Ready. Set. Access.

Market Access Strategic Execution Consultant

We Are All Storytellers

/ By

We Are All Storytellers

An important part of storytelling is first establishing the problem. If there’s no problem that your product solves, don’t bother showing up in the Pharmacy Director’s office.

Catch the resistance in order to sail forward.

When you’re sailing, you need wind, with which you move your boat back and forth, back and forth. You actually have to capture oncoming wind’s resistance. Interestingly, if your sail captures the wind just right, your ship will sail FASTER than the wind—it’s a physics phenomenon!

So if your story first plants what you’re going to resist, and THEN introduces the solution, it’s actually going to draw the audience towards your idea quicker than should you simply state your product’s efficacy and safety data.

Tension and release, tension and release, tension and release…causes forward motion.

We Are All Storytellers Read More »

Choosing a Battle Worth Fighting

/ By

Choosing a Battle Worth Fighting

A price has to be paid for everything.

Action and inaction.

The price to reimburse a drug is the drug’s price tag.

The price for denying reimbursement is what’s paid to live with the status quo.

If a payer makes intentional efforts to block a patient from receiving a drug that they could benefit from, are they ready to pay the price? Are they willing to pay the price?

Right drug for the right patient at the right time is an important mantra. If their systems aren’t equipped to efficiently handle the logistics, perhaps THAT’S a problem worth chasing after.

Choosing a Battle Worth Fighting Read More »

Things That Show Up Along the Way

/ By

Things That Show Up Along the Way

Payer Value Propositions are behemoth projects. They entail capturing numerous inputs from numerous people, accurately referencing and annotating, organizing the flow in a way that makes sense, aligning with previously approved material, ….

When things show up along the way, how do you finish faster? (A) Charging ahead without heeding to the nuances that arise along the way; or (B) Taking care of the nuances as you go along, so you don’t have to look back later.

With (A), SOMETHING is ready quickly, but that something may hardly be what you’re proud to show the world.

With (B), the process can quickly become tedious. So tedious that after a certain point, you lose patience and rush to get it done.

The correct answer lies somewhere in between these 2 extremes.

At some point, EVERYTHING that comes up will have to be addressed (nothing can be ignored). Therefore:

  1. If it makes sense, just take care of the nuance right now, so you can move on.
  2. If it makes sense, don’t bother with it right now. Take good notes on paper, and revisit this checklist at the end before handing off your work. Writing down these nuances is the ONLY surefire way that you’ll remember all of them (relying on your memory is not).

Things That Show Up Along the Way Read More »

Go Together

/ By

Go Together

“If you want something done right, do it yourself.” It may be tempting to say this when the team is falling apart.

Certainly, one person can even create a nation…but never by himself.

There is strength in unity.

“If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together” –African Proverb.

“Individual commitment to a group effort–that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work” —Vince Lombardi.

Go Together Read More »

Same Person, Different Person

/ By

Same Person, Different Person

We are always changing. How else can we adapt to the surrounding changes?

Ourselves from a year ago is an inaccurate reflection of ourselves today, which is an inaccurate reflection of who we will be a year from now.

If we’re judging someone based on their actions from a year ago, our labeling might be archaic because they’ve moved on.

As we come back into the office, seek out the ways in which our colleagues have developed in the past 1.5 year.

Times of adversity are when growth accelerates. Certainly, the adversity of the past 1.5 year has touched EVERYONE—some more than others.

Same Person, Different Person Read More »

Valuable Zeros

/ By

Valuable Zeros

Alone, zero doesn’t have value. In a group, however it’s highly valuable.

9 patients

90 patients

900 patients

9,000 patients

One zero changes the entire equation and the ensuing messages.

In a team, EVERY project manager, account executive, writer, editor, and strategist COUNTS. Doesn’t matter their salary or their reputation within the organization.

Just imagine if any one of these were missing from the team.

Acknowledging each team member and embracing unity will take us FAR. We are one.

Valuable Zeros Read More »

Taking Ownership

/ By

Taking Ownership

“This is what I plan on doing. First I will…, then I will…. I will get started on it as soon as I get the green light from you.”

Vs.

“I already put the deck together with all of the data points that we’ve been thinking about so far. I would love to hear your thoughts.”

Which scenario would bring peace of mind to clients?

It’s hard (perhaps impossible) to let go of contractors and agencies that take greater ownership of the work than the job owners themselves.

Taking Ownership Read More »

Not My Problem

/ By

Not My Problem

When soliciting feedback on a product and its value messages, focus groups will do the job.

However, if you want ruthless real-life feedback, listen to your customers. And MAKE SURE you have a mechanism set up to channel the feedback to the core team. 

Focus group participants will certainly put in the effort to give you the feedback. But really, it’s not their problem. In contrast, it IS the customers’ problem because they’ll be paying for your product.

When someone else’s problem suddenly becomes our own, we become alert.

Not My Problem Read More »

Wolves Don’t Scare Them

/ By

Wolves Don't Scare Them

In situations where we have to present our work or ideas to those much, much, much more powerful than us, it can feel intimidating…at the very least. “What if they hate it?” “What if our budget doesn’t get renewed?” “What will happen to my job?” 

Much planning and rehearsing can certainly relieve some of the anxiety. But what if we weren’t given even a minute’s notice? What if right there in the meeting, the spotlight was abruptly put on us to present our work to these powerful people? MOST of us would be paralyzed by the feeling of being thrown to a pack of wolves.

There’s a special breed of market access professionals that are not scared of wolves. They will enjoy playing even amongst a pack of wolves. As a matter of fact, the wolves may even consider them as one of their own kind.

Unwavering self-confidence and faith in God—when mixed together, creates a force to be reckoned with. It can take years of relentless effort to master this art. Those who have mastered this art roam without a care in the world, yet they’re killing it…every. single. time. Lucky them!

Everyone would like to be this person–who wouldn’t? Culture goes a long way in cultivating such individuals.

Wolves Don’t Scare Them Read More »

Krishna Patel, PharmD
Market Access Strategy and Execution Consultant
info@sojusllc.com
Linkedin-in
Contact Now
Scroll to Top