Mystery of the century....

Can someone give the real answer to the question of the century? Drum roll.....how does someone gets ahead at Merck?

You see certain people bounce around to bigger and bigger gigs. Out of rep jobs and on the escalator upward. A year or 18 months maybe 2 years then bingo! New gig, bigger title, bigger dollars and more! Seems if you're stuck in a rep gig for more than 3 or 5 years you are stuck in gruntville for life.....

Truth is most reps have little to no upward mobility Stuck, stuck and stuck some more. Unprotected when cuts come rolling through year after year....

Any pointers?

 

To move up you must be worth something sorry to say most of you are useless!

 

not so....most of the talented are unable to move anywhere. Its more about getting the right connections and having an advocate.

 

true. lie, beg, steal and cheat is how you get to management. slimy jokers who would do almost anything to get ahead. Some are evil too.

fire these jerks before they kill the company

 

And these jokers think the sales mules make too much.....sure bet getting laid off as a manager holds plenty of padding. Not so with most reps I know.....

It's no wonder the ctl baboons would do anything to stay in management drag.

 

Find another job somewhere else

 

It's easy, you need to be the biggest "yes" man or women on the planet. You really need to practice because senior management (ha!) really comes up with some doozies. Make sure you say "yes" second (everybody knows the first guy is just a suck up) and really stick the landing. You do that and I'll be calling you boss in no time.

 

yes to everything!

 

Yes, I observe that the comments expressed are those from the parasitics of Merck. You have devolved into sloth, incompetence and derangement. The sooner we eliminate your positions the more prosperous the company will become.

 

The older you get you'll realize that talent, skill and character have little correlation with career success..

 

Man, are you right.

Connections, golden parchments and workin it gets you ahead....
The ones who you think would get ahead usually sprout the greys or drop the top as they're left in the dust....for all other, it's full membership into the laggerts and late bloomers club...

 

It's sad that those who are hard workers and high performing are just looked at by upper management as butt kissers and the competition. They are usually "in the wrong place at the wrong time" during downsizing. Promotions are reserved for "friends and family".

This is the typical model in most Fortune 500 companies though, not just Merck.

 

Number 9, you may already be on the separation list.

 

I make the separation lists duckweed! Many will learn this week their fate

 

There are hundreds of former "decision makers" that are working at Walmart and Home deport.

Have fun stocking shelves.

 

this is a true story…Former hotshot pharmaceutical rep (RAM AND NAM for many years) that is now selling plumbing fixtures in my 50s, on a commission 1099 basis, using my own car, and working harder than I ever imagined for 1/3rd of what I made in pharma…

It is pretty damn ugly and depressing…Looking back, I can't believe Merck paid me that kind
of money all those years, for delivering deli trays…What an insane, unbelievable industry pharmaceuticals is…nothing else like it on the planet…complete defies logic and the rules of business.

 

Lean and Fuel implemtors were yes men right ?

 

Do you think Hillary is aware of the deli fiascos and fattening paychecks? The news makes you think she's unhappy with pharma.

 

Its totally crappy....and why people walk away from these companies.
Know more than a few who would never again go back to working for a fortune whatever..

 

20 years ago when there was more customer access and impact, working hard and winning awards for a few years got you noticed. Once noticed, shaking hands and kissing a few babies at meetings does not hurt.

Last 5 -8 years is everyone in job protection mode. Lateral moves and or demotions to more stable divisions are possible if you have a connection. Any fast trackers these days could possibly occur if you are a minority candidate right out of Wharton or a highly regarded Ivy League etc....

If you are a rep and have been with Merck, several CTLs would have to die or retire for you to have a chance at promotion ( only if all HQ people in line before you did not like the area of the country where the CTL vacancy ).

Promotion through expansion is highly unlikely as the company is in contraction mode and will be for a long while.

Just my honest opinion as an early retiree with the company who built a descent brand by working hard, shook a few hands and kissed a few babies for a while, then got tired of the political part that became more important than actual hard work.