Transferrable Skills

Drawing on her own experience of being downsized, Robyn Thompson reflects on her pharma experience to provide some insight for those who are moving on. With journalism as part of Robyn’s background, we invited her to be a guest contributor to After Pharma.  More articles to come….Let us know what you think!

Transferable Skills

Pharmaceutical sales representatives typically have many common skills and personality characteristics. This isn’t a coincidence.  Rather, it’s a necessity in order to succeed in the job. Most employers would be thrilled to add the abilities and charisma of a pharma rep to their team but they may not connect pharma success to the needs of their industry. Therefore, you need to look at the skills you used to become successful and turn them into transferable qualities you can use in any role.

This way you shift the focus of the interview to personal attributes as opposed to highlighting achievements that may not mean much to someone not familiar with the industry. There are a multitude of transferable skills a pharmaceutical rep may possess but here are a few examples of ways you can leverage yourself: 

1)  Productive Autonomy

What other job can you think of that requires absolutely no supervision? Reps are required to complete their daily tasks and meet sales quotas without someone looking over their shoulder. Being motivated and able to work independently with little to no handholding is a great benefit to a prospective employer.

On the flip side, most reps have a partner, a mirror or a joint venture within their territory. Take for example, setting up CME events, sharing lunches, data and planning meetings for the next fiscal year. Not only can you sell how you can work independently but also that you are able to work as team. Teamwork will inevitably show up on the list of qualities a hiring manager is looking for when interviewing. Keeping that in mind, think of a colleague who would be willing to write a quick letter or email about how you brought value to a team venture.

Pharma reps by default tend to have an outgoing personality. But they also need to be polite, tactful and diplomatic while dealing with medical professionals. In order to get that second appointment you need to be liked and/or respected. Having a reference letter on hand from a physician you have called on for a number of years will show the importance you place on making and maintaining relationships with external and/or internal clients.  

2)  Organization

Organization plays a vital role in the life of a rep. From our daily planners or PDAs to the back seat of our cars, we cannot afford to be disorganized. Reps need to document names, office hours, personalities of doctors, appointments, samples, marketing materials, detail aids, team meetings, CMEs, food allergies, clinical reprints and not to mention the back roads of every city in territory. Leverage this skill to your advantage. Show your prospective employer how you have created zoning schedules, documented important information, call objectives and even bring out your planner to show the variety of balls you need to juggle on a daily basis.  

3)  Communication:

Everyone has a story about how they got into the industry, but there seem to be some similarities.  There is a 99.9% chance your colleague is highly educated with nothing less then a university degree and often times they will have masters or PhD behind their name.  Another connection reps may have is that they started their careers in a different professional industry, such as teaching, business, nursing, journalism or a science related field.  But the biggest common denominator is the ability to communicate.

Reps need to be able to convey features, benefits, clinical data and the latest marketing message in a concise and manageable way.  On top of which, reps need to be able to think quickly on their feet when confronted with a variety of objections.  Regardless of the job, communication skills will always be a highly valued skill.  

4)  Presentation Skills:

Reps need to be able to digest dense and highly specialized technical information while reading data from clinical papers and reviewing the latest sales numbers. Reading comprehension, interpretation of sales figures and having the ability to present information in a logical and coherent way is a profitable expertise.  

Lastly, it could be argued that dressing well isn’t a skill – but it is extremely important. Always clean cut and dressed to the nines, pharmaceutical representatives know how to make a statement and represent their company well with a polished appearance. As the old adage goes, dress for the job you want, not the job you have!