Change of Plan

While it’s been said that change is the only constant, that doesn’t make it any easier to deal with, especially when that change is happening in your traditional customer base during a downslide in the economy. Mary Duseau, VP and general manager of global sales and marketing for the Bio-discovery unit of Perkin-Elmer, found that out in 2009. Historically, Bio-discovery customers have been researchers affiliated with biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies — in short, the scientists making the discoveries, whether of new drugs or of the ways in which the human body works. But in recent years, many of the big drug makers have been consolidating, reducing Bio-discovery’s overall customer base, as well as eliminating staff, including, at times, the Bio-discovery reps’ closest supporters. At the same time, spending among all pharmaceutical organizations has been flat. Watching these trends unfold, Duseau realized Bio-discovery would need to find new prospects — and it would need to instill in its sales teams the confidence to go after them. HER CHANGE PLANDuseau started by urging reps to find new prospects within the companies to which they were already selling. Next, she intensified the selling focus on universities and teaching hospitals, which hadn’t been as affected by the downturn. Both of these efforts called for improved prospecting skills and materials.On the skills side, Bio-discovery has shifted focus and boosted the amount of training it gives its reps. Training, now more centered around prospecting and consultative selling, has increased and was up by about 25 percent in 2009. In 2010, Duseau anticipates another 20 percent increase. Training isn’t entirely focused on reps, however. Duseau says Bio-discovery has spent “quite a bit of effort” on the frontline sales managers, as well. “Our job as directors and VPs is to make sure managers get the coaching they require in order to be effective frontline managers,” says Duseau. “They have to have the ability to drive and implement our strategies. In practice, this has taken a lot of effort.” COLLATERALIZED CHANGEAlongside this increase in training, PerkinElmer is changing the way it produces sales collateral. In the past, marketing produced materials and handed them off to sales; today, collateral is tested with sales reps in the field to make sure it’s useable.Consider PerkinElmer’s recent point-of-sale brochure for a new product. Bio-discovery chose a rep in each region, gave them some insight into the new product, showed them what the company wanted to achieve, and then asked them to use the brochure in the field. The reps’ subsequent feedback prompted Bio-discovery to overhaul the brochure. “The data that was in the tool was great, but it wasn’t in the right location or highlighted in the right way,” says Duseau. “Once we watched how our reps had conversations with customers, it was obvious that we needed to make some changes.” When the product is launched at the next sales meeting, reps will engage in interactive, peer-to-peer learning with the beta testers to jump-start product sales. Over the next year, Duseau says, Bio-discovery will continue on this same path — focusing on new prospects, intensifying training, and boosting the usability of prospecting tools — in its quest to grow out of the downturn. COMPANY BACKGROUNDPerkinElmer provides scientific instruments, consumables, and services to the pharmaceutical, biomedical, environmental-testing, and general industrial markets. It operates in 150 countries worldwide with approximately 9,100 employees. Most of its products — 75 percent — hold the number one or number two position in their markets.The company’s 60-year history originates with two organizations: EG&G Inc., which was founded by three MIT professors to study the mechanisms and applications of high-speed photographic and stroboscopic techniques, and The Perkin-Elmer Company, an optics design and consulting business. In 1999, EG&G acquired the Analytical Instruments business of Perkin-Elmer and assumed the name PerkinElmer Inc. The company is headquartered in Waltham, MA, and reported revenues of $2 billion in 2008.Within PerkinElmer’s Bio-discovery unit, where Mary Duseau is VP and general manager of global sales and marketing, 325 sales and product specialists report to 22 regional and country sales managers, who report to six directors. Duseau has been in life-science sales for about 18 years, the last nine of those with PerkinElmer.