Brex Launch Meeting

Now, now now…just calm down and take a deep breath! Think of ALL the fun you will have at our 4 day, yes 4 day, launch meeting of this new and novel drug! I can just feel the excitement now, when we role play for days! Honing our messaging down to a point where the doc screams, "What's taken you so long to bring this amazing drug to market?? Nurse, call all of my patients taking an atypical, DC their old drug, and substitute Rexulti!" I plan on averaging 10 calls per day, a speaker program every other night, and meet with my 42 Takeda and Otsuka counterparts weekly!

Wait…wait!! I must have had an awful dream! OMG! Did I just write all the crap above this paragraph? Oh well, must have been the exhaustion talking!

 

TOO FUNNY!

 

Nobody, and I mean nobody, wants to attend this meeting knowing it's going to be nothing more than a big pharma, role playing fest, with Otsuka running the show. Morale keeps dropping every day. Something has got to change. The question is, what will it be?

 

The leadership of this company has sunk to new lows. They are letting the "partners" run the show and Lundbeck employees are leaving in droves. Can you imagine what it will be like with Otsuka guiding our every move? Do you really think any carriers will pay for this me too drug? The more I complete the home study the more I wonder why anyone would prescribe this product over Abilify - it has no clinical benefit whatsoever and more weight gain.

 

Otsuka here. Yes, our meeting was basically Monday-Wednesday, which was plenty of time, more than plenty. Hope you guys will do the same.

 

There is no way we will get away with a Monday-Wednesday meeting. More than likely 4 days. 4 days to do what? You know what I just the very minute realized? That our CafePharma thread is now no different from a Big Pharma bitch thread on CP. Man, a lot has changed since sign-on!

 

To the RBD that thinks we are upset because we can't play with something "shiny". You are a buffoon. We are upset because we have become contract reps and you keep feeding us this "do it for the patient" crap. The beta sales team answers to Japan - simple as that! We are upset because there is a total lack of communication between partners. We are upset that you feed us this launching next month crap when in fact, a launch only occurs once, we are copromoting and doing what Otsuka tells us to do. But most importantly, we are upset because we don't want anything to do with this crappy product! Brintellix is hard enough considering what little Takeda throws our way, now you give us a dog with fleas. The sales force would have collectively jumped for joy if brex was delayed by the FDA.

 

3 days is more than enough. I am seeing morale drop more and more each day. Please let us come in on Monday and leave on Wednesday. Already docs are telling me they see no reason to Rx Rexulti! Don't push morale even lower by making us stay longer at this launch meeting.

 

Nope, ours will be 4 days! This meeting will turn into nothing more than a giant role playing/certification meeting and nothing more. Otsuka reps are already moaning and groaning about Brex. No coverage, and no interest from the docs. Their meeting is 3 days, and ours 4. Why? Well, I guess we should be thankful it's not through Friday!

My, hasn't a lot change since sign-on!

 

4 days!! You've got to be kidding! I can't believe we are role playing for 4 damn days! Common sense has definitely left Lundbeck.

 

Oh yes, it's changed a lot, and will change even more. Everyone is dreading going to the meeting. 4 days is too long. Let's hope they will do little to no role playing. Morale is in the shitter and getting worse day by day. Now, they are trying to mandate 7+ calls per day. Ain't gonna happen.

 

you guys sure complain a lot about things that really don't matter!

 

I don't think this person is complaining about nothing. Morale is bad. We are laying off a 1000 people. We are coming late to the Rexulti launch party, and we are already hearing from docs that they see no real need for it. We can't get credit for a new doc that moves into our territory for at least 6 months (so we simply don't go in the office!) The Brintellix copay is horrible. Coverage is horrible, and from the way it looks, Rex's coverage sucks too. 7 calls a day with territories the size of that most reps have, is ridiculous. Bonus is reduced by something called a "multiplier", whatever the hell that is. We have takeda reps going in 100% of our psych offices, getting credit for our work. The Rex launch meeting will more than likely further depress morale with certification and endless role playing, just like other Big Pharmas.

So, I think we have a few reasons to complain.

 

You forget that Otsuka reps have up to 13 years of experience selling Abilify. 3 days was plenty

 

The call plan is out boys and girls. Take a look at all the dead, moved and no see targets that they expect you to make 8 calls on. If they don't temper this at the meeting, Brintellix sales will fall faster than this weeks stock market.

 

I just think it's ridiculous that you're pretending that your launch meeting is starting on Tuesday to be respectful of Rosh Hashanah but it's not over until Tuesday night. Like seriously, way to be anti-semitic.

 

Boys and girls no whining please! This will be a wonderful meeting in the land of Walt! Lundbeck knows that morale is in the shitter and that Brex will be a loser but we WILL have fun at our meeting. Four lovely days and nights of lying and smiling and acting like we care and that this company has not gone down the tubes! Yes children do it for the patients while we decide our next move - will it be PIPS to get rid of people or will it be layoffs? Since JA who is so sincere will have lovely sports analogies and that will make it all ok. Don't worry about the fact that no one is making any money or that good people are leaving this will be a great meeting

 

4 days is one day too long. Otsuka's was 3. This will be an exercise in stretching time out. Yes, we have had a lot of good people who have left, and a lot more are looking. We are tired of not getting credit for sales, and many other things that have not been addressed. We are tired of hand holding Takeda (who are among the most miserable reps in the world!) reps, and dealing with psycho Otsuka reps. We are tired of having the worst copay card in the MDD arena.

A lot more people will leave over the next few months, and certainly after the first of the year. There is no security in being a Contract Sales force.

 

If JA would maybe admit we are a contract sales organization, we could move forward from the charades.

 

it's been a contract field force since Alpha was hired. Less than 6 months in and call plan achievement was announced at a meeting by JA then it was done. We were told account management go see the right people and treatment teams we don't count calls! Lie! Hung with a target list, call obtainment and sync twice a day. We had to give Otsuka the calls per account manager that they paid for in advance. We could have been called InVentiv ,Quintiles, etcetera.
It's now the same with Rexalti and Beta. Why bring over any Gamma? Put two products in our bag tell us how many calls you want and then pay us out at 100% IC. The numbers are a fucking joke just love me the call averages. It's all on a spread sheet to show the Emperor or Emperors in Japan.