The thing we all need to remember about Eisai is that it is the farm team....the minor leagues, for Oncology. Don't get me wrong.....there is quality talent there. People who could go elsewhere but came to Eisai because they liked their manager....or at least their hiring manager.....and now they're 58, 61, or 64......and they are about to retire.....they want a couple more years with no drama.....no starting over.....no more three weeks in New Jersey getting taught Oncology by someone who's 27 and doesn't have a clue....but thinks they do. When I say "minor league", I'm not talking about them. I'm talking about how there is a high level of turnover. It's true of reps but also managers. Eisai Oncology will give people with no oncology experience a chance....a start. That's good for those people.....and it's sometimes good for Eisai but also has its downsides. That said, it's a fact....many get their starts in oncology at Eisai. Sadly.....why this may not be good for Eisai is that they end up getting people with less experience....who spend 2-3 years making mistakes and learning oncology and....once they are experienced and have made many great contacts, some other company comes along and gives them a 20% bump in base pay to jump ship and come to them. Most would likely stay at Eisai if the company had a way to give new reps a 1-year, 2-year 3-year plan to gradually bump up 10% in base pay each of those three years.....after achieving a certain knowledge base, advanced training, sales achievement, etc.....but nonetheless, give those people a chance to make more money and stay at Eisai. Eisai won't do this because it seems expensive. What really is expensive is spending tons of money to train reps for all your competitors. Eisai doesn't view turnover as expensive. That's a shame. It's expensive in dollars and lost time. I can't tell you how many times someone left because their base pay was only 105k.....they found a job at a competitor at 125k, so they leave. Eisai then tries to hire a new rep but guess what....they end up paying the new person 125k.....or more.....the position stays open for months as the new rep is hired and trained......and they end up paying the new guy what the old guy wanted. To me, that's insanity.
With that type of attitude you can understand why hiring a manager who has less than a year's experience at Eisai and zero oncology management experience to be the manager of HIS OWN TEAM doesn't seem crazy. They then double down on their intrinsic stupidity as they watch six different reps(including a brand new hire) leave the organization and cite the manager as the reason. They then stand by and watch as the newly hired reps give the same feedback on how terrible the manager is. In any other organization on planet earth, the regional business director and Human Resources director would pay with their jobs. Not at Eisai.
Farm Team.....Minor Leagues.