Dear Colleagues! This is Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #949 for Pharma Veterans. Pharma Veterans Blogs are published by Asrar Qureshi on its dedicated site https://pharmaveterans.com. Please email to aq.pharmaveterans@gmail.com for publishing your contributions here.
Continued from Previous ……
KK was perplexed but did not dare ask.
After coming back to his own office, KK mulled over the last remarks of the DM. He tried to think as to what could go wrong with his plan but could not find any reason for concern. He thought he had nailed it right and the results shall keep coming.
KK decided that he would not wait for the month to complete to see the results, he would rather monitor it weekly. He called in the SPM and asked him to tell ZMs to send the sales and distributors’ data every Monday. He asked the SPM that the same must be on his table by midday. He felt satisfied. The SPM complied immediately and sent the instructions to all ZMs.
Next Monday, KK waited eagerly since morning to see the results. He barely kept his excitement which had some anxiety also. Around 1.00PM, the SPM put the required information on KK’s table. It showed sales of every area manager, and the stock situation of every distributor. In all, there were fifteen area managers and forty-five distributors, whose sales and stock statements were received on WhatsApp, and printed by the SPM. Area managers sales corroborated with the distributors data. The SPM did not compile any of these and presented as received. KK was somewhat unhappy that he had to see so many papers to know the result, and he showed it also. He dismissed the SPM and said he will review himself.
KK loved data and immersed in it immediately. He made small notes on his pad while going through data. After an hour or so, KK called the SPM and asked him to sit down. “I have analyzed the information, and I am sharing my findings with you to educate you. You should learn to see through the data. Here is my analysis” KK said.
“ZM1 has shown good growth in sales, slightly more than the benchmark. The distributors stocks are within prescribed limits and apparently all looks well. ZM2 is having good progress in three out of seven products, but the rest four are in bad shape. The distributors stocks are over limit. ZM3 did better last month, but his growth has slowed down considerably now. His distributors stocks seem okay. ZM4 is in deep trouble, with low sales and overflowing distributor stocks. ZM5 is barely reaching the target but his distributors are overstocked. ZM6 is doing an awesome job, he should be appreciated. KK sked the SPM to convey his comments to the ZMs and ask the weaker ones to get up and get going.
The SPM called every ZM on phone and conveyed the remarks of the BUM. Despite the last shock, the ZMs were forthcoming. They said that the boys were working very hard but there are real difficulties in the market. The customers were not responding as much and the distributors resented the increase in stock level from 45 to 60 days. They did not want to place new orders accordingly. They agreed that due to low sales, some distributors were overstocked, and it was affecting distributor payments. The SPM felt that they were not in high spirits and did not expect good results. He tried to cheer them up by saying that they were receiving new marketing campaigns which will help them greatly. “Do you think the change of shirt will change the sales picture?”, one ZM quipped. The SPM told KK that he had conveyed his remarks and concerns to ZMs.
Results on next Monday were again mixed. There was some improvement at few places only, the others were struggling. KK again asked the SPM to convey his displeasure.
Third week results picked up a little and KK felt better. At the close of the month, thirteen out of fifteen area managers reported over 90% achievement versus new target, while two lagged at around 70%. The sales growth over last month was barely 7%. Distributor orders were 10% less than last month. KK was somewhat confused with this trend. He spent more time on data and reviewed week-wise sales down to each area manager level. He knew how to read data and he saw some disturbing things. There were spikes in sales in many places, some in third week, and more in the fourth week. It looked like that sales were pushed somehow. He shared his observations with the SPM and asked him to discuss with the ZMs and AMs both. He asked him to dig deeper.
The SPM summed up his findings to KK in this way.
- Most team members were feeling under pressure. They wanted to perform and stay but did not get support from the market.
- The managers felt even more under pressure. They did not relate to the changed strategies at the head office. Being conventional in approach, they could not guide their teams on the new concepts. They demanded results from the team but also sympathized with them.
- ZMs were even more confused. They had been working on a certain pattern for several years. They felt they had a stake in the organization and owned their responsibilities fully. They were willing to change, learn, work differently, but they needed guidance and time.
- The SPM concluded that the head office should take the team in confidence, train them, guide them, and take them together.
KK listened to the SPM summary silently. After the SPM concluded, KK started in a cold tone. “I am here to change this organization for the better. I have been hired to bring change. I don’t have time to teach new tricks to old dogs, I have important work to do. If these guys cannot do it, I can find others who can. Market is filled with better people who would be happy to join our organization. And please do not try to be on their side all the time. It is a defeatist behavior which does not reflect well on you. Please tell them very clearly because when I shall talk to them, it will be the end of it. Try to put better sense into them.”
The SPM returned to his office in a pensive mood. He liked KK for his intelligence, his expertise, and his powerful style. He wanted to work with him and learn from him. At the same time, he didn’t like his attitude of not listening to others. The SPM felt that KK was self-deluded at times, believing in his own self only and doubting all others.
The SPM thought for long, and decided he would try to bridge the gap. He would make the team managers understand the urgency and finality of the matter, and he would offer guidance to them to help them. It would be tricky and risky. He jokingly said to himself, “KK will murder me if he knows about it”. He smiled and thought he would still do it.
From the same evening, the SPM put his plan into action. He called the ZMs after the office hours and talked in some detail. He told them clearly, they would have to do it, and offered to assist them in any way he could.
Not every ZM was comforted with the talk of SPM.
We shall see what happens next in the next blogpost.
To be Concluded……
Disclaimers: KK is a fictional character. All events described in this series of blogposts are also fictional. Any resemblance with anyone will be just a coincidence, not intended.
Pictures in these blogs are taken from free resources at Pexels, Pixabay, Unsplash, and Google. Credit is given where available. If a copyright claim is lodged, we shall remove the picture with appropriate regrets.
For most blogs, I research from several sources which are open to public. Their links are mentioned under references. There is no intention to infringe upon anyone’s copyrights. If, however, it happens unintentionally, I offer my sincere regrets.
