IPhO News

Company and Department: Novartis Drug Safety and Epidemiology
Current Role: Drug Safety Specialist
Alma Mater: Rutgers University, Class of 2014

My industry journey started like many during my rotational experiences, but even prior to that my decision to become actively involved in student organizations enabled me to gain key insights into leadership that paved the way for me to become a successful professional upon graduation. Serving in various e-board positions and planning committee events helped me gain experience and grow as a young professional.

As a Chair and Advisor to the SNPhA Operation Immunization initiative, I developed skills such as problem solving, collaboration, and flexibility. As Public Relations Chair and Vice President of a new student organization on campus, ACCP, I learned the importance of perseverance, time management, and most importantly networking, which has continued to pay significant dividends at each step along the way so far.

FellowMatch powered by IPhO, a new tool for Fellowship sponsors to engage interested candidates, is available NOW!

Please visit here to learn more: http://www.industrypharmacist.org/fm_landing.php Several companies have already posted positions to be considered by the IPhO Student Network of over 1,000 students.

IPhO already has 12 very active student IPhO Chapters. Free to participating Felowship sponsors this year, FellowMatch is designed to match Fellowship Sponsors with Fellowship Candidates.

Sponsors can post open Fellowship positions through FellowMatch on the IPhO website, and any IPhO Student National Member will be able to submit requested materials describing their candidacy. FellowMatch serves as an advanced candidate screening tool for participating entities, helps students identify career opportunities of interest, and should help make existing interviewing and selection processes even more productive.

Questions? Email us using our contact form here or visit FAQs for FellowMatch, powered by IPhO here: http://www.industrypharmacist.org/fm_landing.php

Please spread the word to anyone who you think could benefit from this new service. Good luck to all who are "Matching!"

Company and Department: Seattle Genetics, Sales
Current Role: Senior Oncology Account Manager, Miami and Puerto Rico
Alma Mater: Rutgers University, Class of 2009

Early on as a student pharmacist, the ability to blend science and business attracted me towards a career in the pharmaceutical industry. During my time at Rutgers I pursued this interest by taking every opportunity I had to gain exposure to the industry and connect with professionals who had chosen this career path. As my days as a student neared an end, I felt I had put myself in a good position to hit the ground running after school as a freshly minted industry pharmacist.

Unfortunately, I initially was not able to obtain any industry fellowship or full time offers as the competition had reached such a high level. I found myself approaching graduation with more uncertainty than ever regarding where I would start my professional career. Nonetheless, I continued to leverage my network and kept looking for industry opportunities. A month later, a friend alerted me to a brand new Drug Safety & Surveillance Fellowship at J&J. I jumped on this late breaking fellowship opportunity and ultimately was extended an offer which I gladly accepted.

Company and Department: Novo Nordisk, Diabetes Field Medical Affairs
Current Role: Medical Liaison
Alma Maters: University of Minnesota, Class of 1994 (PharmD) and Arizona State University, Class of 2003 (MBA)

My path to the pharmaceutical industry demonstrates that you can arrive at your destination by taking different routes, and by traveling at different speeds.

Like many young adults, I changed my original major after my freshman year (from engineering to pharmacy) at the University of Minnesota. At that point in my pharmacy education, the biggest decision that my classmates and I faced was whether to obtain a Bachelor of Science or Doctor of Pharmacy degree. I decided to pursue a PharmD, which required one additional year. I graduated in 1994 and elected not to pursue a residency or fellowship which were not emphasized at that time.

Consumer research has consistently shown that pharmacists are one of the most trusted healthcare professionals. This applies to the traditional professional practices known to consumers and to other healthcare professionals such as community, hospital, and consultant pharmacy. However, the supply and demand of pharmacists in these traditional settings has fluctuated greatly in recent years, and lately it has been more difficult to find the right position upon graduation.

This is one of the reasons pharmacists are increasingly looking towards opportunities outside traditional pharmacy practice, such as those offered within the pharmaceutical industry. The newly licensed PharmD is considered a medication expert, having extensively studied pharmacology, pharmaceutics, and biochemistry in addition to rotating through clinical and community settings to provide direct patient care services and perform drug utilization and drug information reviews. Pharmacists can also apply their skills in the pharmaceutical industry setting, especially as companies gravitate towards more complex specialty medicines that require a higher level of sophistication from their professional employees. Just as other industries have turned toward professionals with a high level of technical expertise, the pharmaceutical sector may significantly benefit if they turn to pharmacy graduates to handle many departmental responsibilities.

In addition, the opportunity exists for pharmacy graduates to benefit pharmaceutical industry employers in other ways, including the opportunity to elevate their corporate image with consumers, healthcare providers, and health insurers.

Based upon this opportunity for pharmacy graduates and the pharmaceutical industry, the IPhO National Fellows Council is sponsoring the VIP Advocacy Challenge. This challenge goes out to all of the IPhO Student Chapters nationally, as an opportunity to increase the awareness and recognition among healthcare consumers, providers, payers, and industry employers of the critical contributions that pharmacy graduates are making within the pharmaceutical industry. Each IPhO chapter is being invited to develop an outreach platform that advocates for the contributions and benefits that industry pharmacists have in supporting the role of industry in improving patients’ quality of life.

The invitation of the VIP Advocacy Challenge has just recently been sent out to all IPhO Student Chapters and applications are to be completed by October 10, 2014. After application submission, feedback and support will be provided to chapters by the INFC, in order to ensure the success of student chapters’ projects and align challenge ideas with the goals of this advocacy challenge and the IPhO mission. Chapters will then have the opportunity to execute the project by March 15, 2015.

Student chapters will be eligible for recognition from the INFC and IPhO leadership team with participation in this challenge. One of the many benefits of this initiative will be the close collaboration between the INFC and each of the IPhO Student Chapters.

Authored By: Jonathan Douek, IPhO Student Pharmacist Intern and Temple PharmD Candidate 2017

Mary Alice Dwyer, PharmD, Vice President, Global Medical Excellence & Medical Affairs, AstraZeneca, Michael Toscani, PharmD, Rutgers Institute for Pharmaceutical Industry Fellowships, and Jack Bradley, PharmD, JD, Medical Director North America, Sobi, Inc., discuss the topic, "The impact of changing companies after a brief period of time."

Jill DeSimone, RPh, Head, US Oncology Commercial Unit, Merck, and Jack Bradley, PharmD, JD, Medical Director North America, Sobi, Inc., discuss "How can IPhO work with its constituents to advance the careers of industry pharmacists?"

Leadership Opportunities For Industry Pharmacists: Irene Laurora, PharmD, VP Global Medical Affairs, Bayer Healthcare, Katie MacFarlane, PharmD, Managing Partner, SmartPharma LLC., and Jill DeSimone, RPh, Head, US Oncology Commercial Unit, Merck, share their views on how to seize opportunities.

Mentoring and Leadership for Industry Pharmacists: Irene Laurora, PharmD, VP, Global Medical Affairs, Bayer Healthcare, and Jill DeSimone, RPh, Head, US Oncology Commercial Unit, Merck share their views on Mentoring and Leadership.

Alma Mater: West Virginia University, School of Pharmacy, Class of 2014
Current Role: Pharmacy Practice Resident, Cleveland VA Medical Center

As a pharmacy student, I was largely unaware of the many opportunities available within the pharmaceutical industry. Like many, I gravitated toward a strong interest and focus in clinical pharmacy through my internship and professional organizational experiences. Then, in my 3rd year of pharmacy school I discovered the exciting and dynamic industry opportunities in the discipline of Medical Affairs. A MSL from a leading pharma company spoke to our AMCP chapter about her career path within the pharmaceutical industry and ability to utilize her clinical knowledge and relationship building skills to positively impact patient care on such large scale.

Unfortunately, based upon the few industry rotations available through my school, and the application and timing process, I was unable to pursue any industry summer internship positions. Realizing that this would be a disadvantage to me, I invested significant effort in reaching out to industry pharmacists for advice on post-graduate training opportunities to help me pursue my goal of securing a position within the pharmaceutical Industry. I also gathered as much information as possible on industry fellowships, including attending the Fellowship Information and Networking Day (FIND) at Rutgers University. Attending the informational session really solidified my interest in industry as a career path. I was very eager to attend ASHP Midyear the following month.

Although few industry pharmacists are engaged in direct patient care that requires a pharmacy license, many still maintain their license because i) they may need it some day, and/or ii) they worked so hard to get it.

As a student pharmacist intern at IPhO, I am working on developing an ongoing service for our members to help them identify continuing education (CE) that is relevant to their professional careers in the pharmaceutical industry.

I am currently contributing to the IPhO Employment Research ("ER") Study as a Student Investigator. The study is designed to document industry pharmacist career paths, and to date it has been a terrific opportunity.

During the past twelve months, IPhO has been conducting an industry pharmacist employment study to collect data for reporting on the employment trends and career paths of industry pharmacists. The IPhO Employment Research (ER) Study involves collection of self-reported public domain information from LinkedIn profiles. The study goal of collecting 1500 industry pharmacist profiles was met and career trends and pathways are expected to begin being reported in the fall of this year.

A vice president recently told me that when he acknowledges his employees’ accomplishments, many of them belittle their success with such comments as “Oh, that was no big deal” or “What a fluke.”

Many business professionals negate compliments, often because they don’t want to be perceived as braggarts or as suffering from too big an ego.

Bragging is obnoxious boasting, and is usually done by people who want to let you know how great they think they are. This includes the technique known as “humblebrag” – its practitioners still brag, but try to disguise it as being humble or mildly self-deprecating. This is usually achieved by admitting to a minor flaw while really drawing attention to the big-brag item. (My favorite example: “I am such a klutz. I just spilled wine on my new book contract.”)

Bragging of any kind is not the way to impress colleagues, or bosses. However, I do believe that tactful and appropriate self-promotion is a business skill. Learning when and how to speak well of yourself is a key to getting and staying ahead.

Listed below are 10 ways to toot your own horn, including accepting compliments, without being insufferable:

Company and Department: Sanofi, Market Access
Current Role: Senior Pharmacy Specialist
Alma Mater: University of Southern California, Class of 2013

It was not until my 4^th year of pharmacy school that I knew I wanted to pursue a career in the pharmaceutical industry. By that time it was too late to get any kind of internship with a pharmaceutical company. In my earlier years of pharmacy school, I had a passion for community pharmacy and ambulatory care. I interned at a community pharmacy and volunteered on a regular basis with my school’s student pharmacy clinic in Los Angeles, providing screening services, medication reconciliation, and nutrition counseling. I also had a passion for working with diabetic patients, a disease which largely impacts the Latino community. Several of my projects and volunteer work in pharmacy school focused on Diabetes.

Can you be too nice?

A woman in one of my seminars asked if it were possible for her to be “too nice” when interacting with her employees. She told me that she often felt invisible with them. Since I teach etiquette, some of you may be surprised that I answered “Yes, you can be too nice.” Let me explain.

A few years ago I created The Three Faces of Communication model to help people understand their communication style. Everyone falls somewhere along the spectrum of Too Nice, Polite and Powerful, and The Tough One.

Do you know where you are on this continuum?

IPhO Expresses its Gratitude and Recognition to INFC Upon Completion of a Very Successful Inaugural Year!

After a very successful first year, IPhO Leadership wants to thank our National Fellows Council for their outstanding accomplishments during the past 12 months. Several of our INFC members are finishing up their post-doctoral work and have already accepted their first position in industry; congratulations and we look forward to your continued contributions to IPhO and accomplishments as an industry pharmacist.

The mission of INFC is to connect fellows of all programs nationally and to advocate for their career development. A list of the INFC's recent accomplishments is provided below.

I am pleased to announce that Tina Chang, PharmD has joined the IPhO Leadership Team as VP, Marketing & Strategy! She will be working on the Advocacy for Industry Pharmacist platform and other exciting initiatives.

To learn more about Tina and other members of the IPhO Leadership Team, please visit here: industrypharmacist.org/leadership

It's Not Rocket Science! 10 Ways to Connect and Engage With People by Barbara Pachter

Lately, I have worked with a number of people with outstanding technical skills whose career growth has been limited by their inability to connect with others. They were referred to me for coaching to provide them with the necessary skills to engage successfully with coworkers, bosses, and customers/clients.

People want to hire, work with, promote and do business with others whom they know and like. If you were not born with the “gift of gab,” and many people weren't, you can still learn the skills to connect with others. Here are 10 actions that will help you to be more approachable, and to engage more easily with others in your workplace.

What do industry pharmacists need to do to prepare themselves to take advantage of the increasing demand for pharmacists’ skills and experience?

Mary Alice Dwyer, PharmD, VP Global Medical Excellence and Medical Affairs, AstraZeneca provides some of her personal perspectives.

Are some departments more likely than others to highly value Industry Pharmacists' backgrounds?

Click or tap below as Irene Laurora, PharmD, VP of Global Medical, Bayer Healthcare weighs in on this topic.