Reducing # of sales positions of pharmaceutical companies

Although the number of workers in the industry has more than doubled in 10 years, only sales positions remain the same

Changes in traditional business methods amid continued growth in CMOs such as Celltrion and Samsung Biologics

It was found that the number of personnel engaged in the control and bio industries has steadily increased over the report showed.

 

However, amid the boom in pharmaceuticals and bio, the position of sales workers is decreasing day by day.

 

Analysts say this is because it is concentrated on the development of online sales and marketing and contract manufacturing organizations (CMO).

 

According to the KPBMA on the 11th, the number of people engaged in the pharmaceutical and bio industries has steadily increased over the past 10 years, reaching 1,398 companies and 114,126 in 2020.

 

Considering 823 companies and 74,477 people in 2011, it doubled.

 

Such an increase in pharmaceutical and bio-industry workers was led by production workers.

 

The number of production workers exploded from 23,539 in 2011 to 46,166 in 2020.

 

As a result, the proportion of production workers among all pharmaceutical and bio-industry workers also increased from 31.6% to 40.5%.

 

Analysts say that this was an opportunity for large bio companies such as Celltrion, Samsung Biologics, and SK Bioscience to expand their CMO businesses by increasing production facilities before and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Sales positions, which have been key in pharmaceutical and bio-industry jobs, have been greatly reduced over the past 10 years.

 

This is because the size of the sales position remained in place while the number of production workers doubled during the same period.

 

The total number of sales jobs in 2020 was 25,317.

 

Considering that there were 24,535 people in 2011, it is safe to say that it remains the same.

 

The percentage of sales positions decreased from 32.9% in 2011 to 22.2% in 2020.

 

In fact, as the proportion of production workers has increased, the proportion of sales workers has decreased.

 

The industry seems to predict that the proportion of sales jobs will decrease over the years.

 

They say that the position will inevitably decrease as consignment production of medicines, utilization of Contracts Sales Organization (CSO) by mid-sized pharmaceutical companies, and the spread of online sales and marketing are major factors.

 

Some predict that large-scale movements of pharmaceutical sales workers will take place amid the growth of the digital healthcare industry.

 

This is because in the digital healthcare sector, like in the pharmaceutical and bio sectors, hiring sales personnel is essential as its use in hospitals and clinics is directly related to the increase in sales.

 

Digital healthcare companies that develop EMR or medical AI solutions are increasing their employment as sales workers at pharmaceutical companies.

 

Company A, which is developing EMR, is hiring "someone who wants to sell data technology, not oral drugs," while company B is hiring people with experience in sales at university hospitals at the team leader level.

 

An executive of a domestic pharmaceutical company, a former doctor who asked for anonymity, said, "It is now difficult to grow with the operation method of a traditional pharmaceutical company that relies on generic sales centered on face-to-face sales." As consignment production of medicines is suggested as an alternative to growth, traditional pharmaceutical companies are also focusing their capabilities on developing new drugs and producing drugs, he explained.