Betaseron

True, they needed 12 or they were out

 

I remember that. Some people were cut before they even went to training. Is there a hiring freeze?

 

No hiring freeze. I remember 2014 when the last realignment occurred. They were hiring right up to last minute. A hiring freeze is giving away your hand; upper management is acting as if everything is a go for 2018, including "saving the date" for the January POA. If there's no re-alignment before the POA, that will be the shocker.

 

You're all fine. You'd be surprised how upbeat HO folks are about the brand

 

Please elaborate?

 

Yes

 

Layoffs coming big budget cuts......

 

Please elaborate on budget cuts.

 

Major issues in oncology..we will all pay and reduction of headcount coming.

 

This cash cow has grown old and unfortunately she is being attack by wolves.

 

Yes, Oncology is not doing well. The Monsanto merger isn’t helping either.

 

Are you talking about the TK I side? Xofigo is growing significantly

 

if Oncology is doing well then why is there so much turn over?

 

Ridiculous quotas.

 

And it's turning into nothing but a a primary care gig.

 

i agree. This brand has been declared DOA so many times that it's almost funny, but it just keeps chugging along.

The layoffs in 2014 happened after the managed care fiasco caused the loss of thousands of patients. Do you really expect the company to not lay off some reps when the drug they are selling is NDC-blocked at the biggest PBM's? And the head of managed care went out the door because of that screw-up, so it wasn't without consequences for HO folks.

Now let's realize that it is a VERY mature brand and is not in growth mode. No brand at 20-plus years post-launch is reasonably expected to be a growth brand. With hard work the decay rate of sales can be slowed enough, such that it is still viable to have a sales force. I've sold 20-plus year old brands before and they can be a great niche, particularly for two types of reps: the young rep who is starting out and needs experience -and- the seasoned rep with a 3-5 year time horizon before retirement.

If I was a 15-year rep who needed another 15 years before retirement, kids education costs ahead, etc., I can see why this brand would make you anxious, because there is no other neuro product coming down the pipeline, and a lateral move at Bayer is tough because of the entry barriers to oncology sales. But, everybody knows the score, so if you aren't comfortable with the situation I wouldn't blame you for going to a Biogen or some other mega neurology player.

As for clipping off the low-performing reps, please tell me a company/brand that does not do that....

 

I like Cherry flavored Kool Aid too!
And your favorite flavor of Kool Aid is? Bayer flavor, that’s obvious...

 

Yes, it is hard to believe that sales can drop and still keep the same number of reps.

 

Dear Reps,

I have been on Betaseron for 25 years. I can still work full time. Your drug works. I am also in sales. Here are a couple of ideas. Sell your safety profile and the fact that your drug has been on the market for the longest, no surprises, unlike your competitors.

Dosing schedule. Yes your Sub-q every other day is sometimes a hassel, but the fact that your dosing more often does that equal better efficacy? All I know is that if my neurologist told me that Betaseron has proven safety and the best efficacy, I would stay on it. Your challenge is that she thinks the newer drugs are better. So you need to convince these docs that newer is not always better. You need to be selling safety and efficacy and I think your sales would improve. Anyway, thank you for helping me.

 

WTF? I think we know this. I don’t think you are a patient.