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Abstract:
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This research identifies a set of key success factors for sales force readiness, for driving
the success of a new product launch within the pharmaceutical industry. Drawing from
the analysis of fifty product launches in the Swedish pharmaceutical market, the study
has succeeded in discriminating between four types of key success factors: the key
factors that are important and crucial for a successful launch; the key factors that are
important yet not necessarily crucial for a successful launch; the market conditions that
are most ideal for a successful launch, and finally the type of newness of the product that
is most suitable for successful launch. The overall aim of the research project was to
provide guidance in optimizing the sales force readiness during the launch of a new
pharmaceutical product. The research question is driven by the great importance and high
cost of the sales force, together with the need for the pharmaceutical companies to
continuously launch new products in a marketplace with increased challenges for all parts
of the business. The research approach divides the research into two main parts. The first
part reviews earlier studies/findings in the literature, collects empirical data in the form of
six case studies and conducts six expert interviews with the purpose of formulating a
Research Model. In the second part, the Research Model and its variables are
quantitatively tested against fifty launched pharmaceutical products in Sweden. The study
employs a bottom-up analysis method with Partial Least Squares Analysis, being
predictive in nature, rather than the more conventional top-down and hypothesis-testing
approach that typically employs regression analysis methods. In order to provide both
practitioners and researchers with guidance on the results, its interpretation is presented
in terms of its managerial implications as well as proposals for further research. |
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