Kramer Pharmaceuticals Inc
Facts:
Kramer Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was a major manufacturer of prescription drugs for the medical and dental professions. It had a sales force of over 500 detailers, whose primary responsibility was calling regularly on hospital personnel, doctors, and dentists to describe the product line and to persuade these medical personnel to use and prescribe Kramer drugs.
After having worked at Kramer for 12 years, Bob Marsh, a detailer of the company, was fired for unsatisfactory performance, poor attitude, and reluctance to improve. Marsh's abrupt termination of the services stunned some of his clients, who regarded him as an outstanding detailer. A number of doctors, physicians, and pharmacists strongly expressed to Kramer's executives and local managers their surprise, disbelief, and perplexity over Marsh's dismissal.
Such extremely rare reactions from customers over a detailer's dismissal triggered a review of Kramer's practices in sales force management. Issues:
Based on the case description, I identified a few issues in Marsh's case:
1. Overlook subordinate's strengths and be overcritical about his weaknesses
2. Offer subordinate too many suggestions too quickly
3. Unable to embrace changes and adapt to boss's preferences
4. Ineffective in solving conflicts with boss Solutions:
1. Overlook subordinate's strengths and be overcritical about his weaknesses
The ways that Marsh's supervisors dealt with his strengths and weaknesses as a detailer were very different. The first two supervisors, John Meredith and Bill Couch, had a balanced view on Marsh's strengths and weaknesses. In particular, they appreciated Marsh's outstanding reception in physician offices and drug stores while recognizing his bad work habits, including the lack of organization, follow-up, and planning, seemed obvious to the majority of his supervisors. But since Jim Rathbun arrived on the scene, the following supervisors seemed hardly tolerate Marsh's weaknesses. For example,
Kramer Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was a major manufacturer of prescription drugs for the medical and dental professions. It had a sales force of over 500 detailers, whose primary responsibility was calling regularly on hospital personnel, doctors, and dentists to describe the product line and to persuade these medical personnel to use and prescribe Kramer drugs.
After having worked at Kramer for 12 years, Bob Marsh, a detailer of the company, was fired for unsatisfactory performance, poor attitude, and reluctance to improve. Marsh's abrupt termination of the services stunned some of his clients, who regarded him as an outstanding detailer. A number of doctors, physicians, and pharmacists strongly expressed to Kramer's executives and local managers their surprise, disbelief, and perplexity over Marsh's dismissal.
Such extremely rare reactions from customers over a detailer's dismissal triggered a review of Kramer's practices in sales force management. Issues:
Based on the case description, I identified a few issues in Marsh's case:
1. Overlook subordinate's strengths and be overcritical about his weaknesses
2. Offer subordinate too many suggestions too quickly
3. Unable to embrace changes and adapt to boss's preferences
4. Ineffective in solving conflicts with boss Solutions:
1. Overlook subordinate's strengths and be overcritical about his weaknesses
The ways that Marsh's supervisors dealt with his strengths and weaknesses as a detailer were very different. The first two supervisors, John Meredith and Bill Couch, had a balanced view on Marsh's strengths and weaknesses. In particular, they appreciated Marsh's outstanding reception in physician offices and drug stores while recognizing his bad work habits, including the lack of organization, follow-up, and planning, seemed obvious to the majority of his supervisors. But since Jim Rathbun arrived on the scene, the following supervisors seemed hardly tolerate Marsh's weaknesses. For example,