Professional Medical Sales Representative - Respiratory, Westrand Jhb at AstraZeneca

What you’ll do?

The successful candidate will be responsible for brand and market share growth within fixed dose combination market . These brands are backed by incredible science that are changing patients lives daily. The candidate will be responsible for calling on HCP’s ( General Practitioners, Pulmonologist, Paediatrics and Specialist Physicians) to educate them on our brand, by servicing their unmet needs while creating positive tension to ensure that the HCP uses the correct treatment option when treating their patients. The candidate will also be responsible for hosting CME’s, roundtable and Dinner meetings within the territory and tracking progress of these meeting by using our CRM platforms. 

Typical accountabilities will include:

• Role model some capabilities core competencies
•  Self-motivation, development & awareness.
•  Shows clear understanding of his / her own strength and areas for development.
•  Sets goals for own personal development.
• Proactively seeks and implements feedback and advice from others.
• Makes observable efforts to bring a positive energy to the team and colleagues.
• Demonstrates an open mind and embraces change.
• Individual& interpersonal effectiveness
• Recognizes and modifies own communication approach when working with colleagues and customers.
• Demonstrates versatility when working with a variety of contacts within the customer organization.
• Works cross-functionally, sharing information that will help address the needs of individual accounts and decision makers.
• Is innovative in the generation of new ideas and solutions to problems.
• Can influence complex decision-making processes.

Selling skills

• Develop a deep understanding of the customer/account.
• Derives insights from understanding how both the wider and local healthcare environment influences decision making.
• Demonstrates an understanding of the patient journey, disease progression and impact upon the patient of different treatment choices.
• Understands and gathers insights regarding the customer’s role in the decision-making unit, their personal style, preferences and situation.
• Can articulate how the call fits within a series of calls to achieve a commercial objective, and captures this in a pre-call plan. Establishes the unmet need.
• Opens the call with impact, articulating the insight for single brand or portfolio in alignment with customer agenda and brand strategy, linking back appropriately to previous calls.
• Establishes and aligns with the customer on an unmet need relating to specific patients or groups of patients.
• Creates positive tension by appropriately challenging customers’ current views based on high levels of insight. Listens and drill down on all feedback.
• Demonstrates active listening skills, to enable greater understanding of the customers values and viewpoints.
• Uses a range of questioning techniques to elicit information relating to the unmet need and treatment options and to maintain positive tension.
• Seeks and confirms partial agreements. Personalizes the message and handles objections.
• Delivers a compelling personalized message to highlight how the clinical benefits of the AZ brand or portfolio will address the unmet need.
• Leverages a high level of brand and disease area knowledge relevant to brand or portfolio.
• Acknowledges, clarifies and handles objections and evaluates the customer’s response (ACHE) closes with actions
• Seeks commitment and actions in line with commercial objectives for single brand or portfolio and with needs of customer and patients.
• Updates appropriate records and profile information and communicates relevant information to cross-functional team.

Results Driven

• Effectively prioritizes accounts using data and tools available.
• Sets SMART customer objectives.
• Effectively determines the key stakeholders in the account.
• Sets SMART account objectives.
• Identifies opportunities and strategies to improve positioning of AZ's specialist portfolio.
• Drives cross-functional and cross-regional collaboration to fully leverage AZ's account management capabilities.
• Shares information, insight and expertise with sales team members.

Drives the Business

• Builds and adapts sales plans to ensure business impact and goal achievement in a timely manner.
• Takes decisions and actions to adapt current approach in response to market changes.
• Seeks to identify opportunities and actions that will help to achieve more strategic objectives.
• Drives sales performance by ensuring sales targets are met or exceeded and budgets are managed.
• Drives successful implementation of key account strategies and business plans.
• Drives a process that pulls on cross-functional resources to deliver the targeted account insight and outcome.

Business Acumen

• Understands the wider business environment and incorporates this into their territory action plans.
• Applies knowledge of business principles e.g. SWOT analysis, to support sales efforts.
• Analyses appropriate internal/external data to develop their sales strategy.
• Positions relevant market access solutions in the context of AZ's value proposition (including where appropriate cost of diagnostic testing).
• Demonstrates detailed knowledge of the issues stakeholders & accounts face with reimbursement and budgeting, in the interconnected specialist ecosystem.

Knowledge: Healthcare Environment

• Shows detailed knowledge of their healthcare ecosystem for their therapeutic area.
• Understand how broader healthcare issues / trends will affect their customer decision making.
• Keeps abreast of the latest developments in the industry and new regulations.
• If appropriate, understands the Diagnostic environment, i.e., companion diagnostics, and potential barriers to effective treatment.

Customer

• Understands the local healthcare environment, patient pathway and individual HCPs role and situation.
• Understands individuals within the decision-making unit and their key drivers and objections.
• Understands customer's personal profile, style and attitude.
• Develops and manages long-term external relationships, focusing on relevant senior stakeholders within high-value accounts.
• Credibly engages influential stakeholders across the broader specialist ecosystem to collaboratively develop win-win-win solutions.
• At private sector may be required to handle basic managed healthcare (medical aid scheme) discussions at the doctor’s practice

Compliance

• Follows correct procedures and SOPs for all activities and planned meetings.
• Behaves in an ethical manner in response to requests or challenging situations.
• Ensures AZ's products meet with national and local guidelines and the product license.
• Ensures compliance with the AZ Code of Conduct, Global External Interactions Policy and Standards, and Privacy Policy and standards.
• Disease, Science, Therapy, Product, & Competitors
• Demonstrates solid scientific and disease area knowledge in their therapeutic area
• Continually builds their scientific and disease area knowledge.
• Possesses detailed knowledge of relevant clinical trials and data.
• Demonstrates extensive understanding of their product portfolio and relevant competitor product.

Essential

• Completed Bachelor’s degree in Health Science
• 3-5 years of Detailing Experience (Calling on Primary Care Physicians (GP’s) and Specialist)
• Established Relationships in the West Rand Area (Scripting GP’s, Medicross, Healthworx, Medical EXP and Intercare)
• Retail Experience (Independent and Corporate Pharmacy) would be
• Willing to travel Twice a Quarter on Country Trip (Klerksdorp, Potchefstroom and Wolmaransstad)
• Experience in conducting /hosting CME’s and Round Table Meetings (NB: CME’s or Round Table Meeting at times will be held after business hours to accommodate the Healthcare Professionals)
• Strong Business Acumen
• Dynamic Individual who is willing to adapt to change. 
• Excellent Planning and Execution Skills
• Excellent Communication Skills