Main Subject - Business

When I commenced my training career in 1980 (with a major manufacturing, distribution and retail tire company, based in Australia) something I read in those early days had a major influence on me and the development of a long term career in this great profession. The three simple, yet profound sentences (wish I had thought them up!) were:

Training accelerates experience

Training is not a spectator sport

Training must be ongoing

Ob

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

viously, since 1980 training has made great progress. However, a well planned training and ongoing staff development program resolves around those three simple sentences, mentioned above.

CASE STUDY: The 'Age' Newspaper, based in Melbourne, Australia. One of the World's TOP newspapers.

My chosen case study relates to a training program designed, developed and delivered within The Age newspaper some years ago. The r

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

eason I go back in time is this - the program has been utilized as a model, over the years, in over 100 newspapers and magazines of various sizes and, where it has received the full support of management, has gained outstanding, measurable outcomes and RESULTS.

The NEW Telemarketing Team

Situation:

The brief was to create an outbound telephone sales team of 60 telemarketers by selecting voluntary c

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

ndidates from within an inbound group of approximately 250 full and part time telephone ad takers.

After extensive internal advertising and many interviews, we gained the princely total of 12 volunteers (two actually quit the program prior to training which indicated to us that we had to go 'off campus' for another 50 starters!).

The support from middle (and some senior) management was negligible and a fair amount of hostility was d

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

isplayed by established staff.

Objectives:

A long term business development goal was established to add $X,000,000,000 to the organization's bottom line results within a three year time frame.

Short term goals included:

Selling new Features, Directories and Guides to business prospects/current non-advertisers on a planned, regular and systematic basis. Our aim was also to cross sell from one Feature/Direc

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

tory/Guide into others, ensuring we gained a permanent slice of their ad budget and they gained results (in advertising, one 'sure fire' way to gain results is by frequency or repetition - the other is the power and clarity of your advertising message).

Protect our consumer or private party advertising base from predator publications. To conduct call campaigns on these advertisers and, if they had not sold their goods, pers

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

ade them to repeat their ad with an enhanced format.

We were also commissioned to conduct specified campaigns (e.g. subscriptions/circulation drives) on behalf of the marketing department.

Recruitment Program:

Since our internal campaign had failed dismally, we had to look outside. This was a blessing as we attracted some very high quality candidates. It also encouraged a few more es

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

tablished internal people to 'give it a go'. These were basically very good people who, perhaps initially, had been put off by intimidation tactics from some of their colleagues.

We recruited in blocks of six (or supplemented internal volunteers to a maximum of six) for each initial training program. When recruiting we looked for:

Communication skills (our initial interviewing was conducted by phone - and voice, manner, per

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

sonality and a positive attitude, were pre-requisites for a face-to-face interview).

Perceived sales skills (e.g. listening, questioning, clarity of presentation, influencing and responding to tough questions).

Basic keyboard skills and the ability to spell (however, our best telemarketer was also our worst speller - so bad, in fact, that it took some dramatic arguing and persuading on my part to get her on board

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

(It was worth the effort.)

Training Program:

Prior to their sales training, they had to undergo four weeks of technical/customer service classroom training and two weeks of on-the-job training. This was conducted in a systematic, methodical manner and, upon completion, they progressed to a sales training program comprising one full week of theory and practical applications.

The sales training pro

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

gram was based on a single outcome: at the end of the week, each person would possess the competency to achieve their sales targets. This would be continually measured.

The program consisted of:

Personal organization/time management
Introduction to decision maker (and getting past the ubiquitous gatekeeper!)
Needs analysis phase: questioning and listening skills
Presenting advertising benefi

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

Gaining commitment/overcoming objections and closing

Copywriting

The training incorporated some lectures, games and simulations, skills practice exercises, case studies and problem solving exercises as well as video presentations/discussion of key points.

At the completion of the training program they were integrated into their team (we built up to five teams, approximately 12 to a te

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

m - including a Team Leader and a Deputy).

This was also the commencement of their on-the-job coaching phase.

Long Term Development Program:

Our ongoing program was broken into the following key result areas:

Coaching - from their team leader and from our appointed coach. This person's role was to reinforce the positive behavior of people and gently bring about change of undesirable behavior.
F

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

urther training sessions - after one month (one full day) and then on a quarterly basis (half to one full day). Methodologies included guest presenters (internal, e.g. the Marketing Manager and external, e.g. representatives from our ad agency), case studies and problem solving exercises, brainstorming exercises, hypotheticals, skills practice exercises, team building exercises, games and some video presentation/key point discussion.

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

This training was on an individual team basis.

Monthly meeting sessions for the entire team involving feedback, short term planning issues, results, forecasts and rewards (from group encouragement, team awards to individual awards covering various categories).

We also conducted an annual (full) team day as well as a monthly social event - usually following the monthly meetings. The annual team day was 100% motiva

t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel

ional in content as were the monthly social events.

Team Leaders received additional training, both internally and externally, including team building, motivation, discipline, feedback and communication skills.

They were also committed to the planning process and, along with the coach, put in a number of hours working on short and long term team/department goals.

Monitoring and Measurement:

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

All measure of results was based on advertising revenue gained for every hour spent in outbound call activity.

Business:Business revenue was far higher on an hourly basis than Business:Consumer. However, this was acceptable as business:consumer calls were also protecting a valuable advertising base.

We established a continuous improvement plan - both within the team and our targeted markets.

Outcomes:

D

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

id the training programs fulfill its intended outcome? Beyond all expectations.

We reached our long term goals in under two years (instead of three, as planned). The teams' revenue contribution grew in leaps and bounds and they were one of the most motivated and dynamic teams I have ever worked with.

It was also my privilege to take over the management role of the team (as well as continue the training) - at the beginning of their s

.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de

cond year of operation. The work we did together, the outcomes achieved and the results gained by this outstanding group of women has enabled me to establish successful models in newspapers and magazines around Australia, as well as lay the foundation for further successful management/staff training and development programs across a wide range of organisations and industries.

What did I learn?

1. Training is INTERACTIVE - people nee

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

d to be involved.

2. Training should be ongoing.

3. Training should be conducted in an environment of open, honest two-way communication..

4. Training should be fun and inspirational.

5. Training MUST be RESULTS FOCUSSED.

6. Training really does accelerate experience, skills development and the acquisition of knowledge.

7. Training should create OPPORTUNITIES for your people to challenge themselves and find out how they can grow

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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Written off as an obsolete company when when a series of negative events created a double-digit profit and sales loss, Martha Stewart's company is now growing at unprecedented rates.

A press release follows a simple and fairly standard form. Those who receive press releases demand simple, straight-forward, and interesting releases and those who deliver such press releases stand the best chance of having their story become published.

It’s one thing for a senior manager to approve story angles for the publicity folks to use in shopping around for print and broadcast placements. Not an especially large amount of managing needed there.

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