The Netherlands - how to reach andaccess your customers most effectively

Frank Dijs National Sales Manager Boehringer Ingelheim, The NetherlandsRob Halkes, consultant health care and pharma business

…,From Sales Force effectiveness to Customer Excellence…

Effective access to your customers

• What impact has the changing health care environment on pharmaceutical companies?

• Is the current sales system based on share of voice the most effective approach?

• Will the sales rep still be the most effective way to engage with costumers in the future?

Change is on the industries agenda (1)

Schering-Plough announced that the company plans to eliminate about 1000 positions, or approximately 20 percent, of its US sales force.

The drug maker stated that it "is changing the organizational structure of its US primary care sales team in order to capture greater efficiencies and better position the field force to meet the needs of customers.“

Source: First Word 1-10-2008

Change is on the industries agenda (2)

Sanofi Avantis cuts 900 jobs

Sanofi-Aventis has announced to cut 900 jobs in France in Sales and Marketing. Due to the growth of generics the income has decreased.

Source: ANP (03-10-2008)

“Downsizing Pfizer is setting the industry's agenda”

After the heady mergers and acquisitions in the pharmaceuticals sector in the 1990s, the latest round of cost cutting announced this week by Pfizer shows bigger is not necessarily better.shows bigger is not necessarily better.

Stephan Danner, a partner at the firm stresses that, until recently, the growth in marketing employees was generating substantial new sales.

"The general trend is towards smaller, higher-paid, more-qualified sales reps marketing speciality drugs

"© Copyright The Financial Times Ltd 2007.

Change is on the industries agenda (3)

Change is on the industries agenda (4)

A report published by leading pension funds warns A report published by leading pension funds warns that fundamental change in the pharmaceutical that fundamental change in the pharmaceutical industry is inevitable to meet society’s changing industry is inevitable to meet society’s changing healthcare expectations. healthcare expectations.

Sponsored by three major Dutch, USA, and UK pension funds – ABP (Netherlands)

The position of the pharmaceutical industry in Dutch Health Care (1)

• Image pharmaceutical industry;

• Declining access to prescribers;

• More and more strict regulation for Farma promotion efforts

• Cost of health care is high on political agenda,

• Pressure on prescribing generics

The position of the pharmaceutical industry in Dutch Health Care (2)

• 2006 Liberalising Healthcare:- More power to payers (as patients’

representative)- More pressure on prescribers to take financial

aspects of medication into concern;- Growing intensity of price regulations

(“Preference Policy”)- More pressure on prescribers to account for Rx

in perspective of protocols (statines).

Result:• Prescriber has to account more for his prescription

policy • Loss of autonomy in prescribing Rx ?

The pharmaceutical Industry

The pharmaceutical Industry

Prescriber has to account more for his prescription policy

• Health care authorities and

price regulations;

• Health Care Insurers;

• Protocols by experts;

• Protocols by local DMU’s;

• GP networks: Associations and

professional groups;

• Patients

• Health care authorities and

price regulations;

• Health Care Insurers;

• Protocols by experts;

• Protocols by local DMU’s;

• GP networks: Associations and

professional groups;

• Patients

Influence the influencerInfluence the influencer

Re-evaluation of sales & promo model

MoreMore influence by: influence by: Less Less influence by:influence by:

Networks/DMU’s are developing into key influence on Rx…..

Pharma needs to know these Networks and what their influence is…

The Dutch Health care system will evolve around (local) DMUs/networks

What is Sales force effectiveness in this changing market?

• Are we still effectively influencing the prescribers choice of RX?

• What risks in effectiveness when detailing is general in target and content?

• How many of the detailing is a loss in time, money and effort?

• Push from the perspective of a product. But what does the customer want?

• The end of general detailing in advanced pharmaceutical markets?

From field force effectiveness to account focus to customer excellence! (1)Slowly moving from:

• Influencing individual customers networks/DMU’s around the customer

• Share of Detail orientated field forces delivering added value to customers and patients

• From pushing products delivering added value to customers and patients

• From targeting approaches based on Rx potential of prescriber targeting of DMU/networks

• From reps working in a territory multidisciplinary team working on an network

From field force effectiveness to account focus to customer excellence! (2)

Slowly moving from:

• From fighting for marketshare creating more potential by development of Health Care quality and thus a growing quantity

• From changing product perspectives a co creationexperience for customers (patients and professionals)

• From Farma time is a burden to general GP time GP and health care centres have frequent health care related contacts (training, case studies, projects and the like)

• Steps in development of marketing strategy: form Product Marketing Services Marketing Co creation experience

From field force effectiveness to account focus to customer excellence! (3)

• By changing product perspectives to co creation experience for customers (professionals) and consumers (patients) we development sustained performance by selected partnership

What is needed?

• Support of HQ: often still focused on share of voice• Organizational structure: flexible and multidisciplinary

teams• Change of paradigm marketing department (form Product

Marketing Services Marketing Co creation experience)

• Competencies of employees: do they match the skills needed for the new approach? Development programs are needed.

• New targeting methods need to be devolved that target networks/DMU’s

• New KPI’s for Sales force effectiveness need to be developed

• Market access of products is secured!- Invest in influencing guidelines- Health economics are getting more and more

important