In an industry where the stakes are high and the competition is fierce, the task of fostering impactful engagement and trusted relationships with healthcare professionals (HCPs) has become inherently difficult for sales reps. Performance Development Group (PDG) client, a prominent, multi-billion-dollar global biopharmaceutical company, identified improving HCP interactions as a crucial catalyst for achieving their ambitious goal of increasing revenue by $1.25 billion by 2025.
The biopharma company’s performance challenges were multi-faceted, underscored by the limited facetime of HCPs—a precious commodity given their demanding schedules. Sales reps encountered hurdles in conveying complex clinical information effectively and aligning their messaging with the unique and diverse needs of HCPs. To make things more challenging, the company was facing a new competitor in the market and the launch of an additional indication for their product. Leadership understood the imperative to up their game in these areas to achieve the revenue target by 2025.
They knew that the evolving landscape of life science sales demands not only clinical expertise but a keen ability to engage and communicate in a manner that resonates with time-strapped professionals and places the sales rep in the position of a trusted advisor in the eyes of the HCP.
The client’s goals for the new sales initiative were twofold:
The biopharma company selected PDG as their partner based on their extensive experience in working with life sciences commercial teams and success in solving these types of challenges. The solution leverages a reinforcement-driven program paired with targeted coaching, creating a strong accountability framework that bridges the gap between knowledge and action, leading to measurable improvements in business outcomes.
PDG solution architects evaluated the current state by conducting a holistic assessment of individuals, processes, systems, training content, market research, and technologies used. This thorough analysis was crucial for gaining a deep understanding of the client’s existing infrastructure, industry dynamics, and competitive landscape. Additionally, the team sought to pinpoint knowledge and performance gaps through activities such as ride-alongs, assessments, and surveys. These conversations occurred with individual contributors, sales leaders (from first to third line), and key stakeholders (including marketing). The goal was to elevate HCP engagement and achieve the targeted increase in revenue.
PDG created a Sales Success Roadmap that outlined the:
From here, the PDG team developed a comprehensive Accountability and Measurement Model to measure solution impact. This model targets improvement and change in sales reps’ and sales leaders’ behaviors, fosters a common approach, and enhances the organizational culture to align and support the company’s new goals.
In the sprint that followed, Competitive Readiness: Excellence Essentials the team detailed the learning journey for all levels of the business unit: field force, leaders, and leaders of leaders, ensuring a comprehensive yet distinct approach to knowledge dissemination. Additionally, sales leadership plot their team on a Performance Matrix to establish a baseline for coaching and performance.
“My team is more intentional in the pre-call planning and post-call analysis process… They see value in what they have been doing.” First-line manager
“My team is more intentional in the pre-call planning and post-call analysis process… They see value in what they have been doing.”
The Performance Matrix is a simple framework to help identify the needs and wants of each of your teams members and then support them in getting the very best out of them. The assessment process is comprised of leaders rating/plotting their sales reps for attitude and aptitude on a set of criteria that they deem to be mission-critical.
First- and second-line leaders received feedback from their initial plotting of individual team members on the Performance Matrix. They worked closely with a PDG coach to formulate improvement plans and add an additional layer of accountability.
“It’s powerful to see where my people are on the Performance Matrix. I’ve already made changes on my team.” First-line manager
“It’s powerful to see where my people are on the Performance Matrix. I’ve already made changes on my team.”
As the Growth Hub came to life, it became a dynamic platform for the delivery of essential knowledge. By topic, the team curated a blend of educational elements, ranging from microlearning assets that provided bite-sized knowledge, reinforcement questions that solidified understanding of critical concepts, and practical activities that added a hands-on dimension to the learning process. The synergy of these components was further reinforced through coaching, creating a cohesive learning environment centered on the company’s existing sales model.
Through this solution, the pharma client demonstrated substantial and measurable improvements in HCP engagement and the overall effectiveness of their field force. Additionally, the program serves as a repeatable framework that strengthens the company’s position not just to meet but exceed future revenue targets.
PDG’s multifaceted solution met immediate challenges and created sustainable and impactful transformations across various facets of the organization.
After the first quarter, substantial improvements were noted through leadership observation and field reps’ self-rated assessment (using a 5-point scale, with five being the highest).
Developing an effective pre-call plan
65%
from 2.3 to 3.8
Selling to the HCP Need
30%
from 2.7 to 3.5
Asking Probing Questions
43%
from 2.3 to 3.3
Creating Customer Engagement
57%
from 2.3 to 3.6
96%
from 2.2 to 4.3
62%
from 2.7 to 4.4
82%
from 2.3 to 4.2
63%
from 2.65 to 4.3
In addition, overall knowledge growth after the sprint increased by 15%, with a noteworthy 96% program participation rate.
“I have found the PDG team to be very reliable with their commitments. Access to the team has always been excellent.” Associate Director, Field Sales Strategy & Execution
“I have found the PDG team to be very reliable with their commitments. Access to the team has always been excellent.”
Future Use
PDG’s work with this biopharma client has expanded into two other business units where they are wanting to reinforce the strategy of current indications as well as launch new ones. PDG recently launched a new roadmap for the pharma company, reinforcing the brand strategy and building on the skills gained in the initial program to drive engagement with HCPs while aligning with brand priorities.
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