Medical Representative Profession

Working as a medical representative is a high caliber profession. This position and profession require real coordination between your time and energy. The biggest advantage of this profession is that you are the master of your own career. And you only will decide and deal with it on your own. 

Career Growth for Medical Representatives

“No one starts working as a medical representative to remain a medical representative throughout his life.”

And therefore, timely decision will have a great value towards your career enhancement.  Delayed decisions always lead to dissatisfaction. So, when you are working as a medical representative you must know that after working 3 years even with a successful stint, you are vulnerable at that position.    

Learning from past

You must have noticed earlier there used to be a system in good professional multinational companies that they use to transfer their medical representatives periodically after 2-3 years of services at a headquarter. Although it was not perceived as a good gesture at that time, but if you deeply look into; the job of medical representative is full of challenges and thrills. And with the time period of around three years spent in a market both the things come down.  So basically, the decision used to be for the revival of the same for the position of medical representative. Since at that time not much of the pharmaceutical companies were operating therefore, transfer was the only option available to keep the thrills and challenges alive.  But in today’s scenario as the industry has grown to many folds and plenty of the opportunities are available for career growth, it becomes extremely important to think and plan for your career after completion of successful stint of 3 years in a company.

Planning for career growth

Let us understand the reasons for that.  The first and foremost reason is you must grow in your career in the industry of Pharmaceutical on the basis of time bound shaping up instead of waiting to get considered for promotion. Better will be instead of wish you develop a will for yourself for the higher assignments and promotions.  Just close your eyes and think of a situation that you are working in a company from last 3 years at the same headquarter and tell me what is the thrill and challenge left for you.  Slowly and slowly your job becomes monotonous.  Neither your proposals to your customers are having that energy nor the customers perceive you with that same old warmth. 

Understand the situation

It is not because you are doing something wrong.  But it is because you have missed the track of the profession because of what you joined this profession i.e. doing something better than the monotonous job.  And when you sit and think you realize that after 3 years, the expectations are more from you whereas the inputs are less from your superiors as well as organization.  Quite often you are questioned and compared with the juniors in the meetings.  And you are expected to produce better and better with the same resources. You take it to your heart and become frustrated and forget the fact of this profession because of what you joined it; that is performance-based appraisal. And don’t realize that being a professional you are as good as of your last performance.

To have a deeper understanding of Medical Representative Profession, you can go through the course Know Your Profession

A Caution Note for Medical Representative

The situation comes when your customers limit you for their support and your superiors seek from you the solution and proposals rather than listening to your problems.  And the worst comes when some of your junior gets elevated and you need to report to him. So, don’t you think that there is a time when you should think of yourself to take up higher responsibilities and launch yourself from selling to managing. And on completing 3 successful years that is the time for you. There has to be an evolution of you as a professional.  And whosoever reaches to the top has to go through this process of evolution definitely. Understand the various Stages of Evolution for Pharma Professionals.

Don’t get run out! 

I have noticed that many a times medical representative change the company when encounter such a situation. But do you think this is a solution.  No, it’s not the solution. Rather it’s your unknown effort to allow the issue to grow up and become a problem for your career.  Because after 3 years wherever and whichever company you join the situation will be the same.  And you will have to face the problem of over expectation.  So why not to opt to face the same situation of expectation at a higher position as first line manager. 

Get prepared

We don’t take up this challenge because of fear.  We extend our comfort as a medical representative and in the process to keep 2-3 years comfortable, we sacrifice our career growth. And by the time we realize it is too late. Therefore, I suggest with all my experience that you should not unnecessarily keep waiting for the opportunity to come to you.  Rather you should plan and go out to grab the opportunity in this large industry where the opportunities are galore. And this is the only way to avoid spoiling of your career.  

Take decisions proactively

Please don’t let others to decide your career.  You be the master of your own career and take decisions. Because any one who is working in the same company and same headquarter from last 3 years will agree with me that 4th year is always tougher than the first year even.  So my dear medical representatives if you really regard yourself as a professional and you believe that you joined this industry as a medical representative to have control on your own career instead of waiting for the unwanted eligibilities of service tenure etc; then you should not wait any further on completion of three successful years as a medical representative.

Have Velocity

You must decide your own directions before it is too late. Because it’s very pleasant to hear as to why you are not taking promotion instead listening why you didn’t get promoted. And this will certainly happen if you endlessly keep waiting for your luck. 

To move to the next level of your career this Career Promotion Program can be of great support.

Author: Mahendra S. Bisht