Valuable Points For Determining If An Account Really Is Key
When a pharmaceutical company says that one of its clients is “key,” what type of criteria is it using to say so? All too often, this prognosis is based on an analysis of financial data alone and as such, it can be said that the entire account management philosophy is based on a poor foundation. Why not look at this from the opposite view, as if you were a designated key account? This client is clearly able to see if the association is based on a dollar value and is not based on strategic importance or the provision of services over and above the standard. It’s not possible to mask the true meaning of the relationship, as designated by the pharmaceutical company, regardless of the levels of interpersonal relationships at the executive levels.
The key client understands why it should be designated as “key,” whether that is purely to do with revenue levels or not or whether, as more likely, it is a product of strategic positioning as well. As such, it will be looking for a special level of attention from the company and an element of leadership in the industry.
A relationship between a company and its client must be a two-way street. Where competition is rife, options are always available and the company must ensure that it is always doing more than could be expected of it. Within the very make up of a company, all staff should be infused with this philosophy, but this can be a difficult position to achieve. A pharmaceutical consulting firm can be worth its weight in gold in these situations. Due to the amount of experience that they have built up, pharmaceutical consultants can be really knowledgeable and can even understand a client’s requirements better than the company itself. Consultants should be engaged to help train staff at all levels, to bring them up to speed with the necessary intricacies of dealing with clients.
A typical client these days is looking for a pro active company engagement, interested in any ways possible to improve a relationship and will be looking for privileged information and data to help them in their day-to-day business. This will not necessarily directly result in an increase in revenues, and if the front-line executives are only motivated by bonuses according to revenue figures, then they may not be correctly incentivised to handle the client the right way.
It is often not as “black-and-white” as this and even the most sophisticated incentivisation scheme employed by the pharmaceutical company can fail to break down the invisible barrier to success. These types of situations call for a lot of experience and a dedicated approach to the handling of each and every key account.
Hidden costs are often involved and the pharmaceutical company must understand that it should be very sparing in its designation of “key” account status. Senior management must be able to read between the lines and see the strategic importance of the relationship, over and above pure revenue and cost line items. These days, pharma consulting firms can help reveal these points of reason and can in certain circumstances help the company to understand that a particular client may not in fact represent the company’s best interests.
Alan Gillies is the Director of L2L Consulting, an elite pharmaceutical consultancy firm which specialises in Strategy Development and Implementation Excellence for prestigious multi-national organisations.
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