Pharmaceutical Sales Jobs

Although I had always thought about a job in medical science, the idea of marketing only came after a holiday job with a roofing contractor! I was instantly attracted by the challenge of selling. Looking around, I saw the pharmaceutical industry as the ideal arena in which to combine my two interests of medicine and marketing.



I joined a large international company with a breadth of opportunity and a commitment to high quality training. It was also a company that appeared to have a very human face, where people were important. The 'people' aspect of the company was never more evident than in my first few months. Like all new graduates who enter the industry I began with intensive product training before going out on the road......working on my own initiative, but very much part of a team.


On many early sales visits I was accompanied by either my regional sales manager or a field trainer. They provided valuable and practical advice, not least about how to deal with the frustrations as well as the success. Much of my time was spent visiting GP's. Sometimes a difficult task but one that taught me so much about both the tactics of selling and the needs of the medical profession. I had originally set out with the aim to progress quickly from representative to an office based marketing post. My ideas changed, however, as I became more involved in the process of selling. I was working with a great team and excellent products - I won the Top Rep award for 1992 and a promotion too. So I stayed a little longer, preparing myself for a future role with a marketing evening class and other training courses, all fully supported by my company.


Benefits and Incentives
Although a clear career path exists in selling - with marvellous benefits and incentives - I eventually made the move to Head Office with a post as product manager. This involved overseeing the marketing of particular products, with a real breadth of skills required. I needed to supplement my knowledge of selling tactics with a broader strategic view of marketing. I was involved extensively in campaign planning and training. And I needed to understand the complete market range, encompassing both ethical (prescription) and consumer demands. When I first became product manager I was supported by a mentor, a more senior colleague who was there to help when needed. My company recognise that learning never stops. What the company does is make the process easy, by both formal and informal routes. My mentor was a great help to me, as were the numerous courses I attended. In my role as product manager I had to take a longer term view of what amounted to success. It' s only now, some six months after having left the job, that the fruits of my efforts are showing with a 250% increase in sales of a previously slow selling product.


Extensive Multi Tasking
My new post is in product training. This wasn't something that I had originally planned for, but opportunities frequently appear at very short notice. I had previously talked to senior managers concerned with graduate development about-my future aims. It was recognised that this move would increase my skill set. Whereas in marketing, the focus is often very tight, my current job demands extensive multitasking. Organising intensive training for new employees and new products is very demanding. Importantly for me it has broadened my experience and is bringing me face-to-face with new problems....and their solutions!


Support and Reward
The pharmaceutical industry today is truly global; it never stands still, and is also constantly developing within my company' s three divisions there is a wealth of opportunity and within the marketing function one is always at the sharp end. The time I have spent could not have been more exciting, nor more rewarding. Extensive travel, real responsibility and a culture in which you know you will be both supported in, and rewarded for, your ambitions and achievements.


Author: Royce Plc, Knutsford, Kingston, Edinburgh