communications excellence

1Copyright © Best Practices,

LLC

BEST PRACTICES,®LLC

Communications Excellence:Optimizing Group Structure & Operations

Page - 2Copyright © Best Practices, LLC


Table of Contents•Project Blueprint- pg. 3

•Executive Summary: Benchmark Insights and Research Gro

up- pg. 4

•External Communications Group Structures: Key Trends & D

rivers of Sub-group Evolution- pg. 13

•Internal Communications Group Structures: Key Trends & Dri

vers of Sub-group Evolution- pg. 24

•Internal and External Communications Group Models and Str

uctures- pg. 33

•External Communications Group Resource Benchmarks: Key

Staffing and Investment Trend- pg. 42

•Internal Communications Group Resource Benchmarks:

Key Staffing and Investment Trends - pg. 51

TOC Continued

•External Communications Group Services: Trends In Service Levels & Key Priorities- pg. 56

•Internal Communications Service Levels: Trends In

Activities That Inform the Enterprise- pg. 75

•Building Bridges: Working with Colleagues- pg. 84

•Working Effectively in The Integrated Pharmaceutical

Network: Forging Accountability and Clear Roles Among

External Partners- pg. 91

•Communicating the Value of Communications In a

Global Bio-Pharma Company- pg. 96

•Contact Information- pg. 101

Table of Contents



Optimizing Structure Involves Integrated Practices & Approaches

There are no perfect structures. “Form follows function.” New market pressures and lifecycle events compel structures to evolve. Optimizing structure reflects the integrated management of units, people, process, technology, communications, incentives and other management factors.

Communications: Evolving Structure to

Stay Relevant to Changing Goals,

Strategies

1. Realign to Support New Corporate Goals, Strategies

2. Fine-tune Internal Group Structure

3. Establish Service Levels to Reflect

Priorities & Resources

7. Drive Long-Term Priorities & Respond

to Ad Hoc Issues

4. Integrate Operations to Bridge BU’s, Geographies & Sub-Groups

5. Use Funding / Budgeting Process to Reaffirm Alignments

8. Manage / Coordinate Rolesfor a Fully Integrated Pharmaceutical Network

10. Assess Performance,

Refine & Continuously

Improve

6. Refine Talent

Management Strategies &

Systems to Fit New Structure

9. Optimize Learning to Enhance Performance

“No institution can

possibly survive if it

needs geniuses or

supermen to manage it.

It must be organized in

such a way as to be

able to get along under

a leadership composed

of average human

beings.”

-Peter Drucker



Universe of Learning: Internal & External Communications Benchmark Research Participants

Participants in this benchmarking research included 39 Communications executives and managers at 33 leading companies from bio-pharmaceutical, healthcare and other industry segments.



Most Benchmark Partners Provided Insights for Both Internal & External CommunicationsMost research participants work in leadership roles in the Communications function and thus were able to answer for both Internal and External Communications.

Q2. Please note for which groups you are able to respond.

(n=39)

Total Benchmark Class

18%

59%

23%

Both Internal andExternal

Communications

ExternalCommunications

InternalCommunications

% of Companies

Pharma Segment

18%

58%

24%

Both Internal andExternal

Communications

ExternalCommunications

InternalCommunications

% of Companies

(n=33)



External Communications Favors Assigning Staff 100 % To Customer; Assigning on Fractional Basis Seen as IneffectiveExternal Communications leaders across all industries rate two staffing approaches as the most effective: Assigning Staff 100% to a customer and centrally locating staff. Other staffing approaches produce mixed results, and assigning on a small fractional basis is discouraged.

Q7. Customer-focus Tactics: Rate the effectiveness of different staffing approaches for serving internal customers.

(n=26)

Highly Effective

Somewhat Effective

NeutralSomewhat Ineffective

Highly Ineffective

Total Effective

Customer-focused Staff Specialists: Assign staff 100% to the customer or unit they serve

41% 37% 11% 7% 4% 78%

Centrally Locate External Communications Staff: Locate staff at headquarters or a central location to build skills among the sub-group or function.

28% 38% 17% 17% 0% 66%

Co-locate Staff With Customers: Placing staff on site with the customers/units they serve.

23% 42% 27% 8% 0% 65%

Issue-focused Staff Specialists: Assign staff 100% to an issue / topic

25% 36% 36% 4% 0% 61%

Matrix-oriented Staff Specialist: Assign staff issue specialist to cover multiple customers, therapeutic areas or units.

15% 38% 19% 19% 8% 53%

Shared Service: External Communications members serve multiple customers / business units on a fractional basis.

18% 18% 29% 29% 7% 36%

Total Benchmark Class

Analysis Note: “Total Effective”= sum of highly and somewhat effective. Green highlights effectiveness ratings that surpass a 55% aggregate scoring threshold.



External Communications Outsources 9% of WW Employees on Average

To reduce costs, the pharma sector has gradually increased outsourcing levels for External Communications staff. The function’s global outsourced staff now ranges between 0-15% with a 9% average. Meanwhile, U.S.-based Ex Comm groups now outsource from 0-28% of staff with 19% the average. The higher U.S. outsourcing level seems logical considering high labor costs.

19. Internal FTE % Vs. Outsourced FTE's %: What percentage of your External Communication employees are internal or outsourced? (total sums to 100% For Each Geography)

25th Percentile Average 75th Percentile

All External Communication Employees Worldwide - Company Employed %

85.0% 90.9% 100.0%

All External Communication Employees Worldwide - Outsourcer Employed %

0.0% 9.1% 15.0%

Number of U.S. Based External Communication Employees - Company Employed %

72.5% 80.9% 100.0%

Number of U.S. Based External Communication Employees - Outsourcer Employed %

0.0% 19.1% 27.5%

(n=17)

Pharma Segment



Integrating Internal, External Communications Puts Groups On the Same Page

“We’re leaning more toward an integrated group. Our VP is responsible for internal external and PR to support the business and our products. We’re all housed here on the same floor and in the same area. Increasingly we’re looking at a more integrated planning process for external and internal communications to make sure that plans are holistic—to make sure they are leveraging synergies. I think increasingly it’s probably going to be resource and cost effective.” - Director, Product Communications

One external communications leader sees her group working much more closely with internal communications going forward.

Integrate Teams to Increase Effectiveness

The old tools are not going to just keep working in this environment.

I don’t see people changing their structure, I see how we work togetheras a group, changing in order to maximize efficiencies and resources.

We have a senior person and then the day-to-day person. Not looking so much as changing that but maybe changing the roles of how you work together.



Pharma Internal Communications See Email, Intranet as Critical

(n=12)

Pharma Segment

Q43. Services Impact: Rate the importance of various key Internal Communications-specific communication channels directed at your company's workforce.

Highly

ImportantImportant Neutral

Not Very Important

No ValueTotal

Importance

E-mail Announcements 42% 50% 8% 0% 0% 92%

Intranet Releases 25% 67% 8% 0% 0% 92%

Company Video Announcements 0% 64% 18% 9% 9% 64%

Town Hall Discussions 42% 17% 17% 17% 8% 58%

Other channels 0% 27% 64% 9% 0% 27%

Internal Blogs 0% 25% 42% 25% 8% 25%

Podcasts Announcements 8% 8% 42% 25% 17% 17%

Company TV Station Broadcasts 0% 17% 33% 17% 33% 17%

Voicemail Announcements 0% 17% 50% 25% 8% 17%

Internal Communications in pharma, like other industries, views email and intranet as critical communication tools for reaching employees. While more accepting of new technologies such as internal blogs and podcasts, pharma still has not embraced them as important tools, but that will change – albeit slowly – as comfort levels rise.



Best Practices, LLC6350 Quadrangle Drive, Suite 200,

Chapel Hill, NC 27517www.best-in-class.com

[email protected]: 919-403-0251

About Best Practices LLCBest Practices, LLC is a research and consulting firm that conducts work based on the simple yet profound principle that organizations can chart a course to superior economic performance by studying the best business practices, operating tactics and winning strategies of world-class companies.

communications excellence

Documents