Explore every episode of the podcast Cracking the code - pharmaceutical industry careers

Discover a bit more about market access and it's main challenges, career advice and what the industry has to offer with George from Lucid Health consulting and previous President of ARCS Australia. 

Tune into this episode with Dirk Otto. We talked PBS, different healthcare systems across the globe, the evolution of medical and commercial job roles and much more!

Join James and I at the ARCS annual conference in Sydney June 2024. James gave some great insights into the current hiring market, what companies are looking for but also what candidates are looking for. AND much more! 

Tune into this episode where Stefanie did a deep dive into key questions hiring managers should be asking to get the right hire. The importance of having an investor mindset when applying for a role and a great tool, the SCARF model to succeed in any job interview! 

Discover what ARCS has to offer to it's community and Tim's ambitions for the organisation. We also did a deep dive into the key take aways from the AusMedTech conference in Adelaide in May 2024 and calling out bad behaviour !  

In this episode with David, we discussed why he turned away from his pharmacists career to big pharma. The highs and lows of the job, his frustrations towards pharma, what needs to change and what he would like to see more of. 

Tune in to hear Charlie’s views on the still conservative approach of the pharmaceutical industry, the power of rookies, the people we should surround ourselves with, challenging the status quo, and the achievements resulting from such challenges. We also touched on how sales representatives are measured and Charlie's perspective on these matters. AND Rock8Science! What is that all about? 

Join me as I chatted with Mark Jordan a paramedic who turned to repping due to an industry sustained while on duty. We chatted about the immense difficulties paramedics face day to day, the rise of mental health more than trauma and how Mark was able to apply his acquired skills from paramedicine to a sales rep role. Lastly, he shared his advice on how to break into the industry. 

Join us in this episode as we explore an innovative masters program focusing on pharmaceutical and medical device development and regulation. Gain practical insights for entry-level roles, discover the importance of networking, and uncover the key skills sought after by industry leaders. 

 Join us in this episode as we delve into the captivating journey of Amit Lalwani, a successful researcher who transitioned from academia to a medical affairs role in the pharmaceutical industry. Also discover the transferable skills that made Amit transition into an MSL role and uncover the secrets behind why this sought-after job is a beacon for scientists. This inspiring tale is a testament to the power of perseverance, reminding us all: don't give up on your dreams! 

My latest guest on the podcast Annree Wogan (Co-Founder of Adora, a Medical Affairs, Leadership and Coaching Consultancy), discussed tools such as the 5 Voice of Leadership and the 70:30 Principle which are visual leadership tools to help us better understand our strengths and how we can identify them but also the difference between learnt behaviours and our natural strengths!

Annree has partnered with Giant Worldwide and you can access their world-class proven micro-credential leadership development programs and your 5 Voices of Leadership Report which is treasure trove of profound insights on your strengths, challenges, and growth opportunities, for only $10 USD per month with the pro subscription - https://annreewogan.giantos.com/store/pro

If you would like to take the free 5 Voices of Leadership Assessment to help you understand your behavioural leadership and communication style here is the link: https://annreewogan.giantos.com/store/5-voices

We talked recruitment, business, challenges and why Craig believes it’s so important to give people a go. 

Discover how Praks, an international student from India graduated with a master’s in biotechnology during the hardest covid times. And THEN managed to land herself a role as a medical affairs associate without any prior experience in the pharmaceutical industry.

Nav has worked in the pharmacovigilance world for a considerable amount of time now. She also created an internship program out of her own time for university students to explore pharmacovigilance. Of the 4 she recruited, ALL of them were able to find jobs afterwards in the pharmaceutical industry!

Tune in to hear more. 

Curious to hear Swetha's story on how despite going through 6 months of unemployment after graduating with a university degree in pharmaceutical science she finally made it into the industry? 

This episode is for you. 

Interested to find out what procurement within a pharmaceutical company is all about? (I was!)

 We discussed (of course):
 What is procurement? How has the current climate and global warning affected procurement? What skills does Elvan look for when hiring? And how is she helping to get young talents into this industry.

I’ll end this post with a quote from our episode that stood out for me:

“We assume too much sometimes […] and it’s up to us to take the lead on our personal development, be honest about what you want to do and how you want to evolve in an organisation”.

I was so excited to record this episode. This episode for me is a true example of a young talent who despite his challenges, perceived and made it. 

I landed on a gem called Brendan Stewart. 

In this episode we discussed what universities could do more for us to get into the work force, his role as a GP sales representative and advice Brendan has to young talents trying to get into the pharmaceutical industry! 

2 weeks ago I chatted with Joseph Cox, associate director at Proclinical staffing about his role as an associate director, his greatest success stories and MOST importantly what advice does he give to graduates trying to enter the pharmaceutical industry…
PS: PhD people!! Go and hear what Joe has to say about publications on a cv 😉 

Mollie Gunn gets it. 4 mins into the interview, when talking about how she entered the industry she states: ‘I didn’t realise how difficult it was to get into sales or anything else in the industry, especially when you don’t have prior experience and on top of that I’m Irish and didn’t have a permanent visa’.

Like the sound of that?  I do haha (a bit biased I know...) 

We also talked about graduate programs, why it can be hard to break into the industry from a recruiter’s point of view and then… we were interrupted by Mango (the dog) so we did have to end the episode…

As well as being a medical director in oncology for many years, Kevin has also been a mentor for graduates looking to enter the industry, he has been heavily involved in a masters programs that has a near 100% employment rate into the industry! I also asked why companies are holding back on recruiting inexperienced graduates.... 

Have you ever heard of a CRO? No? Well, then I suggest you have a listen to this episode with Maurice Zultak!

Here we went into depth about CROs, what they are, why they are important and how they have grown and become essential to pharmaceutical companies. As well as other new roles that have appeared over the years in the industry and hiring people from the point of view of a hiring manager.

In this episode, I sat down with Riaz to discuss how he went from researching HIV in the lab to the industry. He shed some light into why the medical affairs domain is so competitive, the key ingredients to have a successful career (it's as simple as a pasta recipe...!) and some top interview tips.

Eylem has no LinkedIn strategy but she has 34K followers. How…? 
Dealing with hate, building a brand and interview tips. These were just some of the topics Eylem and I discussed. Enjoy :) 

Eylem and her family moved to Switzerland where they became refugees. Eylem was faced with many challenges but pursued her dreams and career aspirations and has worked with some massive pharma companies. She started in private banking and then moved to the industry. Want to know more and how she did it? Click play!

I sat down with Matthew Britland, a highly experienced Medical affairs professional to discover more about this role. We talked about skills required for this job, the challenges graduates face to get into the industry and what can be done about it! 

I spoke with Sara Whitestone, a master's of neuroscience graduate who successfully went from academia into the pharmaceutical industry. She is now a medical education specialist for Medtronic. We discussed all things CV, how she got in, her advice to us and just don't give up!