Pharmaceutical sales: Background check passed + job offer taken away???

[matthewk]

If you were talking to one of the majors, a hiring manager's "recruiters" only job is to interview candidates day in and day out. All candidates pre-qualified candidates get put into a pool by the "recruiters" (this means background checked and fully interviewed). At the end of the recruiting period they pull from the top of the pre-qualified list. Looks come into play.

If you have not been to a pharma sales meeting or conference before, the field sales staff look generally like they were pulled from an Abercrombie and fitch advertisement.

[NYCGP]

All the girls I know that went into Pharm sales were hot dumb sluts..

[boymonkey]

Maybe just a bit too short.

[MTV]

Cause you're white bro

[TSM330i]

I've worked in the pharma industry for 6 years and my wife directly for the big pharma companies for 20 years.

This is NOT a position you want to wait to get into. Big pharma is going by the wayside with the LOE of many very large products.

Everyone wants their cheap generic products and they don't want to pay for new, novel products so the entire industry is hurting. Most major pharma companies are downsizing due to the loss of these large products with nothing to replace sales. It costs about $800 million to $1 billion to develop a new drug along with 10 years. Once it's launched, it doesn't mean it will be successful. The FDA is being very cautious with new products (rightly so) so there aren't a ton of new products coming out.

Teva is the largest generic pharmaceutical company. They make NO money on the generic products. They have a branded product line and that's where they make their money.

Long story short, pharma companies are restructuring all the time and salesforce are usually the first to be cut. Do yourself a favor and get into a different industry.

[talisman311]

My company had a sales meeting at the same time Shionogi had their national sales meeting. OMFG.. I've never seen so many 9s and 10s in one place in my life. Mind == BLOWN! It was amazing.

[Maestro]

something to consider, what is your online activity been like. Many companies are not doing internet background check they try and locate your person facebook or myspace account and see what kinds of things you have done and said. My wife works in the recruiting industry and she knows of a number of times where people did not get hire because of things that was found online about the person.

[MPBK]

Originally Posted by talisman311

My company had a sales meeting at the same time Shionogi had their national sales meeting. OMFG.. I've never seen so many 9s and 10s in one place in my life. Mind == BLOWN! It was amazing.

Serious question...
Are those hot 9s and 10s there just for look and no touch?
Do people really buy a new drug because the salesperson was good looking?
Or is there any hanky panky happy ending after hours?

If having a good looking salesperson is an advantage, why don't we have hot car salesperson? Even though they use a few 6s and 7s for models in car shows, the actual sales person are fat old guys...

Why? Curious minds want to know.

[xerox445]

The drug reps take doctors and staff out to eat and go out to bars "after hours" all the time. If you think the doctors arent banging the hot chicks that are trying to push them to sell their brand of drug, your crazy.

[miiipilot]

My brother and I owned a UPS store a while back in Florida. We had a lot of Pharm reps use us for various reasons. It's 90% female. But both guys and girls were very attractive people. I really think that was a requirement for the job.

[Turkeybaster115]

[MPBK]

Originally Posted by xerox445

The drug reps take doctors and staff out to eat and go out to bars "after hours" all the time. If you think the doctors arent banging the hot chicks that are trying to push them to sell their brand of drug, your crazy.

Originally Posted by miiipilot

My brother and I owned a UPS store a while back in Florida. We had a lot of Pharm reps use us for various reasons. It's 90% female. But both guys and girls were very attractive people. I really think that was a requirement for the job.

This is the kind of response that I was trying to ellicit.
Given the facts above (even if they're annedoctal), would the OP still want to get into pharm sales (read prostitute himself)?
And if yes, given his physical attributes, does OP really think he has a competitive edge?

It was speculated that a "better" candidate showed up at the last minute...
sure, that's often the case. You decide what "better" means.
And BTW, job wasn't taken from you unless they've made an offer. Did they?

[MPBK]

Originally Posted by Turkeybaster115

Good chick flick.
Does a fancy pants pharm sales guy really need a roommate?

[mact3333]

pharma drug reps tend to be female and decent looking...99% of them arent banging the docs...you guys have quite the imagination.

If I was a guy, no way I would go into being a pharma rep...the money is in medical equipment sales...more money and this industry dominated by men.

[Turkeybaster115]

Originally Posted by MPBK

Good chick flick.
Does a fancy pants pharm sales guy really need a roommate?

Well if it's a horny Anne Hathaway, I'd definitely oblige.

[Bobble]

Originally Posted by NYCGP

a small fat man who really knows the product or

Haha that describes me just add old to it. Never hindered me but I'm in IT so we are all that way!

Gotta love the mint flavored shoes comment though. That was funny.

[matthewk]

Originally Posted by MPBK

Serious question...
Are those hot 9s and 10s there just for look and no touch?
Do people really buy a new drug because the salesperson was good looking?
Or is there any hanky panky happy ending after hours?

If having a good looking salesperson is an advantage, why don't we have hot car salesperson? Even though they use a few 6s and 7s for models in car shows, the actual sales person are fat old guys...

Why? Curious minds want to know.

It's all flirt, delivering bagels and looking good. Doctors will take a few extra minutes to talk to someone hot. 50 yr old male doctor going to take a few minutes out of his busy day for a hot busty 20 something or a 5'8" asian guy... It's as simple as that.

[E36graduate]

You need to go above the hiring guy and make some noise...that would show them you are a hunter ! ! Prior to my first interview with a large company for a sales position, I tracked down the President of the Company to agree to sit down with me during my interview process.....go that extra mile that the other salesperson probably wont.

How's your golf game?