My friend Rich Meyer, author of World of DTC Marketing Blog, once again has gone on a rant. This time his target is pharma “insiders.”
“One of the reasons that pharma marketing has been in a funk is the simple fact that there is a lack of people who are willing to change processes to focus on patients,” Meyer says. “Instead, most pharma people are too busy attending meaningless meetings from morning till night and trying to ‘get along’ with others rather than rock a boat that very much needs rocking. My personal belief is that most pharma executives are afraid to hire smarter people than they are. They are afraid that people won’t fit in or that these people could invoke real change. This is very much an industry problem and frankly it hasn’t changed in a long long time,” says Meyer.
Meyer claims pharma insiders are the “Enemy of change” (see here).
Let’s forget for a moment that Meyer starts out lambasting another friend of mine as an example of a pharma “insider” and focus instead on Meyer’s premise that ensconced insiders prevent change.
I have a slightly different view, which is that “insiders” are given a short rope to make change but end up being hung by the rope instead (i.e., figuratively “stabbed in the back”; see, for example, “Is This the Fate of Pharma Social Media Pioneers?” and lyrics at the end of this post). These pharma “insider” change agents then become “outsiders,” which is precisely what my friend who is targeted by Meyer has done.
So, it’s not the “insiders” per se who block change, it’s the people who hire them; i.e., higher-level executives. In recognition of that, here are my revised lyrics of the great O’Jays hit: Back Stabbers.
(What they do)
(They smile in your face)
All the time they want to take your place
The pharma insiders (pharma insiders)
(They smile in your face)
All the time they want to take your place
The pharma insiders (pharma insiders)
All you pharma marketing pioneers
And you really care, yeah, yeah
Then it’s all of you pioneers
Who better beware, yeah yeah
Somebody’s out to get your job
A few of your bosses they sure look shady
Blades are long, clenched tight in their fist
Aimin’ straight at your back
And I don’t think they’ll miss
(What they do)
(They smile in your face)
All the time they want to take credit
The pharma insiders (pharma insiders)
I keep gettin’ all these memos
From bosses, yeah, what they doin to me
They come to my cubicle
Again and again and again and again, yeah
So are they there to make me fail
I don’t even be there but they just keep on comin’
What can I do to get on the right track
I wish they’d take some of these knives off my back
(What they do)
(They smile in your face)
All the time they want to take your place
The pharma insiders
(Pharma insiders)
Low down, dirty
(What they do)
(They smile in your face)
Smiling faces
Smiling faces sometimes tell lies (pharma insiders)
(They smile in your face)
I don’t need low down
Dirty bastards (pharma insiders)
Meanwhile, who do YOU think are pharma (social media) marketing pioneers that deserve recognition? Please use this SURVEY to nominate someone for the Fifth Annual Pharmaguy Social Media Pioneer Award.
