SP was great until.... (finish the sentence)

(Example) the merger with KEY.

 

...Dick Kogan took over as CEO!

 

Exactly right... the beginning of the end.

 

SP was never great. It was just another corrupt pharmaceutical joke. Also, the reps there were average at best.

 

Nailed it! Only question, was it more incompetence or corruption?

 

Arrogance!

 

Ha, ha, ha......

Remember Raul Cesan?

 

Ha ha Remember Ortega?

 

In hindsight, looking at the 90's and how all of the white men did get promoted quickly, even if they were not the best and the brightest, is pretty interesting. Now they are all upper executives and so many of the women who were talented and shining stars are not in pharma anymore. It was a boys club. If I had to do it all over again, I would never have done pharma in my 20's and 30's.

 

Cry me a river, girl!

 

It was corruption. Kogan ran the company into the ground so we then needed saving.

 

Schering deserves to be in the pharma hall of fame. Was hired by a Bayer manager who knew the job, people and how to manage. Worked my tail off because 130% gave the most IC bang for the buck as more was considered "hyper-selling". We truly took undervalued brands, reinvigorated and grew them. After the realignment following the merger with Merck, was the only rep left in the (primary care) territory. Should have realized I was a made man. Should have stayed in that role. Two more years of chilling while the companies completed figuring things out and I would have been given free reign and pick of the litter.

Even the pared down holiday parties and meetings were fun and educational. Felt valued and motivated to align with the mission and to continuous improvement. Prepped for the merger by getting along with my Merck counterparts. Once at Merck also absolutely loved the culture. So many resources. Even took advantage of the free PTO days for volunteering. Took a lot of pride that I was representing Merck. As a young kid though, I had to go for the free specialty promotion to the train wreck of the Saphris team led by Buckeye Joe.

Fred Hassan addressed the Saphris team during the launch meeting and we were amped. He mentioned that at a recent conference he sat next to our friend "Steve Nissen". I was the first to start booing. Then the whole auditorium joined in on the fun loudly booing, snickering and jeering. We loved our Schering-Plough and Schering-Plough loved us. Fred left to a roaring applause. Never experienced such a great corporate culture since.

The Saphris team was a mess. Wanted out. Wasn't paying attention. Got tricked into joining a company of traumatized Pfizer cast offs and big pharma rejects. Thought I would be given the oppotunity to lead and build. Walked in to a circus. Prior to that, led a very posh life. Truly believed that was the norm if you just worked to get along with others and did your job. After MSD things were never the same. The combined company was truly the best of the best. Thought I can fix any situation but found that there was a reason that people didn't make the cut at Schering and Merck. They simply were subpar and broken.

Sometimes wish I stayed in pharma so that I could have elevated that industry. Ultimately though I moved on to laboratory. Where I belong. People are solid. Of course some shit makes it through to fill vacancies. Companies are solid. Make true business partnerships with the companies that you only see on the back of your vouchers: Cardinal, McKesson, you name it. Still get to call on doctors but not in that beggar type pharma way. No monthly ride alongs and no idiotic pod mates. Gosh, even oncology is glorified primary care with like five to a territory. Embarassing.

The cream always rises to the top. Will never forget the parting words of my trainer at ITC. "All you have to do is show up for work and you will be surprised at the results." Still applies to this day.

Just felt like taking a trip down memory lane. Thanks for joining. That was fun. #scheringforever

 

OMG! What a stupid post. Remembering the "old days" is such a waste of time and is the province of LOSERS like you.

 

Whatever it takes to stop you from putting a bullet in your head.

Truly a special time not just for Schering but for America. A time of bliss those that have passed after me may see through YouTube but never experience.

Nice caps. Go Ovi!

 

...until no one prepared for when Claritin went generic.

 

I agree with the Claritin post, and to respond to the earlier post regarding Merck culture being great. Holy hell, what a train wreck Merck was. Worst 4 years of my life.

 

SP was never great. It was a loser and it needed Merck to buy it out and get rid of the sub-par management.