Despite huge investments into CRM systems some pharma companies still struggle to get all of their staff to embrace and fully interact with them. Pf’s Iain Bate explores why, and what the future holds for technology in the industry.

There’s no doubt that technological developments have changed the way we live and work from year to year – maybe even from month to month in the 21st Century. But has the world of healthcare been travelling in the slow lane of the intergalactic highway?

The potential that technology offers to pharma, and the general world of healthcare, is enormous. But is the pharmaceutical industry, and its staff in particular, using it to maximise the returns of billion-dollar investments?

It would seem that technology is the ‘buzz word’ on the lips of a few of healthcare’s major players at present. The DH recently invited people to nominate their favourite health-related mobile phone ‘app’ – be it for keeping fit, to locate a hospital or chemist, or helping to manage an illness. Creative minds were also asked to design their own health app with a panel of DH judges deciding on their favourite from the most popular entries.

Health Secretary Andrew Lansley says it’s the Government’s intention to give people better access to information using modern technology and the exercise is a “unique opportunity for the NHS and those who develop apps to not only showcase their work, but to bring to life new ideas and realise true innovation in healthcare”.

As part of the DH’s technology revolution, patients may also soon be offered online consultations with their GPs using programmes such as Skype. Clearly the Government is embracing the convenience technology offers to patients, but are other sectors in healthcare as interested? It would seem there is still some way to go.

 

In two minds

Pf ’s 2010/11 annual Company Perception, Motivation and Satisfaction Survey suggests that not all respondents are completely convinced by the power of technology in the workplace. Although the Survey – which relates to 2010 and the early part of this year – found that nearly 90% of respondents have access to a CRM system, only 43% find time to use it in the field and more than a fifth of people fail to accurately record post-call reports with important clients.

Questions have to be asked as to why, despite multimillion pound investment and training by pharma companies, there remains a percentage of staff that still ignore the power and potential of the technology at their finger tips.

Results from the Survey reveal there’s no difference in uptake by key account managers, primary and secondary care representatives, those in primary care roles only, firstline sales managers and secondline sales managers and the use of CRM technology between differing age groups – although surprisingly 10% of respondents in these positions with less than two years of experience said they did not have a CRM system, compared to just 5% more experienced colleagues.

The launch of the iPad in March 2010 promised to revolutionise the way sales representatives, and those in similar roles, use CRM systems in the field. However, nearly three-quarters (70%) of respondents from the Survey are still presently sent out with laptops containing their customer-relationship systems.

When quizzed on what they’d change about the hardware which houses their system, the majority of respondents said that their CRM was too awkward to carry, with poor running systems an issue and that batteries ran out too quickly. Apple claims its second-generation iPad now enjoys ten hours of use away from a plug socket in the field.

Yet the switch to the latest convenient tablet devices may not necessarily be about high levels of investment, it may be down to maximising value for money as Paul Shawah, Vice President, Multi Channel Strategy, Veeva Systems explains. “I would say the life cycle of devices within the industry is generally about three years, sometimes a little bit longer,” he said. “When a company invests in new technology they typically depreciate that over that period, so they don’t want to replace it in the field for that time to maximise their investment.

“However, with the introduction of game changing technology like the iPad, this has changed. We see a number of our pharmaceutical customers are justifying the business case to move to the iPad even before their tablets are fully depreciated. This speaks to the business benefit that pharma expects to achieve from the iPad and the related applications only available on that device.”

A convenient shield

Despite technology eliminating mundane process in the workplace and offering the potential to assist employees and improve their efficiency at work, it has historically been used as a shield to mask poor performance and abused as a means to waste company time – a recent online survey by AOL found that nearly half of Americans (44.7%) rank surfing the web as their primary activity during the two hours they ‘waste’ each day at work.

But it would seem that a high number of respondents do value the opportunities CRM offers. Almost two-thirds (64%) said they always enter correctly the amount of customer sales they make into their CRM. But 21% admitted they fail to always report face-to-face meetings with clients. More surprisingly, over a fifth of participants said they do not always record the number of products they had sold to clients.

The lack of honest accuracy is surprising considering the amount of time spent using CRM systems each day. A third said they spend between one and two hours a day on their system with a fifth spending three hours or more on their CRM. During their time using the management system, more than half (55%) said that call reporting was the most useful feature.

Although respondents were less impressed with the KAM abilities of their software with only 19% believing it to be the most useful facility. When questioned about what they would change given the chance, 45% said they wanted an improved database, over a quarter (28%) called for their system to be overall more useful, and 18% said they would prefer their CRM to be easier to use.

 

The next level

But what of the future of CRM systems? Will they be easier to use and have improved customer databases? David Round, General Manager, UK, Cegedim Relationship Management, says the regular interaction we now have with technology means we’ve all come to expect the latest developments.

“End users are significantly more ‘technology-savvy’ than their counterparts of even five years ago,” he explained. “If anything, the challenge for companies is to ensure that they provide their end users with the types of technology that they use as consumers. It’s also important to focus on the usability of your software to ensure maximum use. Technology companies – and pharma – must work together to develop a better understanding of the interaction, to ensure it meets users’ needs in the field.”

One main reason that users have become more ‘savvy’ is down to the use and interaction with social media. Whether at home or at work, websites such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and most recently Google+ have driven an increased use of various forms of technology – especially on devices such as smartphones or tablet devices which reps are calling for in the field.

Pharma companies, both in the US and UK, have flirted with the idea of fully embracing the power social media harnesses, but at present are restricted by the PMCPA’s Code of Practice and by the FDA – who has again delayed the publication of its guidance.

The FDA says it is “difficult to provide a timeframe... due to the extensive work and review process, or ‘Good Guidance Practices’, which ensures that FDA’s stakeholders are provided well vetted guidances articulating FDA’s current thinking on a topic”.

Although the FDA may be unsure on how to direct healthcare companies, David Round believes the introduction, both professionally and personally, of social media has had an impact on staff and their expectations.

“For the modern professional person, much of their everyday life is conducted online – for example on shopping, utilities, insurance or booking a holiday – and many users then want the same level of capability from the tools they use in their job,” he added.

Dan Goldsmith, General Manager, Veeva Europe, agrees there has been a significant shift in the way we operate and interact due to our experiences online through tagged posts or hash-tagged searches. But although the 800 million users on Facebook – more than half which ‘log-on’ every day – and 175 million people on Twitter have no problem saying hello to friends, pharma finds it more difficult reaching out to people.

“Social media create a new avenue for healthcare dialogue and will only continue to pervade our lives,” said Dan. “Consequently, I believe that pharma faces two challenges. The first is to decide how to participate in the online dialogue with stakeholders and then to create those interactions through the channels we’re all familiar with, such as Facebook and Twitter.

“The second is to figure out how to leverage the model of social dialogue internally to support stronger collaboration and more focused communication among employees. Already, we see some companies taking advantage of the latest social business tools to connect employees with one another and to access and share information in real time.”

Clearly CRM solution providers understand the potential modern technology and social media platforms offer to companies. Whether pharma and its workforce get fully up to speed on the intergalactic highway sooner or later remains to be seen.

A video clip of a young American woman enabled by the first fully implantable hearing aid to hear her own voice clearly for the first time has become famous online.

Sarah Churman, aged 29, from Texas, was born profoundly deaf and has grown up using external auditory devices to provide partial hearing ability.

The surgical implantation of an Esteem device from Envoy Medical behind each ear resulted in her experiencing much clearer hearing.

Churman’s emotional reaction to her greatly improved hearing was filmed and uploaded to YouTube, where it became a massive hit despite user comments that showed ignorance about her condition.

The Esteem device is the first fully implantable hearing aid, with no microphone or speaker. Based on pacemaker technology, it is implanted under the skin behind the ear. Two leads extend into the middle ear from the device to sense the vibrations of the eardrum and auditory ossicles.

Churman commented that conventional hearing aids had never given her good discrimination of sounds or a sense of their distance: “With my hearing aids everything is jumbled, just white noise.”

Now, she added, voices were clear for the first time: “I could hear my two daughters’ words rather than having to read their lips.” In addition, she said, she was able to hear the sounds of rain, thunder and birdsong.

Each medical device and its implantation would cost nearly £20,000 in the UK, and is not available from the NHS.

Envoy Medical is based in Minnesota, USA.

Oxford, a division of patient lift provider Joerns Healthcare, has launched an online Sling Selector to help healthcare professionals select the best sling option for patients.

The online tool takes account of patient specifics, the transfer task, the safe working load and the lift to be deployed.

The Oxford Sling Selector (pictured) was demonstrated at the National Back Exchange (NBE) Conference and Exhibition 2011 in Hinckley.

The tool comes with an on-screen guide to answer any queries that arise during the selection process. It provides detailed sling information and has an account history to track patient sling usage.

Tom Bulpitt, Marketing Manager for Joerns Healthcare, said: “Selecting the most appropriate sling is crucial since it ensures a safe, dignified and comfortable patient transfer while reducing the risks associated with manual handling.

“The Oxford Sling Selector will be of particular help to those clinicians less familiar with sling equipment such as junior or trainee occupational therapists, physiotherapists and back care advisors.”

During the NBE conference Joerns demonstrated the educational tool on its exhibition stand in the main hall and during an in-depth training workshop.

The Oxford Sling Selector is free to access by all professionals and can be located at its own dedicated website or via the Resources section on the main Joerns UK website.

Oxford is an established supplier of patient handling and rehabilitation products and a division of Joerns Healthcare, an international brand with offices in the UK, the US, Canada and the Netherlands.

A highly-skilled workforce is a must in today’s competitive business environment. But as many companies slash their budgets in the relentless pursuit of efficiencies, is employee training becoming yet another victim of austerity?

Companies that fail to invest in talent will undoubtedly learn the hard way that this is a short cut to failure. Chris Ross presents a crash course in the current market for training and development.

There are mixed views on whether companies’ training and development activities are taking a hit in the current global economy. Recent mid-year analysis in the US revealed that global spend on training this year has been around 7–9% higher than in 2010. But Training 2011, a study by UK market intelligence company Key Note, presents a different trend.

The report estimates that spending on off-the-job training by UK private and public sector employees fell by 3.2% in the year to April 2010 – and that spending on external trainers dropped by around 17% in the same period. The study reports that training investment most likely dropped further by around 2.5% up to April 2011, but forecasts a slight recovery of 1.5% by April 2012. These are worrying times.

Companies are desperately seeking to increase their capabilities as the markets in which they operate are changing; but to drive real growth, continued investment in talent is essential. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) says that whilst organisations will undoubtedly expect people to do more with less, they should not expect employees “to want to do more with less learning and talent development.”

Learning and Talent Development 2011, the CIPD’s annual survey report, revealed that resources and budgets for learning and development had decreased in two-fifths of organisations in the past year, whilst a third of companies had reduced their headcount.

The study showed that although most businesses have a training budget, in most cases these have not only suffered cutbacks, but are also expected to cover a broad range of activities and costs. Unsurprisingly, the majority of budgets cover items such as external courses and conferences (93%), hiring external consultants and trainers (83%) and books/training manuals (81%).

But for two-fifths of the organisations surveyed, the training budget is also expected to cover fixed costs and salaries for in-house trainers. Clearly, the battle to upskill the workforce is being played out in the most testing of circumstances.

 

The employment market

The employment market is certainly creating challenges for employers and candidates alike. Unemployment is rising as organisations continue to reduce their workforces – but those companies that are hiring are finding that many job applicants are not sufficiently skilled and are therefore unsuitable for employment.

Conversely, in a stagnant job market, those who are in employment appear reluctant to move. Talented individuals are staying put. But is enough being done to nurture and develop them? Or are they too likely to stagnate as opportunities fail to emerge?

Likewise, less talented but generally reliable employees –the ‘safe pairs of hands’ that populate every organisation – are in many industries failing to receive adequate skills development, leading to an uncomfortable paradox: they are safe in their roles, but as their markets evolve they are not ‘fit for purpose’ to perform them.

In difficult times, the need for increased investment in human capital is significant. Training and talent development is a major priority for businesses large and small. In a market characterised by growing shareholder expectations and shrinking operational budgets, what are the options for training and developing the workforce?

Learning and Talent Development 2011 says that most companies are continuing the 2010 policy of “switching to more cost-effective development practices”. This has seen organisations reduce their use of external training service providers and instead increase in-house development programmes, internal knowledge-sharing events and coaching by line managers. In addition, the use of e-learning solutions continues to grow.

Technology-led learning tools are becoming increasingly popular across Europe. Training today, training tomorrow, a present-day analysis of learning trends across Europe by Cegos Group, says that uptake of solutions such as ‘serious games’, mobile learning and online learning has grown considerably. This, it says, is driven by an emerging younger demographic in the workplace, and widespread corporate objectives to reduce costs yet maintain productivity.

Learning solutions that are delivered in a medium that is more familiar to this emerging user-group, and that mirror the new “social, global and mobile environment”, are not only easier to integrate into employees’ daily activities, but are also considered more engaging and effective. According to Cegos Group’s 2011 survey, half of those trained in Europe have used informal learning tools such as videoconferencing, wikis, blogs, forums and podcasts.

 

Old school still rules

So the rise of e-based learning solutions is tipped to continue. But, despite rhetoric to the contrary, not at the expense of traditional learning tools. Face-to-face training remains popular – external courses, seminars and conferences continue to play a valuable educational role.

In heavily knowledge-based and technical industries such as life sciences, traditional methodologies remain both popular and effective. In medical markets, despite the obvious growth of e-learning tools, tried-and-tested lecture-style learning still appears to be the preferred option, with many participants choosing it as their favoured route for CPD.

The CIPD study shows that external conferences and events are rated as being among the most effective learning methods for leaders, potential leaders and middle management. Despite this, more than a third of companies (34%) have reduced their use of external events in the past year.

In other areas, classroom-style lectures are being replaced by individual one-to-one sessions that enable more individualised, targeted training. There has been significant growth in activities such as coaching and mentoring, which are being recognised as important tools to encourage individual accountability and nurture talent.

According to the CIPD survey, coaching takes place in more than four-fifths (86%) of companies polled, with its main objectives being to support performance management, prepare people for leadership roles and assist learning and development.

A third of companies employ coaches, while two-fifths hand responsibility for it to line managers. Only one-fifth use external consultants for coaching. Group training – such as team coaching sessions and collaborative workshops – is evolving to become more interactive, customised and flexible – giving facilitators the opportunity to adapt training quickly, based on employee feedback and needs.

 

The need for speed

Speed is emerging as a key consideration in companies’ training and development strategies. Businesses are becoming more impatient. They want their employees to develop quicker and to become more proficient and productive faster than ever before. Such corporate impatience is, in fact, often mirrored by learners themselves. Employees want the fast track to success and, where it exists, will choose the crash course over longer-term learning.

As a result, multimedia and web-based training tools have seen a real surge in uptake. The benefits are clear, but the approach is not without its challenges. The dropout rate in self-monitored online training is apparently high, with too many participants failing to complete courses.

Developers need to work hard to ensure that online courses are engaging and exploit the opportunities for interactivity and connectivity that the medium provides. Critics claim that too many courses appear little more than traditional training manuals that have been uploaded to an online format.

Clearly, as the global business environment continues to evolve in challenging times, training models and methodologies are having to adapt to meet changing needs. The emergence of collaborative, interactive and dynamic learning tools, enabled by rapid advances in technology, have opened up new opportunities for training and development – but it only really completes the circle of learning solutions available to the market.

Training is, after all, demand-driven and should be designed to meet the varying, and often individual, needs and tastes of its end users. As such, training managers should continue to consider the full suite of learning tools open to them – in dialogue with learners and their line managers, to find the most effective solutions to meet organisations’ and individuals’ objectives.

Undoubtedly, however, the biggest demand from a business perspective is to nurture a skilled, talented and engaged workforce. To do this, companies must continue to invest in training and development, rather than chip away at training budgets for short-term efficiency gains.

The potential long-term impact of that approach is a disengaged, unmotivated and unproductive workforce that is not fit for purpose. And that really would be learning the hard way.

Data in this article have been sourced from Learning and Talent Development 2011, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development’s annual survey report. This is available for download from the CIPD website. Training today, training tomorrow, an analysis of learning trends across Europe and global comparisons, is available for download from the Cegos website.

Protests are being planned ahead of the Health and Social Care Bill’s passage through Parliament next week.

UNISON and the BMA are planning to show their opposition to the controversial reforms to coincide with report stage and third reading of the Bill on the 6th and 7th September.

Local events nationwide are planned to coincide with Bill entering the House of Commons with NHS staff and patients set to gather for a candlelit vigil outside Parliament. The BMA is also urging campaigners to take part in online action to email their MP signalling their opposition, and to use Twitter and Facebook to voice their concerns.

BMA Council Chairman, Dr Hamish Meldrum, has also written to all MPs saying the reforms still present an “unacceptably high risk to the NHS” warning them it threatens its ability to operate “effectively and equitably, now and in the future”.

Despite the amendments following recommendations from the NHS Future Forum, the Association still believes the Bill should be withdrawn or be subject to further substantial changes.

In his letter, Dr Meldrum continues to warn of the “inappropriate and misguided reliance on ‘market forces’ to shape services” with the Bill creating “a more central role for choice without a full consideration of the consequences” and the “potential to destabilise local health economies”.

There are several specific areas of concern the BMA has on the Bill including:

• The limit Foundation Trusts (FTs) can generate from private patients
• The proposed ‘Quality Premium’ for commissioners
• Forcing all NHS Trusts to become FTs
• That the Bill reflects an intention that any increase in patients’ choice of providers should not be given a higher priority than tackling health inequalities and promoting integrated care
• Ensuring there is a robust and transparent process which has the full confidence of the profession when it comes to how ‘failing’ FTs are dealt with
• The lack of satisfactory assurance that the Secretary of State will have ultimate responsibility for the provision of a comprehensive health service whilst also allowing other bodies, like the new NHS Board and Clinical Commissioning Groups, day-to-day operational independence.

In a response to the concerns over the responsibility of the Secretary of State, the DH says “the Secretary of State will continue to be responsible - as now - for promoting a comprehensive health service. The NHS will always be available to all, free at the point of use and based on need and not on the ability to pay. To say otherwise is absolute nonsense”.

Google has been fined $500 million by the US government for allowing Canadian pharmacies to advertise unlicensed drugs to American patients.

The charges outlined that the company sold millions of dollars’ worth of Google AdWords to Canadian pharmacies importing drugs from other parts of the world not licensed for use in the US, and could be dangerous.

US Attorney Neronha said the fine was “about taking a significant step forward in limiting the ability of rogue online pharmacies from reaching US consumers”.

The $500 million penalty, said to be one of the largest such fines in American history, was reached by combining Google’s profits made from the AdWords used by the pharmacies, plus gross revenue made in these sales to US consumers.

The fine allows Google to avoid criminal prosecution, but the settlement also details that steps must be taken by Google to avoid such an event in the future.

“It is about holding Google responsible for its conduct by imposing a $500 million forfeiture, the kind of forfeiture that will not only get Google’s attention, but the attention of all those who contribute to America’s pill problem,” Attorney Neronha added.

The US Department of Justice stated that while Canada has its own laws for prescription drugs, these drugs being imported into the US are not always subject to Canadian regulatory authority and could come from anywhere.

The Department of Justice said that Google was aware “as early as 2003” that it was illegal for pharmacies to ship unlicensed prescription drugs into the US from Canada, but had failed to take action.

The Department also stated that from 2003 to 2009, Google provided customer support to some of the advertisers, assisting them in optimising their advertisements.

But in a statement, Google claimed to have previously banned the advertising: “It’s obvious with hindsight that we should not have allowed these ads on Google in the first place”.

Acting Director Martin-Weis of the FDA, who was involved in securing the fine, said: “The result of this investigation has been a fundamental transformation of internet pharmacy advertising practices, significantly limiting promotion to US consumers by rogue online pharmacies”.

 

As an executive searching for jobs online it’s almost a full time job in itself – identifying the right roles for you and which ones you want to be put forward for. Here are some tips to keep you ahead of the game:

 

Know precisely what you are seeking:

The more clear you are on this, the more specific you can be. This will refine your area of search. It also allows you to be smart when looking at a website to see whether the vacancy is the right job, sector and geographic location for you or not. If not, don’t waste your time.

Think about what you really want and the type of role that would work for you. Establish some clear criteria and constraints, such as the number of hours you want to work, how many miles you want to commute and how important bonus, pensions and benefits are to you. There is no point applying for a role that will ultimately clash with all the things you deem important.

Know your specific step by step plan:

Before going online and searching for jobs or filling in application forms, make sure that you have a plan and a focus on what you are looking for and what roles will fit you well. It’s easy once in front of a computer to meander and to lose focus so in order to prevent this make sure you outline your targets and actions before going on to the internet.

Keep track of where you are and how you are doing on your plan. Prioritise the roles you are going for too so that you know which ones are most important to stay on top of.

Do your research thoroughly. The more that you understand about the vacancy and the organisation that is hiring the better. Armed with this information you are in a good position to fill in the online application appropriately.

Less is more when it comes to the number of applications you fill in. Usually we think that the more jobs we apply for the better chance we have of having success, yet it is sometimes actually the other way around. Focusing on doing a few applications really well and making sure that you are genuinely a good fit for them is likely to put you in a much stronger position than applying for anything and everything half-heartedly.

Get on top of your CV:

Prepare two CV documents. You might use a one page overview document that you will attach to each online vacancy and, as described in the previous bullet, cut and paste into the application other relevant information.

Prepare some useful phrases, bullet points and paragraphs on what you want to say in your online application. This is useful because you can cut and paste them from a word document later, to form part of your application.

Agree with one or two people you know that they will be your referee. Make sure that you use referees who will be useful to you – maybe they know the sector and/or the function that you are applying to. The more relevant they are, the more credence can be given to them by the employing organisation. Never use a referee’s name and contact details without first checking with them.

Nisa Chitakasem, is a co-founder of Executive Career Change Specialists Position Ignition, which helps people with their executive career change, job search and career direction.