Strategy

Every quarter, pharmaceutical manufacturers confront a dizzying array of price reporting obligations. Participation in the Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans Administration (VA), and Public Health Service (PHS) programs requires manufacturers to collect, organize, distill and manipulate vast quantities of information, and to generate from that data reportable figures that can have an enormous impact on the company's bottom line. It is critical that these figures be correct, not only to help ensure the integrity of these public programs, but because submission of false data to a federal agency is a prosecutable criminal offense, and the civil penalties and exposure can be staggering.

World-class talent seeks its own level, so hiring companies should make sure that those involved in the interviewing process are strong employees who represent the company as leaders in their own rights.

Contrary to myth, Paragraph IV certifications are not reserved only for blockbusters or high-volume primary care products. Three products under recent Paragraph IV challenges had sales of less than $50 million.

For the third year in a row, Abbott Labs has made it into the top 10 companies judged by DiversityInc magazine to have the most diverse workforce. According to DiversityInc co-founder Luke Visconti, that makes Abbott, number five in the ranking, extraordinary. Merck is the only other pharma company to make the cut, but comes in at number 24, and is on a downturn-it was ranked 13 last year.

You can have a biotech company with a great technology base, but if it doesn't have a product in Phase II development, Wall Street won't reward the company by increasing the value of its stock price. When products are valued over technology, there is a higher premium for commercially-focused business leaders.

MVPs go beyond numbers to create extraordinary value for companies and their stockholders. They are the top two to five percent of employees. In other words, if you were to lose 100 people, which two to five would you protect at all costs?

An effective, high-performing alliance can generate a stronger bottom line outcome.

As a reputation driver, ethical behavior has increased steadily in importance over the last three years.

Citing cherry-picked patients, unrealistic dosing, and placebo control, payers will increasingly require that the proof for payment of drugs must come from head-to-head trials.

Sometimes the loss of revenue from a branded drug can outweigh the royalty stream from an authorized generic.