Healthy Skepticism Library item: 11605

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: news

Report reveals best-in-class, cross-functional marketing teams
PMLive.com 2007 Sep 28
http://www.pmlive.com/index.cfm?showArticle=1&ArticleID=6038

Full text:

A new Best Practices report reveals how an effective cross-functional team can lay the groundwork for a new pharmaceutical product’s success in the marketplace, both initially and long-term.

Pharma companies say that the various activities of a cross-functional team are responsible for half of a drug’s success, with the other half embedded in the biological attributes of the compound, according to Best Practices, a US-based research and consultancy company.

The report, entitled “Managing Cross-Functional Teams for Pharmaceutical Product Commercialisation Excellence”, reveals the best-in-class practices implemented by leading companies use to establish effective cross-functional teams, such as empowering teams to make key decisions and make teams follow standardised processes.

In the study, companies found benefit in moving various marketing activities up in the development schedule to help understand market needs earlier in the process. A sample of study participants found that teams averaged 0.5 marketing FTEs at pre-clinical, 1.8 marketing FTEs at phase II and 5.6 marketing FTEs at launch.

Study participants included Amgen, Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck and Johnson & Johnson. Findings were based on a two-pronged research approach:
benchmark surveys were performed on more than 49 companies and interviews with directors and managers involved with managing teams across units, functions or countries.