Medical Representatives: Key Responsibilities and Sample Resume. Advantages and disadvantages of the profession

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

On the modern Russian pharmaceutical market today there are qualitative changes, its active growth is observed. Due to the introduction of new production technologies and the promotion of drugs by domestic manufacturers, their own competitiveness increases.

If we characterize the process that is taking place in the market, we can say that small companies are absorbed by larger ones, stronger ones are consolidated and integrated, and there is also an increased interest from foreign organizations.

The simple pharmacy kiosks are being replaced by large pharmacy chains united by one structure, pricing and marketing policies, and centralized management. Very often pharmacy chains have strong wholesalers behind them.

Which professionals are most in demand?

Along with the ongoing changes, the demand for highly qualified professionals who work in the field of marketing andpromotion of various medicines: experts, managers in these areas, marketing and advertising specialists, and so on. Increasingly, there is a need for specialists to conduct clinical trials, as well as registration of medicines. The need for production workers has become greater: first of all, these are pharmacists who control quality and technology. In addition, the level of requirements for the professionalism of personnel is becoming ever higher. The requirements for promotional specialists mainly depend on the group of drugs, as well as on their sales and promotion scheme.

Thus, if a product manager introduces a drug from a pharmacy range to the market, he must be well aware of the specifics of marketing and advertising that will be directed to the target audience, that is, to end consumers. If we talk about the promotion of drugs from the hospital group, which are very expensive and rarely used, then the main attention will be paid to the peculiarities of working with opinion leaders.

Compared to other market sectors, this industry has extraordinary dynamics, high technologies that require a professional to constantly improve their skills.

Drug promoters should be involved in research into distribution opportunities for new medicines, coordinating product research, overseeing initial market positioning, and so on.

There is another profession - medicalrepresentative. Let's talk about it further.

How to become a medical representative?

The most demanded in the labor market today is the profession of "medical representative". Unfortunately, she cannot study at any of the universities. These specialists play a very important role in the promotion of products, and are also the basis of marketing in the pharmacology industry. Because pharmaceutical companies are prohibited from selling products directly to their patients and doctors, and they do not have any rights to use the media, it becomes necessary to use networks of medical representatives in order to work with doctors and medical institutions.

What is a good profession?

It is thanks to medical representatives that the policy of companies that promote drugs is implemented, all information is conveyed to doctors, questions are answered, and consultations are carried out on the use of drugs and their features. After the doctor talks with the medical representative, he can prescribe the drug to the patient, who will definitely come to the pharmacy to buy it, and she, in turn, will place an order with the distributor, who will contact the manufacturer. Understanding how effective the work of medical representatives is can only be done by studying the dynamics of demand over time.

Medical representatives are the faces of companies and naturally they must haveexcellent communication skills, ability to persuade and confidently use active sales technology. But the last requirement is not taken into account very much today. This can be explained by the fact that the need for people with such a profession is constantly growing, and a huge number of people, and even with work experience, simply have nowhere to appear, so any medical representative is trained directly in the company. A resume in front of the device must be filled out in advance to show the employer your achievements or that they are not yet available.

What are the chances of getting a job?

Today, specialists with diplomas from pharmaceutical universities have exactly the same chance of getting a position as a medical representative as doctors. Of course, it is hard not to notice the fact that it is much easier for an already trained specialist to delve into the emerging problems of colleagues, but it is precisely for this reason that employers pay so much attention to the selection and further training that representatives receive. Be sure to study the resume (sample) of a medical representative of other companies, make up your own, and then you will be able to understand whether you are suitable for such a position.

What can be the undoubted benefits?

Of course, a large circle of acquaintances in the professional field is important, which can become your customer base at the very beginning. Every opportunity should be takento expand their own ties with colleagues in other pharmacies of the district or city.

Even not having your own car and driver's license can be a negative point: some companies do not provide transport. Keep in mind that the duties of the medical representative include the following: get up as early as possible and with heavy bags in which a bunch of various brochures, booklets and samples, drive about ten places a day. When traveling by public transport, you are simply wasting time. Therefore, you should find an opportunity and get the necessary training. An excellent book is the Medical Representative's Handbook (Paukov), so you should read it carefully before applying for a job in any organization.

Salary

How much does a medical representative get? Reviews about such work are twofold, but if we talk about wages, then today the labor market is seeing its gradual and steady growth.

A mandatory requirement for working as medical representatives in a foreign company is knowledge of a foreign language, and it is also desirable to have specialized vocabulary.

How to pass an interview?

Before you sign up for an interview, you need to write a good resume, you should follow a few tips that will help you get a job.

First of all, be sure to familiarize yourself with the products of the company where you want to get a job. Find out,Which of the drugs is offered in pharmacies by this particular company. In addition, you can use reference books, which also indicate the entire range.

Be sure to familiarize yourself with the history and traditions of the company. It is always very pleasant to communicate with a person who has specific knowledge. Be sure to show that you are committed to the future work, understand its meaning and are ready to constantly learn.

With so much knowledge, be sure to take a confident attitude with you, which will certainly be one of your main trump cards, and boldly go to an interview with a medical representative.

In-company training

Very often, firms hire newly graduated medical professionals who do not yet have sales experience. The work of a medical representative is aimed primarily at the sale of products. For this reason, one of the components of work with personnel is training, especially since in the current economic situation more funds are allocated for this than before. The thing is that an organization that cares about the future of its staff very often prefers to educate them than bring them in from somewhere.

You should carefully study the "Manual of Medical Representatives" (Spiders), as it describes in detail all the features of this profession.

The task facing the educators is to consolidate the skills of successful communication among medical representatives (how to establish quick and favorable contact, gain the ability tolisten to the interlocutor, explain the benefits, analyze non-verbal signals, publicly present products, and so on).

The theoretical part is reduced to the very minimum, as it very often causes a negative reaction among former doctors. There are several methods for conducting training: group training, psycho-gymnastics, various role-playing games. In principle, the whole technique comes down to minimizing the lecture part and giving preference to the consolidation of skills.

What should a medical representative do?

The main reason why this profession has become very popular is the establishment of an official ban on advertising drugs that are dispensed from pharmacies only on doctor's prescriptions.

The most interesting thing is that doctors, teachers, builders, managers and even actors were previously taken to the position of medical representatives. Only the largest and most successful firms in Western countries adhered to strict requirements.

But business development in our country does not stand still, so today all medical representatives must have either a pharmaceutical or medical education. People with a biological, economic or other education are simply not hired.

The most important responsibility that comes with being a medical representative is to establish contacts with various doctors and their superiors, as well as with heads of departments and pharmacies.

The main goal of their work is to persuade the doctor to prescribe exactly the drug that is being promoted by the representative at the moment.

In addition, medical representatives should also inform doctors and pharmacists about the benefits of the drug being sold, that is, compare it with competitors' drugs, give real expert reviews.

A medical representative is required to improve their knowledge and take part in various symposiums, exhibitions and so on. Employees who sell these over-the-counter drugs are also required to run various promotions and merchandising in pharmacies.

What education is required and what is the career path?

Most citizens do not know how worthy this profession is and whether it is necessary to study it specifically at the university.

Typically, most companies require specialized medical or pharmacological education. Medical professionals, even without work experience, have the opportunity to get a position as a medical representative with a good salary.

Any medical representative of a resume should write one for himself in order to interest the employer. If you are interested in career growth, then be sure to indicate this.

What skills do you need to get a job?

Consider the basic requirements:

- the ability to effectively promote the product;

- the ability to build partnerships with different people;

- successful managementnegotiations;

- possession of effective sales techniques;

- stress management, as well as the ability to plan your day;

- good PC skills;

- knowledge of the medical field.

In general, preference is given to those candidates who have already received education in the main universities of the country. Almost every pharmaceutical company provides training before starting work, as well as the necessary training in order to develop certain qualities in employees.

What personal qualities should a medical representative have?

A very good indicator would be that the candidate has experience in sales, as well as his personal customer base.

If you have more than five years of experience, you can say about the candidate that he is reliable, responsible, and also interested in the common cause of the company he works for.

Medical representatives must be good looking, confident, and have excellent communication skills.

In addition, there must be an optimistic attitude to work, as well as the desire for success and knowledge of all effective sales techniques.

Visits of medical representatives in the organization are accompanied by a competent presentation of drugs. Skills must be developed to such a level that he can easily interest any client.

This should be a smart and erudite person who, from the first phrases, already wants to trust and communicate with him on various topics, since the promotion of medicines requires a certainethics, not spontaneous supply.

Before you get a job, you should look at the resume (sample) of a medical representative and create your own. It's not that hard to do.

Disadvantages of the profession

The shortcomings of this profession are described in great detail in the book "The Guide to the Medical Representative", which was written by Paukov. When applying for a job, a medical representative will face the following disadvantages:

- Difficulty moving up the career ladder. Representatives working in the region make a career with great difficulty. This is due to the very structure of pharmaceutical companies. In large cities, each organization has several groups of representatives, in the leadership of which there are two managers. Each group has about thirty regular members. If a medical representative (it will be Moscow or another city - it doesn’t matter) is going to make a career in the field in question, then he will face huge competition.

- Not always stable income.

- You need to learn a new profession, even if you have a medical degree.

- Always keep up to date with the latest news.

- Very frequent business trips, work outside the office.

- You need to communicate with different people, constantly persuade someone.

Benefits

- You can regulate the intensity of work yourself and determine in which direction to do it.

- Can be combined with the main job and receive additional income.

- Newprofessional prospects.

- For people who love to communicate, there is an opportunity to communicate with a wide range of specialists.

- Good income. On average, the salary of any medical representative is about 30 thousand rubles. In addition, quarterly and monthly additional payments are made in the form of bonuses and bonuses.