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The Pharma Career Ladder · The first-line manager · Step 3: The field day · Lesson 5

What to look for, not just listen to

Reading the doctor during the call

By Ahmed El Menshawy · 20 years in pharma, from medical rep to country manager in the UAE. Founder of RepPharma. LinkedIn
Published

On a double visit, most managers listen to the rep.

What did they say in the opening? Did they ask good questions? How did they handle the objection?

All useful. But the most honest feedback in the room is usually not coming from the rep. It is coming from the doctor, and most of it is not spoken.

Doctors are polite. "Thank you, very interesting" can mean anything from real interest to "please leave".

So I watch three things.

  • Where the eyes go.
  • On the rep, on the tablet, or on the door? If the doctor is still looking at the door, the call has not really started.
  • What the body does.
  • Leaning forward, or turning back to the laptop? Interest shows in posture before it shows in words.
  • The moment it changes.
  • There is usually one sentence where the face shifts. Sometimes towards the rep, sometimes away. That sentence is worth more than the rest of the call.

In the debrief, I ask the rep first: "When did she lean in?" Most reps have never been asked. Within a few field days, they start watching for it themselves, and that is the real skill.

“Doctors say polite things. Their body tells you what they really think.”
What to look for, not just listen to: Reading the doctor during the call

Lesson 5 of 16 in Step 3: The field day, with the full guide and a checklist for this week.

More lessons in step 3: The field day

Lesson 1How many days in the fieldThe number that defines the jobLesson 2Planning a field dayChoosing the rep, the day and the goalLesson 3Coaching in the fieldWhat a manager actually does on a double visitLesson 4The silent observerStaying out of the rep's callLesson 6Meeting a key doctor togetherThe manager's role in a joint callLesson 7When the rep freezesRescuing the call without taking it overLesson 8Field days and trustInspection or developmentLesson 9Market intelligence from the fieldWhat to report upward and what to ignoreLesson 10Handling a customer complaintEscalation with the rep, not around themLesson 11Pharmacy and stock realitySeeing the shelf for yourselfLesson 12Hospital access problemsWhere the manager can actually helpLesson 13The territory ride that changes nothingWhy some field days are theatreLesson 14Field notes that survive the weekCapturing, not rememberingLesson 15Visiting the difficult territoryGoing where it is uncomfortableLesson 16The manager who never leaves the officeWhat that costs a district

The field day, in RepPharma

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