US Pharmaceutical Sales Communications Benchmark: Resources, Structure and Processes

STUDY OVERVIEW
BENCHMARK CLASS
STUDY SNAPSHOT
KEY FINDINGS
VIEW TOC AND LIST OF EXHIBITS

Sales force performance significantly impacts growth and bottom line results. The ability of senior management to effectively disseminate vital information to their sales forces while maximizing selling time is integral to the overall success of all pharmaceutical and biotech companies.

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.

Industries Profiled:
Biotech; Pharmaceutical; Medical Device; Health Care; Manufacturing

Companies Profiled:
Centocor; Sanofi-aventis; Adams Respiratory Therapeutics; Inc.; Ascend Therapeutics; Cubist Pharmaceuticals; Covidien; Eli Lilly and Company; Endo Pharmaceuticals; GlaxoSmithKline; LifeScan; Merck; Novartis; Ortho-McNeil; Shire; Solvay Pharmaceuticals; Takeda Pharmaceuticals; Vistakon

Study Snapshot

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 19 participants from 17 companies.

Key topics include:

Communication Volumes
Communication Headcounts and Investment
Communication Skill-Sets
Communication Systems and Training

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 who can be consulted.

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

Sample List of Charts & Exhibits

Number of Recipients per Communications FTE

Number of Field Recipients per Communications FTE
Communication Volumes
Type and Volume of Communication Vehicles
Communications Size in FTE's
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

U.S. Sales Communications Excellence: Resources, Structure and Processes to Optimize Pharmaceutical Sales Communications

ID: PSM-225

Features:

Pages: 56

Published: Pre-2019

Delivery Format: Shipped

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