Focus Magazine - Winter 2015 - (Page 36)

TECHNOLOGY Field Development: 4 Steps to Success ■ By Philip Bedrin T oday, most every life sciences company has made significant investments in field development to increase the overall performance and productivity of their field organization. Why, then, are companies not seeing the results they want and need? What is the missing component? ink of talent development as a car. You can have the best parts on the market - a 12-cylinder engine, adaptive suspension, a cutting-edge transmission, self-parking capability, etc. However, if these parts are not assembled correctly and made to work with one another, the car is not going to run well, if at all. Similarly, many companies have adopted talent development tools and systems that, while in and of themselves might be exceptional, are disconnected from one another and therefore do not produce the desired impact and results. When asked what the biggest pain point is in developing a truly comprehensive talent development strategy, most organizations blame their inability to eﬀectively integrate the various components. In turn, organizations that have been able to re-start and move their talent development initiatives forward have done so by leveraging technology and eﬀectively integrating their "parts." To achieve this, here are four steps to follow: 1. Map Out Your Plan and Understand Your Objectives Step back from the minutia of daily business and analyze from a big picture perspective the specific objectives and priorities you need to address. Is your focus on improving the coaching process? Is your priority increasing competency or proficiency levels across a particular business unit? Are you looking to provide mobile training capabilities linked to continuous development for your field sales force? Is there a need to easily automate and administer learning curricula when onboarding and training new hires? 2. Choose the Right Technology Platform for Optimal Integration Don't get enamored by the technology. e technology should drive your plan and execute against your goals. It's easy to get sidetracked by all of the bells and whistles oﬀered by technology systems today, so you've got to remain focused on your core objectives. For example, if your primary business need is to integrate realtime performance metrics from your CRM system into your new field coaching report form, make certain that you're not being dazzled by yet another system to track product knowledge assessment scores. And remember, your plan probably cannot be executed without upstream involvement. is is the time to generate excitement and to gain buyin. Involve key stakeholders like field leadership, training and development, IT and HR. 3. Implement Strategically to Drive Adoption and Engagement Having an integrated, comprehensive field development solution that works beautifully and cohesively is always the end goal, but to get there successfully, the steps you take along the way 36 FOCUS | WINTER 2015 | www.L-TEN.org http://www.L-TEN.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Focus Magazine - Winter 2015

Focus Magazine
From the President: Put a Bow on It!
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Guest Editor: Mastering Connections of the Construct
Directions: New Year, New Opportunities
Front of the Room: 'Where Is This Going?'
Neuroscience: The Neuroscience of Messaging
Carol Wells: Training's Shining STAR
LTEN Events: Connecting Members
The ACO Opportunity: Defining the Value
Cloud-Based Collaborative Platforms: Raising Productivity
Transformational Leaders: From Fear to Followership
Field Development: 4 Steps to Success
Delivering Messages that Drive Business
Virtual How: The Learning Technology Landscape
Ad Index
Focus Contacts
5 Questions with Thuy and Milo Sindell

Focus Magazine - Winter 2015