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Wrangling talent
Those of us who have been around for decades never thought we'd see our industry suffer so severely. Budgets have been cut to the bone, staff has been 'right-sized' to a skeleton crew and there are company-wide freezes on hiring. At the same time the bar has been raised on sales quotas and market share targets, we have been told that we need to 'go digital' and engage in closed loop marketing, all the while being mindful of the legal and regulatory boundaries. All this is happening while development on that miracle drug in the pipeline has been halted, and patent expiry is looming on the cash-cow brand.
Over the last year, I have witnessed more than one brand team struggle to keep its collective head above water in the face of increased workloads and the growing expectations being placed on them. The intensified demands and pressures have resulted in an even greater need for external brand management support. So just who can brand teams turn to for effective resources to fill these capacity gaps?
Resources that fall short
Let's start with traditional consultants. Most of us wince at the mere word 'consultant' because it carries the connotation of those people who create dazzling PowerPoint presentations filled with lofty ideas, complicated schematics and the latest buzzwords. Their shiny new ideas are sold in at staggering prices, but often these hit unforeseen roadblocks and you are left alone to drive them to the implementation level, while the consultant is nowhere to be seen. In in his book, Branding only works on cattle, Jonathan Baskin provides a tongue-in-cheek rendition of a branding consultant: "You can't expect results until I've moved on to another branding job, or won a new client who can replace you when you fire me." I think you get the point.
So, what about the huge network-agency-of-record deal your company has in place? Surely it must have the right resources to assist. After all, there is a designated agency for professional promotion, and another for consumer. Then there's the medical education agency, public relations agency, digital agency, and a couple of others who do – well, who knows what exactly. It seems like a logical choice, so you make the call, and soon a robust, fully billable team appears. Before you finish explaining your needs, they assure you they can deliver, then quickly move on to an explanation of the team organogram (which seems to include everyone imaginable) and the blended hourly rate that covers a mix of personnel from junior to senior level involvement. Sometime later that week you receive a brief that truly lives up to the word — a bit more detail about the deliverable would be nice — and, of course, the cost estimate. In the end, the company releases a predictable, off-the-shelf tactic, and the only people who seem to have touched the project (at that blended hourly billable rate) are a mid-level account executive and a junior copywriter. I guess the others were busy working a new business pitch.
Finally, there is that displaced old marketing buddy who is freelancing while hunting for a staff position. He/she is great, focused and committed, until that permanent job offer finally arrives, and then he or she needs to move on.
Who will get the job done?
There is a new emerging breed of strategic service providers. Typically they have worked on both sides of the fence. Most have, at a minimum, spent 20-plus years either working in client-side brand management, in executive level agency positions, or even in vendor-side analytics, or another equally important discipline related to healthcare marketing and commercialisation planning. They are experts at navigating the constant change surrounding all of our brands and our industry, and are out there by choice, not necessity. They are business-savvy entrepreneurs with a solid industry reputation, are characterised by their high energy levels and commitment to quality, actionable deliverables, and importantly, they have a track record of success, both in staff positions and as independents, and can provide credible references and recommendations for both. They have the ability to deliver scalable projects, driven by truly customised teams, as well as work as individuals on projects that are relatively small in scope. They can also quickly mobilise effective, multidisciplinary alliance partners to deliver on larger-scale assignments because they are well networked and know how to build high-performance teams to get the job done. These teams are generally composed of reputable talent to accomplish the project — excess staff are not forced into the project to keep the overall agency or consulting practice highly billable. Most important, these individuals recognise that their success is directly linked to the success of you and your brand. They know their reason for being, ie the delivery of actionable solutions that work. There are no hidden agendas; when you buy their time or commission a project, you get true dedication, focus, and results you can depend on. There is no push to sell in their corporation's business idea du jour.
How do you find them?
Finding these resources is easy. In fact, they are hard to miss. It is very likely that you have already come across them in business-orientated online networks such as LinkedIn; they tend to be highly active members in those types of communities and frequently post and respond to questions — after all, they are mavens at heart. You will also discover them as authors of feature articles in pharma industry trade journals. It is common to find their point of view published because they are so passionate about their ideas. When you are looking for the new breed of healthcare marketing strategic service providers, ask around. The chances are good that someone in your professional circle will be able to put you in touch with one of these individuals as they are extremely well networked.
Where do they fit?
Today's pharma market dynamics demand team structures that are nimble, responsive and highly productive. Depth and breadth of brand management experience is also a key to success. Augmenting team resources with the right outsourced talent — whether they work on or off-site — is rapidly becoming a widely recognised solution.
This new breed of strategic service providers is skilled at jumping into any environment and immediately filling capacity gaps. Brand teams rely on them to support a wide range of activities spanning strategy development, brand plan implementation, creation of communication platforms, market research, and even vendor selection and management. Most often, teams find tremendous value when assigning these individuals to cross-functional support of their brands — helping to ensure synchronisation of activities and alignment of goals.
The ways and reasons for outsourcing specific pharma marketing activities are numerous, but one of its greatest advantages is in allowing staff members to put a higher degree of focus on the key responsibilities assigned to them, thereby reducing the risk that quality may be sacrificed by stretching team members too thin. Outsourcing can provide continuity to the brand team during periods of high employee turnover or reorganisation.
The bottom line
What's in it for you when you partner with the new breed of strategic service providers? Firstly, you acquire the skills of individuals or a customised team that is composed of the right talent to get the job done. These teams are truly dedicated professionals who have the ability to operate at the high-end strategic level, and the willingness to drive ideas down through to implementation. Contracts span only the specific needs of your business and, in general, they are priced competitively because they don't carry the overheads of large consulting firms or network agencies.
It is time for pharma brand teams to critically evaluate how and when to engage these service providers to maximise performance.
Getting it right means getting your job done well, on time, within budget and with a true partner who is with you every step of the way.
The Author
Donna Vetter offers a wide range of marketing and communications services and solutions.
To comment on this article, email pm@pmlive.com
