Sales Representative

Territory Sales Manager / Sales Representative - South Gauteng North (South Africa) 

Bausch and Lomb, Trading as Soflens (Pty) Ltd. 

Main Towns to be coverd, not exclusively: 

- Johannesbrg

- Midrand

- Olifantsfontein

- Randburg

- Roodepoort

- Sandton 

Responsible for the development, growth and maintenance of sales in a specific territory, for specific accounts related to the Pharma portfolio.  Has a defined sales target to achieve and operates within the established policy guidelines.

KEY ACTIVITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

Note: Certain work related responsibilities might occasionally differ from this Job Description as per managers or organisational discretion

Sales Planning and Implementation

• Plan and implement the activities that are necessary for the realisation of the individual territory target
• Meet sales target in own territory
• Continuous planning and monitoring on a quarterly, monthly, weekly and daily basis
• Implement effectively and monitor the outcomes of all the planned promotional activities, providing feedback on strategy
• Call on and service targeted customers within the allocated territory across all disciplines, i.e. Specialists (e.g. Ophthalmologists & Paediatricians), General Practitioners, Optometrists, Pharmacists and relevant support personnel.
• Detail targeted customers and utilise selling skills that has maximum potential/positive effect on sales.
• Activities in pharmacy, including monitoring of stock-levels, shelf presence and orders.
• Maintain and develop important customers and/or Key Opinion Leaders by keeping open channels of communication, in which the company and its products are well presented, and the good relationship is leveraged to drive sales in the territory
• Effectively utilise allocated marketing spend to access, support and grow key customers in the individual territory
• Attend industry meetings, conferences and trade shows as required.
• Travel as needed for business-related tasks such as meetings or events.
• Undertake country trips as required.

Customer Management System

• Comply with all the requirements of and utilise the customer management system (Repwise) to effectively target, grade and maintain all customer related activities in the individual territory

• Categorise customer base, according to current and potential contribution in terms of Scripts and pharmacy Sales.
• Target customers according to grade for optimal number of sales calls per annum, quarter and/or month to ensure one obtains market control
• Maintain Expected Call Rate of 9 calls per day (Ideal ratio of 5 Specialists/General Practitioners + 4 Pharmacies/Optometrists per day)
• Adhere to Call Coverage and Frequency expectations
• Log calls daily
• Activate out of field when applicable
• Responsible for maintaining own mileage logbook

Communication and Reporting

• Communicate with NSM and/or marketing all relevant and vital strategic information of events taken place in the field that could meaningfully affect the business
• Expected email download and response: twice daily (morning and afternoon)
• Closely follow all competitor activities and present relevant observations meaningfully to the marketing department.  Transfer any planned countering activities and materials against competitors effectively to the customers in line with the purpose and monitor the outcomes
• Prepare and submit the necessary reports to NSM/KAM, Commercial Assistant, Marketing and Finance Departments in a correct and timely manner
  • Month End Report
  • Monthly Planner
  • Expenses
  • Action Plans

Initiative and Improvement

• Be proactive and use personal insights and initiatives, where relevant and in consultation with The NSM and/or marketing department, to develop customers, grow sales and achieve targets in your individual territory and for the business as a whole
• Training of customers as needs arise
• Improve and maintain product knowledge (any new products and knowledge of current package inserts)
• Share best practices with colleagues to improve efficiency in the field
• Identify potential issues or problems, within the business or within the key stakeholder value chain, that could be responsible for limiting current or future business sales and growth. Communicate these to the relevant people or departments, with potential solutions, to assist in satisfactory resolution and alleviation of unnecessary constraints

Qualification required:

• Matric
• A valid driver’s license; as travel within the region is expected

Qualification advantageous:

Tertiary qualification in science or equivalent

Experience required:

• Minimum of 3 years as a sales representative experience in South Africa’s  private healthcare sector, servicing diverse market segments (e.g. Specialists, Optometrists, GPs, Pharmacies, etc.)
• Proven record of success in sales, territory management, and diligent work habits

Experience advantageous:

Experience specific to the nature of the role (i.e. Ophthalmic etc.)

COMPETENCIES

(knowledge, skills and attributes – including language requirements, ability to travel, etc)

• Proficient in English (written and spoken)
• Microsoft Office Intermediate to Advanced
• Excellent communication skills
• Solid and effective thinking
• Strong organizational, negotiating, problem solving skills
• Ability to work independently on an established agenda as well as a team player
• Confidentiality
• Integrity
• Ability to work hard and under pressure
• Ability to collaborate within a multinational environment
• Knowledge of the territory
• Understand relationships with key customer base or knowledge of the pharmaceutical industry and competitor landscape
• Expert level of knowledge of the sales process (i.e. selling skills) and key customer targeting and territory management, with or without relevant industry data sets (i.e. Impact Rx, Repwise, SSD, etc.)
• Demonstrates open & candid dialogue in the interest of the business
• Innovative attitude to support continuous improvement initiatives
• Analytical skills– data analysis SSD and Impact Rx
• Business presentation and communication skills
• Resilience
• Maturity