SALES & MARKETING INSIGHTS Global Outsourcing for Pharmaceutical Sales and Marketing: More Innovation for Less Cost Dharmendra Sahay and Neeraj Vashisht Pharmaceutical company sales and marketing operations groups now support an increasingly diverse sales force and localized marketing plans to help relieve pressures on the bottom line. But these groups are receiving fewer resources to match their increased responsibilities. The result: Many are turning to offshoring and outsourcing which we call global outsourcing that promises lower costs and greater expertise. Not everyone enjoys excellent results. However, many companies are finding that global outsourcing is not an option but a necessity. They need the benefits of global outsourcing but cannot afford the additional costs of a badly designed program. The rewards are tremendous, but so are the risks. This paper outlines key implementation steps for a successful offshore outsourcing program.
Table of Contents More Complexity, Fewer Resources Selecting the Right Business Processes to Outsource and Defining Success Clearly 6 Choosing the Right Operating Model 7 Selecting the Right Partner(s) 9 Establishing SLAs 10 Developing a Transition Strategy 10 Conclusions and Summary ZS Associates
More Complexity, Fewer Resources Issues endemic to the pharmaceutical industry shrinking pipelines, heightened regulatory scrutiny and pressure on pricing are forcing drug companies to consider new ways of doing business. In their quest for efficiency, sales and marketing groups are adopting complex sales models based on local conditions. The implementation of these new selling models requires innovative solutions from sales operations and market analytics groups that typically provide services such as forecasting, sales force strategy, field force alignment, targeting, incentive compensation and reporting, among others. While sales and marketing operations need additional effort and innovation to support their complex selling models, they must do so with fewer resources due to cost-cutting pressures in the industry (Figure 1). Furthermore, many of these support functions require labor-intensive analytical support, which is difficult to sustain when there are constraints on resources. Figure 1. Sales operations and marketing analytics groups are pressured to manage increased complexity while reducing costs. Shrinking pipelines Generic competition Regulatory constraints Pricing pressures MANAGE INCREASED COMPLEXITY REDUCE COSTS, BECOME MORE NIMBLE SALES Localized selling environments More heterogeneity New selling models Changes in data landscape OPS & MARKET Budget restrictions Reduced headcount More expensive talent for higher complexity of work ANALYTICS To help solve this dilemma, companies are taking advantage of offshoring to reduce labor costs. Moreover, they are doing so through RETAIN INTERNAL CAPABILITIES LOOK TO OUTSOURCE third parties because they often lack the scale to build their own platform overseas. We refer to this trend as global outsourcing, as it is different from domestic outsourcing operations or operations that the pharmaceutical company owns and operates offshore. ZS Associates
While global outsourcing plays a critical role in doing more with less, experiences with global outsourcing are varied. Some companies have enjoyed nimble service and lower costs, but others have experienced dissatisfied stakeholders suffering from lower quality and poor responsiveness, and have not realized cost savings. So what separates the successes from failures? In our experience, global outsourcing is most successful when an outsourcing partner s expertise and innovation are combined with the cost savings of a global operation. Not only is it important to outline what makes a global outsourcing operation successful, but doing so requires thoughtful planning, and understanding subtle factors that are critical to success. The Key Factors for Global Outsourcing Success An effective global outsourcing initiative encompasses several key factors, including: 1. Selecting the right business processes to outsource and defining success clearly;. Choosing the right operating model, recognizing that a one-sizefits-all model will not serve different support functions;. Picking a partner or partners who are aligned with the overall scope and objectives of the project;. Establishing an appropriate performance management and tracking process, embodied in service-level agreements (SLAs); and. Developing a workable transition process. Selecting the Right Business Processes to Outsource and Defining Success Clearly It is critical to select the right business processes to outsource. While there are common criteria in outsourcing a business process, some of the criteria are specific to a company s culture and philosophy. Figure illustrates some of these common criteria for deciding whether to outsource a given business function. For instance, when there are peaks and valleys in the workload, a vendor has the flexibility to redeploy resources most efficiently, minimizing costs. (Such tasks are often associated with planning cycles, including sales force resource planning, quota setting and target list updating.) ZS Associates
MARKET ANALYTICS Figure. Process Attributes That Help Companies Determine What to Outsource RETAIN INTERNAL CAPABILITIES Steady workflow demand LOOK TO OUTSOURCE Peaks and valleys in workload Leverage skills and expertise Unique skills and expetise No economy of scale Economy of scale exists Process knowledge is strategic Process knowledge is NOT strategic Process 1: Strong Case for Outsourcing Process : Too Strategic to Outsource? Economies of scale is another reason to outsource, as some areas such as data management, sales reporting and alignment management lend themselves to standardization. Companies may also choose outsourcing to access a unique expertise. However, highly strategic functions may need to be kept in-house, even if they appear to be good outsourcing candidates otherwise. What is considered strategic may be company specific: For example, one company may decide to not outsource its targeting process because it thinks its targeting strategy is a major competitive advantage. Finally, the organization needs to determine its readiness for outsourcing no matter the potential, if a company is not ready for global outsourcing, it may not realize its many benefits. In one example, a company that outsourced its ad hoc analysis and reporting functions did not account for the fact that users were accustomed to having their favorite analysts at their beck and call. So when faced with a structured, outsourced solution that did not have the same level of access, users resisted, and this undermined the operation s success. DIMENSION METRIC PERFORMANCE WEIGHT OVERALL PERFORMANCE ACTION The rationale for outsourcing also varies. For some sales and marketing 9% 60% groups, the key factor may be cost savings while adapting to peaks and! valleys in demand; for others, it may be to improve quality. No penalty As obvious but vendor has to submit a plan as establishing rationales might 10% seem, it is 0% not uncommon 96% to address see organizations fail to clearly define and communicate their outsourcing goals. quality issues Finding consensus for goals and communicating rationales and objectives are vital to ensuring consistency, as well as to ensure that perfor- 98% 0% Actual mance-measurement criteria are defined appropriately. WEIGHT* SCORE** SCORE VENDOR 1 VENDOR ZS Associates Global Has successfully served other clients of similar size and scope Outsourcing Capabilities Has the offshoring capabilities for routine as well as onshore, knowledge-based processes
Figure. Functions Within Sales and Marketing These functions vary in degree of their predictability and the frequency of interaction, which affects the outsourcing model. Global Outsourcing Capabilities Sales and Marketing Choosing Operations the Has demonstrated Right innovation Operating addressing unique sales Model and Experience Cultural It is important to note that functions within sales and marketing operations Alignment include those that are unstructured as well as those that require a Has worked with the organization successfully in the past high degree of personal interaction (Figure ). In addition, the goal for Will have the resources and mindset to stretch if each function may unexpected vary, needs arise whether it is greater cost efficiencies, better quality Long-term and short-term costs or more innovation. This variance necessitates different global outsourcing models. How much effort will your team need to spend when the Predictability of Work Content ROUTINE UNSTRUCTURED LOW TOUCH Has successfully served other clients of similar size and scope Has the offshoring capabilities for routine as well as onshore, knowledge-based processes Has the program-management capabilities, tools and processes for large-scale engagements Has breadth of expertise in different sales and marketing operations functions marketing issues Has the assets in relevant areas for quick setup Exhibits similiar core values, capabilities and professionalism engagement is underway? Are there any exit costs? * 1: Low, : Med, : High ** 1: Poor > : Excellent Data REPORTING & DATA WAREHOUSING TARGETING & ALIGNMENT Traditional offshoring with minimal onshore support Sales Force Strategy Global Outsourcing Capabilities Qualitative & Observational Research INCENTIVES MANAGEMENT WEIGHT* Frequency of Cultural Business Alignment Interactions SCORE** VENDOR 1 Vendor HIGH TOUCH Superlative Threshold Agile SME-based offshoring with sufficient onshore support SCORE VENDOR Sales and Marketing Operations Expertise Vendor 1 Incentive Management Alignment and Targeting Report & DW Other FUNCTIONS Plan Design IC Scorecards Quota Setting 9% User Support Targeting Design! Targeting Reporting Alignment Strategy 10% Alignment Maintenance Standard Reporting Data Warehousing 98% Sales Force Strategy Actual Marketing Mix Allocation Product Performance Tracking Ad Hoc Business Analysis Qualitative & Observational Research PREDICTABILITY OF WORK CONTENT 6 Sales and Has breadth of expertise in different sales and marketing Marketing operations functions ZS Associates Operations Has demonstrated innovation in addressing unique sales and Experience marketing issues Has the assets in relevant areas for quick setup 60% 0% 0% Global Forecasting Has successfully served other clients of similar size and scope Outsourcing Capabilities High Medium Has the offshoring Low capabilities for routine as well as onshore, knowledge-based processes Has the program-management capabilities, tools and processes for large-scale engagements FREQUENCY OF BUSINESS INTERACTIONS No penalty but Traditional vendor Offshore has to submit a plan 96% Agile Offshore to address / Onshore quality issues Onshore WEIGHT* SCORE** SCORE Onshore VENDOR 1 VENDOR Agile Offshore / Onshore SUGGESTED MODEL
Because there are different outsourcing models, choosing the right ones becomes of paramount importance. And it is just as important to understand that the traditional offshoring model which relies upon standardized processes and detailed specifications that enable welldefined work in remote locations may not be universally appropriate. Jobs such as standard report development and production are well suited for traditional offshoring, and in the 1990s they constituted some of the first major offshoring operations. However, sales and marketing support functions often require agile, knowledge-based offshoring capabilities, supplemented by appropriate on-site support. These functions have rapidly changing business conditions, and the work may require specialized subject matter expertise. The goals can be amorphous and the needs dynamic. Some functions also require a high-touch environment with stakeholders. It is worth noting that within a single business function, tasks may vary in their support requirements. For example, within incentive management, tasks such as scorecard generation are suited to traditional offshoring, while other tasks such as quota setting or incentive compensation user support require agile, knowledge-based support (Figure ). In short, the right work model must be assigned to each function. Selecting vendors that apply traditional offshoring models to knowledge-based tasks will result in quality deficiencies, while choosing those that apply the agile model to routine tasks will result in unwarranted complexities and costs. Naturally, that leads to a question and determinant of global outsourcing success: How does a pharmaceutical sales and marketing organization select the right partners? Selecting the Right Partner(s) Companies tend to want fewer, rather than more, global outsourcing partners. While the diverse needs of different business processes may suggest the need for multiple best of breed partners, there are major difficulties in coordinating multiple partners and maintaining clear accountability. As a result, it becomes critical to select partners that have the ability to support multiple business functions. 7 ZS Associates
DIMENSION METRIC PERFORMANCE WEIGHT OVERALL PERFORMANCE ACTION Figure. Partner Evaluation! 9% 9% In evaluating a potential partner s abilities, a company needs submit to consider multiple criteria, such as the potential partner s experience vendor has with to a plan! 10% 0% 96% to address No quality penalty issues but submit a plan 10% large outsourcing engagements, its breadth 0% and depth 96% of expertise, to address its 98% quality issues 0% ability to integrate different types of offshore models and the vendor s Actual overall cost effectiveness. Figure 98% illustrates sample evaluation metrics 0% to evaluate potential partners. Actual 60% Global Has successfully served other clients of similar size and scope Outsourcing WEIGHT* Capabilities Has the offshoring capabilities for routine as well as onshore, Global Has knowledge-based successfully served processes other clients of similar size and scope Outsourcing Has the program-management capabilities, tools and Capabilities Has processes the offshoring for large-scale capabilities engagements for routine as well as onshore, knowledge-based processes Sales and Has breadth of expertise in different sales and marketing Has operations the program-management functions capabilities, tools and Marketing processes for large-scale engagements Operations Has demonstrated innovation in addressing unique sales and Sales Experience and Has marketing breadth issues of expertise in different sales and marketing operations functions Marketing Has the assets in relevant areas for quick setup Operations Has demonstrated innovation in addressing unique sales and Experience marketing issues Cultural Exhibits similiar core values, capabilities and professionalism Has the assets in relevant areas for quick setup Alignment Has worked with the organization successfully in the past Cultural Exhibits similiar core values, capabilities and professionalism Alignment Will have the resources and the mindset to stretch if Has unexpected worked with needs the arise organization successfully in the past Long-term and short-term costs Will have the resources and the mindset to stretch if unexpected needs arise How much effort will your team need to spend when the Long-term engagement and is short-term underway? costs Are there any exit costs? How much effort will your team need to spend when the engagement is underway? * 1: Low, : Med, : High ** 1: Poor > : Excellent Are there any exit costs? 60% WEIGHT* SCORE** VENDOR 1 SCORE** VENDOR 1 No penalty but vendor has to SCORE VENDOR SCORE VENDOR * 1: Low, : Med, : High ** 1: Poor > : Excellent Global Outsourcing Capabilities Global Outsourcing Capabilities Sales and Marketing Operations Expertise Sales and Marketing Operations Expertise Vendor 1 Cultural Alignment Cultural Alignment Vendor Vendor 1 Superlative Vendor Threshold Superlative Threshold Incentive Incentive Management Management FUNCTIONS Plan Design IC Scorecards Plan Design Quota Setting IC Scorecards User Support Quota Setting User Targeting Support Design Targeting Targeting Design Reporting Targeting Alignment Reporting Strategy CONTENT PREDICTABILITY OF WORK CONTENT INTERACTIONS FREQUENCY OF BUSINESS INTERACTIONS Agile SUGGESTED Offshore MODEL / Onshore Agile Agile Offshore Offshore / Onshore / Onshore Agile Traditional Offshore Offshore / Onshore Traditional Agile Offshore Offshore / Onshore 8 ZS Associates Alignment nd rgeting Targeting FUNCTIONS PREDICTABILITY OF WORK FREQUENCY OF BUSINESS SUGGESTED MODEL
Partner evaluation goes beyond a facile inspection: There needs to be a good cultural match between global outsourcing partner and client, which entails similarities in values and responsiveness. In one case of a large outsourcing engagement, the client quickly reacted to the business needs, whereas the vendor had a structured, bureaucratic culture of working within the contractual domain of service-level agreements. Despite the vendor meeting terms of the agreement with the client, its lack of empathy for the client s sense of urgency undermined the service. The bottom half of Figure illustrates how possible partners might be evaluated on key factors. In this example, Vendor 1 may be better at providing a wide spectrum of outsourced business functions, due to its high score on expertise and other dimensions. Vendor would have been a marginally better choice if the engagement included only routine tasks. Establishing SLAs Once a company selects an outsourcing partner during the contracting process, it is important to translate overall engagement objectives into specific and quantifiable goals, whether those goals are cost-reduction targets, quality-improvement measures, cycle time reduction or improved response time. Without specific measurable metrics, anecdotes and bias can skew perceptions of the partner s true performance. Service-level agreements (SLAs) can help avoid such bias. SLAs define measurable goals and track performance, as well as help define appropriate actions when the vendor is not meeting its responsibilities. Figure shows an example of SLA metrics, calculation and reporting on performance. While it is common to include penalties for failing to perform at the expected level, it is also important to include incentives that promote performance. 9 ZS Associates
Figure. SLA Metrics and Evaluation DIMENSION METRIC PERFORMANCE WEIGHT OVERALL PERFORMANCE ACTION Quality Timeliness Number of accurate data items 9% Total data items 8 errors in deliverables! See details % for each delay; +% reward for each early delivery 10% 60% 0% 96% No penalty but vendor has to submit a plan to address quality issues Flexibility % for each scheduled change not implemented +% for each unscheduled change implemented 98% Actual 0% Developing a Transition Strategy Global Outsourcing Capabilities Has successfully served other clients of similar size and scope Finally, a company Has the offshoring that has capabilities decided for routine as to well outsource as onshore, support functions knowledge-based processes must not underestimate Has the program-management the scope capabilities, of management tools and and planning processes for large-scale engagements activities Sales and needed Has breadth for an of expertise effective in different transition. sales and marketing For example, a company operations functions Marketing may Operations prefer to make a quick transition, if keeping employees motivated Has demonstrated innovation in addressing unique sales and Experience marketing issues for an extended period is an issue. Conversely, deliberation may be Has the assets in relevant areas for quick setup more appropriate when a company needs the time to question or Cultural Exhibits similiar core values, capabilities and professionalism improve legacy processes. Alignment Has worked with the organization successfully in the past WEIGHT* Transitions are Will difficult have the resources and and often the mindset pose to stretch personnel if disruptions. It is unexpected needs arise critical to focus on systematic execution and appropriate governance Long-term and short-term costs throughout the process. It pays to heed simple tasks such as creating a How much effort will your team need to spend when the engagement is underway? glossary of terms that are part of an organization s vocabulary, and Are there any exit costs? investing in tools to capture knowledge systematically. The company * 1: Low, : Med, : High ** 1: Poor > : Excellent can establish a transition management office with appropriate executive sponsorship to ensure oversight. Besides ensuring the right level of focus, this office can conduct periodic audits to see if different stakeholders needs are being Global Outsourcing Capabilities met. SCORE** VENDOR 1 SCORE VENDOR Conclusions and Summary Sales and Marketing Operations Expertise While global outsourcing is not a panacea, it can help sales and marketing support organizations do more with less. Properly structured global outsourcing programs can result in lower costs and greater flexibility and innovation. But this requires a structured, step-by-step Vendor 1 approach. Cultural Alignment Vendor Superlative Threshold 10 ZS Associates FUNCTIONS PREDICTABILITY OF WORK CONTENT FREQUENCY OF BUSINESS INTERACTIONS SUGGESTED MODEL
We suggest that executives considering global outsourcing need to have the proper mindset before embarking on a program. They need to reconsider any preconceived notions about outsourcing, shunting a blanket approach that outsources anything and everything in favor of a selective, discriminating view in which certain processes are outsourced and others are not. With well-defined objectives, the right partner and functions, as well as proper measurements of success in the form of SLAs, pharmaceutical companies sales and marketing operations can be more flexible and innovative than before, while also managing costs. Global outsourcing s true benefits may be partially hidden, but they are real, and represent a new opportunity for pharmaceutical companies sales and marketing operations. About the Authors Dharmendra Sahay is the Managing Principal for ZS Associates New York office. He has worked extensively with pharmaceutical companies to outsource and offshore sales and marketing support functions. Dharmendra has a Bachelor of Technology in electrical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, New Dehli, an M.S. in computer science from Northwestern University and an M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Neeraj Vashisht is a Manager in ZS Associates New York office. He has worked extensively with pharmaceutical clients in sales operations and has helped clients build internal capabilities as well as outsourcing and offshore business functions. Neeraj holds an undergraduate degree in engineering from NIT Kurukshetra, India, and an M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. 11 ZS Associates
About ZS Associates ZS Associates is a global management consulting firm specializing in sales and marketing consulting, capability building and outsourcing. The firm has more than 1,000 professionals in 17 offices around the world, and has assisted more than 700 clients in 70 countries. ZS consultants combine deep expertise in sales and marketing with rigorous, fact-based analysis to help business leaders develop and implement effective sales and marketing strategies that measurably improve performance. As the largest global consulting firm focused on sales and marketing, ZS Associates has experience across a broad range of industries, including medical products and services, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, high tech, telecommunications, transportation, consumer products and financial services. For more information on ZS Associates, call +1 87.9.60 or visit www.zsassociates.com. ZS Associates www.zsassociates.com inquiry@zsassociates.com +1 87.9.60 009 ZS Associates, Inc. 06-09 All Rights Reserved All trademarks within this document are either the property of ZS Associates or their licensors.