
Table of Contents
RESEARCH OVERVIEW 3
Research Objective and Methodology 4
Definitions 5
Data Interpretation 6
RESEARCH BACKGROUND 7
Benchmark Class 8
Benchmark Segmentation 9
Participant Titles 10
Scope Response 11
Communications Audience Size 12
Communications Employees each Support Several Hundred People 13
Centralized Communications Groups are the most Prevalent 14
Supporting Multiple Brands Introduces Complexity 15
Communications Group Usually Support Multiple Operating Companies 16
KEY INSIGHTS 17
Knowledge of and working with the Customer Remains the No. 1
Focus and Challenge for Communications 18
New Delivery Methods Aid and Enhance Existing Tools 19
Tracking and Measuring Communications Remains a Challenge
For Most Communications Groups 20
Traditional Skill-Sets Continue to Drive Employee Selection 21
COMMUNICATION VOLUMES 22
Business/Sales Analytics and Brand Communications have the
Largest Volumes for the TBC 23
Companies in the LPS Report Higher Overall Communications Volume 24
Regardless of Size, Communications Groups Send out Similar
Numbers of Communications Vehicles 25
COMMUNICATION HEADCOUNTS AND INVESTMENT 26
Communications Groups are Small across the Board 27
Communications Groups are often Comprised of a
Small Number of People at each Level 28
Typical Salaries for each Communications Level 29
Organizations Typically Spend $80-150 in Sales Communications
Salary per Salesperson Served 30
COMMUNICATIONS SKILL-SETS 31
Prior Sales and Communications Experience Rate Most
Effective for the TBC 32
Large Pharma Companies have Similar Priorities to the TBC 33
Customer Focus and Good Judgment are Top Priorities for the TBC 34
LPS Companies Place a Higher Emphasis on Writing Skills
And Increased Importance of Management Skills 35
A Bachelors Degree is required by the TBC 36
Larger Companies Share the Same Requirements 37
COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS AND TRAINING 38
Tracking and Measuring Communications Effectively is Still an Area
Of Growth for Many Organizations 39
Content Creation and Management are the most Common Intranet Tasks 40
No Training Methods Stand Out as Particularly Popular 41
APPENDIX 42
FTE Levels – Vice Presidents 43
Investment Levels – Vice Presidents 44
FTE Levels – Directors 45
Investment Levels – Directors 46
FTE Levels – Managers/Operations Supervisors 47
Investment Levels – Managers/Operations Supervisors 48
FTE Levels – Specialists/Analysts 49
Investment Levels – Specialists/Analysts 50
FTE Levels – Coordinators/Admins 51
Investment Levels – Coordinators/Admins 52
Email, Voicemail, and Intranet are the Primary Modes of Communication 53
Larger Companies have Similar Communications Numbers 54
ABOUT BEST PRACTICES, LLC 55
The objective of this benchmarking study was to better understand U.S. pharmaceutical sales communications groups’ impact and effectiveness. To accomplish this, an online survey was conducted, supplemented with several interviews to gather more detailed accounts of how executives have shaped their communication functions to support their sales force.
Executives in the pharmaceutical industry can use this report to inform their thinking about the resources, skill-sets and tools needed for their communications group, and what practices and procedures can be used to maximize the impact (and minimize the time taken) on salespeople.
Keywords: U.S., Sales, Communications, Excellence, Resources, Structure, Processes, Sales Force, Performance, Growth, Bottom Line, Results, Senior Management, Selling Time, Skill-Sets, Tools, Practices, Procedures, Impact, Volumes, Headcounts, Investment, Systems, Training, FTE, Recipients, Field Recipients, Communication Vehicles, Salesperson, Vice Presidents, Directors, Managers, Analysts, Coordinators, Salary, Experiences, Educational Backgrounds, Intranet, Responsibility, Methodologies, Time Savings, Cost, Measuring, Pharmaceutical, Health Care, Manufacturing, Centocor, Adams Respiratory Therapeutics, Inc., Ascend Therapeutics, Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Covidien, Eli Lilly and Company, Endo Pharmaceuticals, GlaxoSmithKline, LifeScan, Merck, Novartis, Ortho-McNeil, Sanofi-Aventis, Shire, Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Takeda Pharmaceuticals, Vistakon
Pages 56 October 2008
Price Single report cost $2,495.00 Site Licence $7,485.00 Enterprise Wide Licence $12,475.00
