Onwards and upwards

pharmafile | March 20, 2008 | Feature | Business Services |  career, planning, recruitment 

In an era of elusive blockbusters, job cuts and growing insecurity in the pharma industry, the skills you need to get noticed and get on are becoming more and more important. But what do you need to know to properly equip yourself for moving up the management ladder? Pharmafocus spoke to a senior pharma human resources practitioner and two recruitment experts to find out.

To start with, how would they advise sales or marketing people to present themselves as likely candidates for promotion?

Dr Jim Golby is HR manager at recently-merged Merck Serono and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and winner of its 2007 Management Research Report prize. He thinks you first need to shine where you are in order to establish any credibility.

“Do all you can to be successful in your current role, and make yourself stand out in your present role. Once you have demonstrated sustained performance and ability, start thinking about how you can increase your desirability by taking additional courses which will be of value going forward.
    “Take some control, do your homework in choosing courses and don’t leave everything to your manager. If you are really keen, it’s often possible to shadow a colleague in another job function to get a better insight.” Tarquin Bennett-Coles, manager of RSA Interims, thinks candidates are well advised to build a record of their achievements to take to interviews.

“You should create a ‘brag file – a useful binder of material that relates to successes you have had at work and, where appropriate, outside of work. “A typical brag file will include certificates from courses, sales figures, press releases or materials highlighting your successes, and some positive referrals from clients, customers and/or colleagues and managers.”

Sam Carter, recruitment company Harten Group’s client manager, permanent recruitment, sees personal marketing as the key: “In sales, it is essential to manage your personal PR within your organisation, being aware of how others perceive you and communicating your interest for new projects or promotion.  “Be politically aware too, and look to move when you have achieved demonstrable success which is qualifiable and quantifiable.

“Higher up the ladder, you will need experience of sales strategy and business development strategy, as well as marketing and training. Ultimately you will need to show that you have ‘carried the bag’, with first hand experience at the coalface.  “In marketing, you will need a sharp commercial focus and be able to juggle priorities. Communication skills are paramount as you may have to act as a conduit for information out to the sales team. Marketing is very data driven, with the need for critical analysis skills. As a product manager, you are essentially a ‘mini MD’, running your own product and business,” Carter adds.

Qualifications a must
A key part of your record of achievements in your job is the qualifications you’ve gained along the way. Which qualifications, training or experience helps a candidate stand out and what would be expected as a baseline requirement?

“Recognised qualifications are generally a prerequisite,” says Jim Golby. “They theoretically demonstrate the candidate possesses a general level of ability, intelligence and discipline.  “Moving forward, gaining an additional qualification in the subject area demonstrates your focus and commitment to it and your career – especially if you’ve done this in your own time.”

The mere process of actually getting qualified, in itself, tells prospective managers a lot about you. “Getting qualified,” adds Jim Golby, “tells your manager that you are motivated enough to invest in your own future career, and bright enough to think ahead and capitalise on the opportunities that have been presented to you. Once you are in the role, though, it’s your actual performance that counts for most.”

Tarquin Bennett-Coles agrees, and points to other prerequisites for promotion: “Candidates would have a degree in the life sciences and/or a record in sales & marketing and/or some allied healthcare experience (nursing/pharmacist).  “If they have completed courses or diplomas in marketing and sales such as SPIN selling or TASK, then this is often seen as a positive step. An MBA can also help, but its importance depends on the seniority of the position.

“If the role requires autonomy or good team working, then the candidate should try to find something that they have done in the past, to match up to this expectation. In some cases, a record at a company with a good training structure (which means most of big pharma) will be viewed positively, as the potential employer will know they have had the right pedigree to have worked in that previous company.” So our candidate has put together a brag-list of work successes, and collected some paper qualifications. What are the expected skill sets for sales and marketing management, and how can candidates best exemplify those skills?

Study the corporate culture
Communicators and persuaders who are closely aligned with the corporate culture are those most likely to succeed, thinks Jim Golby. “Along with a fundamental level of intelligence to assimilate the necessary information involved and deal with it, you need to communicate successfully with a wide range of people.  “Managers must be persuasive team players, who can work positively with others to achieve a result and aren’t afraid of getting their hands dirty. A willingness to learn and a ‘can do’ attitude is really important.

“Feeling at one with the company culture is also essential. I believe it is really important to have pride and passion for the company and its products and services. You have to have belief in what you do and why you are doing it and enjoy making a difference,” Golby adds.

The Harten Group’s Sam Carter agrees that sales and marketing people need excellent communication skills, combined with analytical ability for marketing staff, and adds: “You have to be able to demonstrate drive and motivation, be able to negotiate internally as well as externally, and be a strategic thinker.”

Tarquin Bennett-Coles of RSA Interims points to an important weapon that sales and marketing people have in their armoury to help them shine at interview – their own professional training: “Use your sales and marketing skills at interview. Ask probing questions and close the interview with a question like “Is there anything else you would like to ask me to clarify my suitability for the role?

“This question allows the candidate to cover any ground that has been missed and then leave the interview knowing they have given it their best. It also shows the potential employer that you are prepared to ask for the sale.” So what are the traditional routes for promotion, and are there any new routes emerging?

“I believe promotion is based on merit in the pharma industry,” says Jim Golby. “If you have consistently performed with success, delivered in your current role and shown the potential to move into other roles, in somewhere like Merck Serono, you will get noticed and create a launch pad for future success and promotion.  Tarquin Bennett-Coles sees managers being drawn from a wider pool than they were in the past: “The traditional routes tend to follow marketing, sales, or product management, but they have begun to include the likes of the medical science manager or health economics areas.

“If someone has a strong background with enough experience, then they may be able to move into the senior management structure, and into general or operational management.”

Staying at home or playing away?
Whatever your background, though, is it generally preferable to stay with the same company or would prospects be better elsewhere? The answer seems to be ‘stay put’. For one thing, many companies in the industry have a history of internal promotion.

“Merck-Serono has always had an ethos of promoting from within. Few UK pharmas can claim two colleagues joining as reps and then rising to managing director,” says Jim Golby, but he agrees there will be times when a candidate is best advised to move on.

“It depends on what you believe your prospects are ‘at home’. I believe you should only move companies for three reasons: you think your career path is terminally blocked, you don’t enjoy the job you do, or you don’t like the people you work with.

“You will have built up lots of kudos, contacts and credibility where you are. It seems a shame to throw them away for a slightly better salary in an unknown company where you don’t have a history of success, you don’t have a feel for the culture, and you will be starting from scratch to build your credibility all over again.

“I always recommend patience. If people believe in themselves and really know they are valued, are happy in their current job and who they work with and believe in the company and products – that’s worth a lot!

“Even if you don’t get the first internal promotion you go for, then it’s likely the right role will come around in the future, especially if you continue being successful and developing yourself.”

So, moving jobs is not a decision to take lightly. It triggers a process of change that can be traumatic for the candidate and those around them, especially if they have to relocate, as Tarquin Bennett-Coles points out.

“I recommend exploring all internal avenues first to be sure that the right role is not where you currently are. Appraisals and HR reviews for your personal development plan are good ways to explore the internal possibilities. If you are sure you cannot find what you want internally, then the decision to move is made.”

Choosing the right time to go
The key to managing the process is to think everything through carefully and make sure everyone involved is on board, so that taking the next step in your career goes as smoothly as possible.

“There are many reasons for changing jobs, from a feeling that your career has stalled to personality clashes with work colleagues, or a company reorganisation that affects the promotion pathway. Financial and family reasons also play a part, as does deciding to make a career switch,” says Tarquin Bennett-Coles.

“Typically, it’s a combination of events that triggers the desire to move. Timing is a crucial factor in this process. You will need to think carefully about whether a move would be right for your career and personal circumstances at this time.

“You do not want to appear to be a job hopper by moving too frequently, or appear risk averse by not moving at all. The job you do will make a difference here. The expectations of hiring managers and HR managers will differ when reviewing CVs from sales and marketing personnel, compared to regulatory affairs managers.”

Sam Carter of Harten points out that for career development in sales, medical reps need to ‘carry the bag’ before taking on a more specialist role focussing on key accounts or one specialist product. “In marketing, you might start out in sales or from within another company’s marketing department, but you’ll certainly be within pharma. Knowledge is very important.”

So if you do finally decide to move, should you be working with an executive search firm to find you a new job?

“If you really need to look outside the company,” says Jim Golby, “there is no reason why you shouldn’t approach other companies directly. It’s now much easier now via company web sites.

“There is still a place for better quality recruitment agencies. Select one very carefully – be sure they are really working for you – and certainly don’t throw your CV around to multiple agencies!”

Tarquin Bennett-Coles argues that whether or not you use an agency depends on the seniority of the role that you are looking for. It will also depend if you need to look for a new job or just want to look for a natural progression.

“The more senior you are,” he says, “then the more important it is to have an advocate for you, who will take some of the pressure off you finding a role, who can help keep the process confidential and assist with the negotiations on your behalf.

“A good consultant can be a valuable sounding-board, who will as likely advise against a job that is not right, as advise you to take the one on offer.

“If you have a few trusted sources, then use them. You might want to approach a company you trust and that has positive feedback. You could tell them that you will work with them exclusively if they can find the right job/interview within a month. This will incentivise the consultant to work hard for you up front.

“It is always worth exploring your own options too, but be careful not to advertise you are looking, if you are not ready to go. It is a small industry and people do talk.”

Sam Carter of Harten thinks there are benefits to moving around, at least in the early days of your career: “With both sales and marketing roles at a junior level, it is valuable to move company so you can increase your experience and exposure … and leave your mistakes behind!

“When you are more senior, it is important to stay, building your internal network. However life is never straightforward, and sometimes you need to move, in which case it pays to use a search firm specialising in the pharma industry to help you. In your own role when you need senior staff to join your team, it can save hours of legwork to use an agency, as they are plugged into the industry and have the contacts.”

Ten Tips on how to get ahead

Provide solutions, not problems

Spend ten minutes thinking of possible solutions to a problem before going to your boss. It will impress your boss if you go to them with something not easily solved and then pull the rabbit out of the hat with ways to resolve it.

Go that extra mile

Embrace new challenges as chances to add to your job skills and CV. This is something a boss will take note of and bear in mind when promotions come round.

Explore internal possibilities first

Appraisals and peronal development plan reviews are ideal opportunities to discuss your career prospects and development.

Consider context of your whole career

Will this move help me to the position I might want later?

Select agencies wisely

If you use a recruitment firm, choose an agency which specialises in the pharma industry with a well-established track record.

Communicate openly and honestly

This applies to both the consultant and potential employer, so even if it doesn’t work out, you have left a positive impression for the future. It is afterall a small sector.

Never apologise

An apology could get things off on the wrong foot and might show your weaknesses. Instead, impress your boss with what you have learned: “Perhaps, looking back, I would have…If we were to do this again I would recommend …” and so on.

Create a ‘brag’ file

Material that relates to successes you have had at work and, where appropriate, outside of work.

Manage your career

Add skills and qualifications which will enhance your CV and career.

Use your sales and marketing skills

In an interview, ask probing questions and close the interview with a question like: “Is there anything else you would like to ask me to clarify my suitability for the role?”