To be able to successfully evolve with the role throughout the product lifecycle, MSLs must focus beyond meeting their short term objectives in the field. MSLs must think strategically about their territories and how to engage with their customers in a way that allows them to maximize their value and create long lasting collaborations in the field. MSLs also need to focus on customer needs first and how to marry those needs with their business priorities.
Change is the only constant, they say, and that is even more true in this industry. Understanding this and being comfortable with change is very important for anyone who wants to be successful in this role. It is important to be able to look ahead and think how will my customers’ needs change next year? How about our business priorities? Thinking ahead will allow the MSL to be better prepared and know how to quickly switch gears when business needs change. In addition, MSLs need to develop a good business acumen to understand how decisions are made and to be strategic in their territories. This will help them better anticipate what is coming ahead.
It is key for the MSL to be able to adapt quickly to the challenges and opportunities that arise as they support a product from one stage to the other. At each of these stages, the business priorities change as do the customer’s needs. To be effective, it is crucial for the MSL to understand these dynamics and adopt their approach as needed.
Copyright 2013-2018 The Medical Science Liaison Society. All rights reserved. The information contained in this article may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without prior written authorization. The MSL Society is a 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization dedicated to advancing the global MSL career.
3 Best Practices for Evolving Field Medical Affairs Teams and Managing Change
By Jennifer Vernazza, Sanofi Genzyme
Ms. Vernazza contributed to this article in her personal capacity. The views expressed are her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Sanofi or Sanofi Genzyme.
Life sciences leaders are scaling medical teams to match the role’s expanded remit – a move that means increasing not only their size, but also their strategic scope. While our industry is making strides in expanding the number of MSLs on the job, more work is needed on the second half of the equation: transforming the role itself and empowering MSLs to thrive in it.
Today’s healthcare landscape is incredibly networked, and HCPs face an acute need for timely answers to more complex scientific questions. Layer on the demands of transitioning to digital, and it is clear that field medical requires a shift in approach. Medical field-based teams should consider new processes enabling MSLs to reach the right stakeholders, quickly tailor engagement, and capture insights for more data-driven strategies. Fueled by a multichannel CRM systems designed for medical affairs, this represents a new way of approaching scientific engagement.
In my last post, I discussed key capabilities the modern MSL needs. But what steps can companies take to move forward, and what does the journey look like?
As Medical teams evolve, they’ve uncovered best practices along the way that have smoothed the path toward thinking and working differently:
Creating a Culture of Change
Successful, strategic organizational change requires a high level of communication (early and often) to all relevant teams. Months before a roll out, start communicating about the change in order to foster high adoption when the system is deployed. Also, recruitment of a strong network of internal change champions is key. Digital-savvy end users not only help design the requirements and customize the build out, but also act as ambassadors for the impending change. They will talk with colleagues about the timeline, the benefits of the change, and what to expect. This way, all stakeholders know exactly who contact with questions and where to get updates.
Data-driven Planning and Engagement
Another success factor in implementing a new CRM is taking full advantage of medical data. With so much valuable information collected, how will it be used effectively to shape medical strategies? Using and analyzing data on customer interests and channel preferences, as well as leveraging reports and dashboards to evaluate performance of team is crucial. Taking hundreds of clinical insights collected in a CRM and performing data mining or text analytics to pull out scientific trends is extremely valuable. When MSLs start seeing this data, and uncovering insights that are immediately actionable, they get excited about building stronger relationships – in turn speeding adoption.
Caption: Leveraging the data in medical CRM, medical affairs teams can get a full picture of KOLs’ scientific interests in order to improve KOL engagement.
Key activity metrics can be viewed to determine resource capacity planning exercises and how to best grow field-based teams. For instance, if data shows MSLs are spending most of their time on internal activities, it signals a fundamental is needed with either team sizing or prioritization. At the end of the day, the value of technology is its ability to contribute meaningfully to business decisions.
The Right Foundation
Another key success factor is ability to maximize technology to achieve medical goals without being burdensome for MSLs. Tool and systems should be as easy as possible for field teams, meaning the system has to work seamlessly from a technical perspective, with short data sync times, and proper alignment of stakeholders into their universe. Because MSLs spend so much time traveling in the field, the system needs to be intuitive – these teams don’t have time to waste figuring out software between meetings with stakeholders.
Beyond usability, it should be easy for MSLs to visualize the healthcare landscape as well as gain deep insight into each stakeholder, directly in their workflow. This level of visibility allows for faster and more strategic pre-call planning, as well as mapping strategies to account-specific objectives. Finally, tools should be easy for MSLs to capture information from interactions, across all channels, and refine engagement based on insights and analytics.
It’s an exciting time to be in medical affairs. Science is advancing every day, and field-based medical teams have the opportunity to make an impact in delivering better healthcare and improving patients’ lives. Realizing this vision means taking a look at how we approach our partnership with healthcare, adapting and growing with the evolution of our industry.
To learn more on the future of field medical affairs, check out the MSL report.
3 Ways to Reimagine KOL Engagement
By Jennifer Vernazza, Sanofi Genzyme
Ms. Vernazza contributed to this article in her personal capacity. The views expressed are her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Sanofi or Sanofi Genzyme.
With medical affairs’ shift to a critical strategic function, the role is seeing tremendous growth – medical science liaison opportunities alone are expected to grow by 20% this year[1]. However, this change also demands new skillsets and competencies. As the HCP-facing branch of medical, field teams are at the forefront. Today’s MSLs are essentially the CEOs of their territory, and a key local resource as the rare disease space continues to grow.
As MSLs roles grow, companies can refine their approach to KOL engagement and MSL enablement and learn new ways to approach some relevant key areas – including the MSL role, digital strategy, and the building blocks of an effective field medical function.
Changing the MSL Role
MSL teams are expanding because they are increasingly relied upon as both the internal and external expert for the diseases they cover. Much of their time is spent working with and training internal sales, marketing and R&D teams on the medical education around these diseases. They can also be responsible for understanding the healthcare landscape, spending hours of prep time researching the publications, recent clinical trials, and scientific interests of key stakeholders. Beyond serving as an internal scientific resource, MSLs can be the voice of the HCP back to the company. This data generation is a unique resource that MSLs can deliver.
Cultivating Digital Savvy
More and more, digital and technology savvy is a core distinguishing factor of an effective MSL. As new tools emerge, such as medical-specific multichannel CRM, eMSL, MSL on-demand, and virtual meetings and events, MSLs are expected to be proficient in these technologies. Moreover, leading MSLs are helping to shape innovative use cases and digital strategy. Reliance on paper-based processes is declining as MSLs start realizing the benefits of leveraging technology to break down silos and improve transparency.
Caption: To meet the expanding demands of KOL engagement, medical affairs departments are rethinking how they engage, their core technologies and processes, and the core competencies of their departments.
Medical affairs will also need to have a more structured approach in planning for KOL engagements, as HCP time is limited and valuable. So leveraging HCP information captured in CRM, along with other external data, is crucial to tailoring communication. For example, we are now leveraging stakeholder data to segment thought leaders in new and different way so that “rising stars” can be identified. This can lead to new relationships that possibly would have been missed entirely.
Additionally, the process of delivering scientific statements will also change as MSLs use iPads and other mobile devices to augment and capture feedback during face-to-face interactions. And even as access challenges proliferate, one can see a counter-trend of HCPs reaching out directly to MSLs, enabled by emerging virtual meeting and MSL on-demand technologies. This requires a mindset shift, but as seen consistently in KOL surveys, timely responses are extremely valuable to HCPs who have to make quick decisions about patient care. Instead of waiting for an MSL to visit, HCPs will more proactively reach out to get information these days – and expect to receive the right answer, regardless of channel.
Finally, the process of reporting back to the company with key field clinical insights and synthesizing these learning will continue to evolve. Integrating field medical-derived insights with data from clinical trials and real-world evidence promises to be very powerful, and will ultimately improve outcomes.
Developing a Strategic Mindset
In addition to a scientific knowledge foundation, the capabilities to look for in MSLs are soft skill focused, such strong business acumen and emotional intelligence, sound judgment, integrity, self-motivation, and learning agility. They must also possess an entrepreneurial spirit and leadership presence, and be able to tell a compelling story with scientific data. MSLs are essentially managing their own territory like a mini-business so need to be able to think creatively, while strictly adhering to compliance guidelines and internal policies.
Within life sciences, strategic development and commercialization cannot fail to account for the value and insight medical affairs delivers. In my next post, I’ll explore how one can design a change management plan, and progress toward a vision of a fully empowered medical affairs function.
To learn how medical teams can leverage scientific insights for better HCP engagement, check out this white paper.
[1] “8 Reasons MSL Opportunities will Grow in 2017,” MSL Society. http://www.smithhanley.com/2016/10/24/8-reasons-msl-opportunities-will-grow-20-2017/
The MSL Society is proud to be recognizing excellence within the MSL profession during our 6th Annual Conference. During the Awards Night Celebration, on September 5th at the Aria Hotel in Las Vegas, we will honor the finalists and as well as the winner of each category.
We will have awards in 6 categories:
MSL of The Year (US)
MSL of The Year (outside the US)
MSL Rookie of The Year (US)
MSL Rookie of The Year (outside the US)
MSL Manager of The Year (US)
MSL Manager of The Year (outside the US)
Join us in the celebration!
Judges
Arthur Chan, PhD, MBA – Executive Director, Head of MSL Capabilities, Novartis
Ralph Rewers, PharmD – US Medical Science Liaison Head, Abbvie
Linda Traylor, PhD – VP, Clinical Development & Medical Affairs, Biodesix
Avery Ince, MD, PhD – US Scientific and Medical Affairs Strategy Lead – Janssen
Davida White, MD – Head Medical Excellence, Indivior
Donna Holder, PharmD – Director, Field Medical Center of Excellence, Merck
In your opinion, how can the maternal wall affect a woman in the MSL profession?
Women in the MSL profession are advanced educated professionals seen as scientific experts in the field of pharmaceuticals. The profession can be challenging at times with busy schedules, travel, meetings and multiple responsibilities. These challenges may make the idea of becoming a working mother seem overwhelming. The transition to motherhood can be one of the greatest joys in one’s life. With that joy may come additional feelings of uncertainty and concerns when returning to work or re-entering the workforce. Maternal stereotyping may trigger assumptions that women are less proficient, less valuable to the organization and not as committed to their role. The image of a mother with caregiving responsibilities may conflict with the image of an “ideal worker”. Gender stereotypes often portray men as strong, ambitious leaders while women are seen as warm and nurturing. When women act in ways that don’t match those biases they are often less accepted. The more we understand this bias and maternal wall, the better we can address and overcome it.
What are 2 ways to overcome the gender bias that exists towards women in the MSL arena?
Overcoming gender bias is multifaceted with deep historical roots. First, it is important to voice your commitment to your role and your career and to work closely with your manager to discuss short and long-term career goals. We also may need to adjust the way we communicate to reflect this commitment. Second, look to your mentors and senior female leaders within the company that have families, they can use their authority to encourage and demonstrate work-life balance. It is also important to see what resources your workplace offers. Many offer pro-parenting groups to foster a sense of community, provide information and support working parents.
Why is this topic important to you and what changes do you hope to see in the future for women in the MSL profession?
This topic is important to me as a woman and as a working mom. I grew up with a hard-working, single mother who worked while pursuing her degree. She was the first person in my family to attend college. She inspired me to follow my dreams and not to let my gender or anything hold me back. I hope to educate other women about their important value to an organization whether they are a mother or not and to encourage them to be advocates for themselves and the MSL profession. “Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead
Copyright 2013-2018 The Medical Science Liaison Society. All rights reserved. The information contained in this article may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without prior written authorization. The MSL Society is a 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization dedicated to advancing the global MSL career.
Why is developing a personal story important to an individual’s MSL Career?
Developing a personal story is a powerful tool on both a personal and professional level. A well-crafted personal story grounds an individual in what’s important, and can serve as a source of reflection and inspiration. A personal story also helps an MSL align their career path with their values and goals.
In your opinion, what are 3 ways an individual can demonstrate the complete package ?
An individual can demonstrate the complete package through self-awareness, self-confidence and authenticity. Individuals who understand how their actions and behaviors affect are respected and trusted. Additionally, having self-confidence exudes leadership and an executive presence. Finally, an individual who displays authenticity is real and genuine.
How can becoming the complete package affect women in the MSL career?
Becoming the complete package is a continual process that takes practice and feedback. Through this process women should learn and grow from their experiences to become their best selves.
Copyright 2013-2018 The Medical Science Liaison Society. All rights reserved. The information contained in this article may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without prior written authorization. The MSL Society is a 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization dedicated to advancing the global MSL career.
