BEST JOBS TO LEAVE PHARMA

If you have left or know anyone that has left this roller coaster industry for equal money / benefits and happier with job , work/ life balance- please share ideas . There has got to be a way to have peace in work, financial balance/ benefits and remove the golden handcuffs attached to this pharma career( because a career it is not!)

 

Medical device sales, home health and hospice sales, chemical sales, bank consulting. There are a ton of jobs that pay what pharmaceutical sales pays and more. You just have to be willing to work and to make a change.

 

good insight. Thanks

 

I opened a non-medical home care company which believe it or not, the pharmaceutical experience was helpful. I owned and operated it for 6 years and then sold it for a nice profit. I now own a dry cleaners. Home care was great and the money was great but it becomes 24/7 once you get a healthy amount of clients. Dry cleaning is much different in that I now have a very set schedule and we don't have client's lives in our hands. I'm actually starting to broker dry cleaners now as well. It is a very simple business to run and it is growing rapidly. Haven't replaced pharma or home care money yet but I see that happening in the near future. I worked with alot of home health and hospice reps when in home care. Those are very tough businesses to market. You will find out just how good of a sales person you are in those industries. Hope this helps someone.

 

I'm not the OP, but I wanted to thank you for a real and sincere post. I try to do that on here, and very feel people do. I appreciate it, and so do others. So thank you.

 

If you don't mind an office environment ( I for one could never go back to that but I know some don't mind) try looking at some of the larger insurance companies and PBMs, i.e., Anthem, UHC, Humana, CVS Caremark, etc. They are obviously disgustingly profitable-- I have a close friend who works in sales for a large payor and he makes significantly more than I do, I am thinking in the 160+ range and he has only been there for 1 year.

 

Where are these jobs posted? Under insurance sales? Medical sales? Thx.

 

Can you help me understand how you got started in dry cleaning business? Franchise, start up cost and any other advice?

I have noticed over the past 20 years there are a lot less dry cleaners out on the market...went out of business. Why did so many of these businesses close? Is there a rebound in the dry cleaning busines today because of not much competition?

 

Dry cleaning went thru a transition due to the 2008 recession. Nobody was going to work so less disposable income and less need for clean work clothes. It has since rebounded some but not to where it was in the 70's and 80's. I'm guessing most of the closures were "drop stores" where clothes are simply dropped off and then sent out to a cleaning plant for processing. With the job market in much better shape, people are going to work again so the demand, at least in my area, is back to a pretty strong level. I actually own a processing plant with a store front and I've found the the biggest selling point is that we do our clothes on site, not sent out to a processor. I have two drop stores within half a mile of me but we have taken quite a bit of their business due to having our own plant. I also get referrals from a couple of drop stores for customers needing same day service that a drop store can't provide. We can provide it so we get those referrals fairly regularly. My store is not a franchise so I own it outright with no royalties or ad funds. You can go the franchise route but you will pay royalties and ad funds on top of rent, which gets expensive. Dry cleaning is pretty fragmented meaning there is no true national player so a national ad fund for dry cleaning doesn't make alot of sense. Tide has gotten in dry cleaning and trying to go national but they cost close to a million dollars to get into. Martinizing is another national brand but again dry cleaning is a pretty local thing. The business is simple. Take in clothes. Clean clothes either thru laundry or dry cleaning, press them and bag them. Return clothes to customer when they pick up. Low payroll, low supply cost. Biggest expense will be your rent depending on where you are located. I found an installer who does turn key packages using green technology and I've actually become a broker for him after running my store for almost a year. His other broker was sending me candidates to tour my store and it was usually there that the deal got closed but the broker was getting paid. I wasn't. So I'm actually brokering stores now and using my store as a showcase. Costs can vary from a basic package of $65,000 for a drop store package to over $600,000 for a huge plant that will support 4 to 5 additional drop stores. There are other lower cost packages in between that will support up to two drop stores which is what I have. Franchises will try to sell you on the support you will receive but my installer provides support along with my solvent supplier and I pay no royalties for this support. I came up with my own name and I market to my local customers. The business really is so simple to run though that after a few months, you will rarely talk to the installer or solvent people any longer as you will have it down. I hope that helps.

 

I lost my job two weeks ago in the big lay off. After more than 10 years with Sanofi, it has been very hard. I'm over 50, so that doesn't help either. There simply are no jobs in my area which pay enough to keep us afloat, and I am finding that age discrimination is alive and well. It is so painful, because we are going to have to sell our house and our young kids will have to switch schools.

 

So sorry to hear you were displaced. However, if you were here for over ten years, then now is not the time to be getting all depressed and down about how hard it is. You have a decent severance package. I worked with several folks that recently left - some displaced and some SERIO. They were all over 50. Half of them already have another position and start March 1st. It’s never easy finding something new and you may have to work a little harder, longer, or smarter than at Sanofi, but opportunities are out there. I can’t feel too badly for you yet, it’s only been 2 weeks. Heck, your severance doesn’t even kick in until Friday. Stop panicking and feeling all down on yourself and apply your skill set. You determine your future. Network, network, network. I hope you find an even better position for you and your family’s future.

 

Those that took the Serio are completely overjoyed to have the opportunity to leave this Shit Show. Those PC1 reps who left last year from this bipolar mind fuck are making more money, in a better head space and many that I know went to opportunities with less benefits (company car, phone, ect). Those that are left behind? Are ready to continue the mind numbing game of endless fake webinars, calls and sample dropping. Now driving to parts of your territory that used to be covered by someone else. Sanofi doesn't give two shits about their Employees. Who is running this show? Reps with cars at 125k miles, unattainable goals because of formulary access, Reps who've left 6 months ago still getting Sanofi paraphernalia like they're employed. HR is a cluster. Hope they were all let go, I actually believe they're 96% responsible for the majority of this mess. Did nothing when reps reached out to you, allowed upper management to strong arm and push around thousands of people with bully like job metrics. A joke, a complete and utter joke Sanofi has been.

 

I was part of a layoff at sanofi a few years ago. I was over 50 at the time with 10 years at sanofi. I had two kids in college and I was scared. I had a short pity-party and then got to work. It was the hardest job I ever had. I looked at opportunities outside the industry and starting my own business. My plan A, however, was to land another job in pharma. Not because I love the industry but because it is what I know and it seemed to be the quickest path to regaining some income.

I never felt I experienced age discrimination but I did experience wage discrimination. It took about two months to develop my interviewing skills. I hadn't used them in over 10 years and the job search market has changed. I went on interviews where I didn't even want the job, just so I could practice.

After four months I landed the job I wanted. Salary and benefits all better than sanofi (except 401k match, but I get options and stock every year).

My advice:
1. Don't panic, get to work. Time is not your friend.
2. Learn how to navigate the online application process and get past the computers.
3. Connect with every pharma recruiter on linked in. They are all interconnected and know where the jobs are.
4. Write down your ideal job (big/small company, PC/specialty, common/rare disease, salary, vacation). When I got the offer, I had two other offers at the same time. By doing this I knew which job I wanted.
5. Be positive and confident in interviews. Don't suck up. State your opinion and defend it. At your age you know what it takes to be successful in this industry and don't need your hand held.

Do the above and you will find a new, better job. It has been wonderful being able to enjoy the holidays without a layoff hanging over my head every year. Not to mention having a manager and leadership team I respect and that respects me.

Good luck!

 

For all the "I hate my pharma sales job" voices out there upon reflection you will see that while agreed the daily duties of what we do may seem stupid, the money, time off, freedom - no cubicle -is tough to beat...

If you want to stay in you better network and connect with the recruiters on LI...Please check out other reps' LI profiles for what to do and Not to (you bet they start sounding all the same....as in "award winning, motivated, experienced rep , blah blah blah..." ) have a simple story profile that stands out and can connect with recruiters or hiring DMs....plenty of Ken and Barbie resumes floating around out there don't be that person....

You got plenty of transferable skills but it will be your toughest sale to date to change career gears (remember , its what's in it for that person hiring you , not about getting you hired...keep it simple and make it easy for someone outside the industry to connect the dots on how you can help Them (not you) make their lives easier and make more money.... you need that elevator pitch for everyone you meet...Telling your neighbor,buddy, golf pal, teller at the bank that your a laid off drug rep will get you a "that's too bad, I don't know of any drug rep jobs" .... telling them what you want to do and your skills might just jingles somebody's brain cell.

Good luck

 

What is your market like? Meaning population , opportunity where you live? As well, what sort of position did you land?

 

I live in the Northeast, but in a rural part of it. 1.5 hours to what most would consider a big city. There are Pharma reps jobs everywhere. I landed a rare disease position with a small to mid size company. The territory is larger than what most pharma reps (in the east) usually have but the leadership and culture at this company are excellent. I got it through a recruiter. I had two other offers in the same week. One was through my network and one was from sending a resume to an on-line job posting. The first one was a contract company (would have paid the bills, but my last choice) and the other was big pharma. I knew I wanted small company/rare disease if I could land it.

Get on Indeed, set up some alerts. I still get emails about opportunities almost everyday from them. Even though I'm happy where I am I continue to look. I promised myself I would never feel as stuck and depressed as I was at sanofi ever again. I know it's a standard line but they did me a huge favor laying me off.

Keep the faith and stay positive. Practice those interviewing skills because they are skills and can be improved. I hope in a year you can look back and say "Thank you sanofi"!

 

I love the real and serious responses on here. And I'm just browsing. I haven't lost faith in this site helping people! I always try to offer real help and advice on here . Even if it is something silly.

We all know that most of these companies (especially Sanofi) don't care about you. But hey, we all need to get by and support our families. So thank you to those being helpful.

 

Long time rep here. Here's my advice. Start your business while working for the company. You can do it!!
I own a couple of laundry shops and a storage center. I love cash businesses with few employees that I can manage on Sanofi's time and gas!! My advice tell NOONE about your business ventures. Also play the silly Sanofi game. Always appear motivated and willing to work with your manager. Give them the metrics they want. Be positive at meetings. When the shit hits the fan you will have something to fall back on. My businesses may me MORE than the Sanofi salary!!