XIGRIS CONTRACT

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Anonymous

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I was contacted by a recruiter for a position to promote Xigris. From what I was reading on here the contract may not be renewed. Can anyone tell me anything about this? Is it worth interviewing for it?
 






Anonymous said:
I was contacted by a recruiter for a position to promote Xigris. From what I was reading on here the contract may not be renewed. Can anyone tell me anything about this? Is it worth interviewing for it?
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We have month to month status from March until end of May. There are still people waiting with conditional offers for open territories while they wait to see if they are going to fill the openings. The parent company is actively trying to sell the drug, so no one knows when that will be. It's all a big question mark and not the most stable of situations. The whole salesforce is actively interviewing. If you like a big unknown, go for it. If you expect any type of stability and if you expect the parent company to give a shit about your situation and show you even a minute amount of consideration, look elsewhere.
 






The above poster is ABSOLUTELY correct. And just beware, if you are interviewing for the SE area they've lost 6 to 8 reps, don't know the latest count now as they lost another last week, since March. I have a colleague who works in that area and apparently the manager is difficult at best. As the above poster stated, the expectations are very high and you aren't really guaranteed a job beyond end of Feb. The month to month extension MAY occur but we have no idea when we will know from month to month if we even have a job. VERY UNSTABLE and little understanding from management of the situation.
 












Anonymous said:
Thanks for the candid responses. I think I'll decline the interview. The management may suck here but the reps are honest. Thanks, hope it works out for y'all.
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Management isn't the problem. Our situation has nothing to do with our management, it has to do with Lilly. Personally, I like the management. They stay out of our hair for the most part and there is not a lot of the typical corporate bullshit that you see at the big pharma houses. Plus, most of us made a good bit of cash for Q4. Especially right now, the managers are in the same boat as the reps. This is Lilly's fuck-up, not Inventiv's. If you look at Inventiv for what it is; a temporary gig, my experiences are in line with what I expected.
 






Here's the deal- Lilly is trying to sell Xigris to another pharma company. It appears they have at least one company interested in closing the deal so they are keeping us on until the deal closes- this could be as soon as end of Feb or maybe take a few months, they have no idea, therefore we are on the 3 month extension until they can sell it. There is the potential for us to go to the new company and be a part of their sales force, but if the buyer already has a full hospital sales force then we're out. However, if Lilly isn't successful in selling Xigris then who knows what happens- perhaps we simply continue to promote it or perhaps Lilly decides to cease promotion and we are gone. Who knows!!!
 






As of Jan 2011 what is the current status of Xigris. I was contacted from a recruiter about a position in the SE and I would like some CURRENT info on the status, salary, etc. Also, who is the company looking to buy it and the total length of the contract right now. Would anyone out there recommend accepting a offer here?
 


















Anonymous said:
As of Jan 2011 what is the current status of Xigris. I was contacted from a recruiter about a position in the SE and I would like some CURRENT info on the status, salary, etc. Also, who is the company looking to buy it and the total length of the contract right now. Would anyone out there recommend accepting a offer here?
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Depends on what you are looking for in a job. If you are looking for some kind of career, then don't take it. If you are looking for a job that pays well, and that does not require you to work very hard; then you should pursue it. The job is pretty chill and you should expect about 85k base with a bonus of at least 25k/year depending on which way the flu season winds are blowing. The job is about as easy as it gets in pharma sales. Very little accountability, and you have absolutely zero affect on the use/non use of the drug. It is part-time at the most, and most of the people here and the managers are fairly decent. The SE DSM is great, from what I hear. SE is a good place for Xigris, as well. Lots of old people and not a lot of issues like they have out West with hospitals.

I would say go for it, but you should not stop keeping your options open and looking around. You can literally have 10 patients that are overweight get really sick in your territory in one quarter and literally blow out a huge bonus. If you do not mind a bit of a schitzo usage pattern for the product, then you should be fine. You will learn a lot as well. CC medicine is a neat place to work. Xigris is a great drug, but it is really a niche product and if people are not using it by now, they are not going to use it. So, the territory upkeep is minimal.

No clue who they are selling the thing to, as they really do not tell us much. Doesn't really matter to me, as I have never looked at this as long term. Someone will buy it, as Lilly is certainly not going to keep it around. Overall, a good place to work if you do not mind working in a virtual unknown with very little direct control over your business. Pretty good people here, too. Nice bunch.

Hope that helps.
 






I am actually on the SE team.....Don't take it!!!!! The last post was somewhat correct about not really making a difference no matter how hard you work, but the SE manager is a serious MICROMANAGER and doesn't understand that this is a CONTRACT!!!!! The SE team is a great bunch of people.

You are actually given ZERO resources and expected to GROW a 10 yr old drug! NOT HAPPENING!

Most people on this contract are currently looking for other positions. As soon as one comes open I will be all over it!

Good Luck!!!!!
 












Agreed with the SE comments- used to have that manager in the NE and talk about a complete micromanager! Works 24/7, 365, and expects the same from you- contacts you all hours and weekends for inane information. And the 3 day field visits are brutal! Also, the up and down pattern of usage is not acceptable to management. Difficult, as usage really is out of your control. And with 2 sales aids, 2 old clinical trials, and not much support otherwise, you are expected to grow the product exponentially. Craziest thing I've ever seen- almost everyone on the contract is looking. Great group of reps, lots of experience, but management acts like everyone is a 25 yr old primary care rep that started last week.
 






Anonymous said:
Agreed with the SE comments- used to have that manager in the NE and talk about a complete micromanager! Works 24/7, 365, and expects the same from you- contacts you all hours and weekends for inane information. And the 3 day field visits are brutal! Also, the up and down pattern of usage is not acceptable to management. Difficult, as usage really is out of your control. And with 2 sales aids, 2 old clinical trials, and not much support otherwise, you are expected to grow the product exponentially. Craziest thing I've ever seen- almost everyone on the contract is looking. Great group of reps, lots of experience, but management acts like everyone is a 25 yr old primary care rep that started last week.
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So, are you saying that you are not a believer in the theory that the promise of a mysterious Phase 3 that we are continually told is right around the corner, and that may or may not show any difference from PROWESS (and might actually be worse); is not enough ammunition for you to change 10 years of an erratic and unpredictable buying pattern for Xigris? You must not have painted the appropriate patient picture. Don't you know that those Crit Care fellowship trained physicians who take care of dying people on a daily basis, all day long; have no idea what they are doing.......................?
 






I don't know who you are, above poster, but I LOVE YOU! You are smart, smart enough to be sarcastic about what we are "told", funny, succinct, and overall DEAD ON! I hope that at our next POA- which I'm told is "right around the corner"- our paths will cross. It's people like you, which happens to be most of the people on this contract, who make it tolerable to hang on until I can get the heck out of this place. We do have so many good, smart, experienced people on our team, but sadly management doesn't know we exist and furthermore, we don't know anything because we didn't come from "MARKETING" like our upper management did. Instead, we must parrot the ever persuasive "message", hit those reach and frequency numbers, and voila- the sales SHOULD BE THERE! I'm out, must get back to sending out more resumes.
 












We'll know "SOON"! Don't mean to sound pessimistic but we've heard "soon" since last spring. And we're told that the new company does not currently exist, it's being created to promote Xigris, as well as other products. Because of the "timing" we have an Inventiv contract until Dec 1. Who knows, I just know many of us are looking!
 






Anonymous said:
So, are you saying that you are not a believer in the theory that the promise of a mysterious Phase 3 that we are continually told is right around the corner, and that may or may not show any difference from PROWESS (and might actually be worse); is not enough ammunition for you to change 10 years of an erratic and unpredictable buying pattern for Xigris? You must not have painted the appropriate patient picture. Don't you know that those Crit Care fellowship trained physicians who take care of dying people on a daily basis, all day long; have no idea what they are doing.......................?
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OK, thanks for all the comments. Putting aside the question of the short term contract - what about the product itself? Why have sales been so erratic? All I've gathered so far is that Xigris is a critical care product that saves lives - even though the percents are small, with that kind of profile I don't know why it's not a better seller. I'd have to believe the drug would sell for me to get excited about the comp/ bonus. I don't want to flog a dead dog unless I thought it would turn around.
 






Anonymous said:
OK, thanks for all the comments. Putting aside the question of the short term contract - what about the product itself? Why have sales been so erratic? All I've gathered so far is that Xigris is a critical care product that saves lives - even though the percents are small, with that kind of profile I don't know why it's not a better seller. I'd have to believe the drug would sell for me to get excited about the comp/ bonus. I don't want to flog a dead dog unless I thought it would turn around.
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The drug is the drug. It's use goes up or down depending on the severity of the flu season. You do not have any control. What else is there to understand? It is used where it is used by the people who have used it for the past 10 years. Period. Your presence is irrelevant to the equation.

If you are looking for a position where you are going to be involved in the outcomes of a product's use, then look elsewhere, as you will be endlessly frustrated. If you would like to work somewhere where you will learn a lot about medicine, interact with some very smart people, and not have to kill yourself; then you should pursue it. Just don't kid yourself that you have something to do with the drug's use.......EVER.
 






Above poster is so right. My sales have been up and down- when you are up, you are a genius, when down, management thinks you are an idiot and should be fired- and this can happen in a matter of 2 quarters. Luckily I'm middle right now but have been on both sides. Frustration doesn't begin to describe it. Management has no understanding of the drug usage pattern so frustration begins there. On a day to day basis it is good- customers are smart- despite what your manager and TW say- and you do gain some good experience with a complicated product. But truly, don't fool yourself into thinking you are the reason it's doing well else you will shoot yourself for thinking you are a terrible rep if it's doing poorly. Frustration is the word.
 






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