Dream Team

It seems like Elena Palevskaya, Promo-Med CEO, knows the formula for   career happiness  . She is sure that the token of personal growth in modern business is the success of a company which is oriented not only at business indexes but also at elaboration of a special creative atmosphere where everyone is able to fully show his professional skills and get adequate reward. We ve got all the answers to   Career   readers  questions from Elena and other heads of various Promo-Med departments.

After graduating from the First Medical Institute (now entitled I.M. Sechenov Moscow Medical Academy) she worked as a doctor. Her career in pharmaceutical business started at major international company Smith Kleine Beecham – seven years of her work there faced a way from regional manager to head sales department. Then she transferred to strategic development manager position in another strong western company AstraZeneca. She holds a МВА degree. 

- You know, many companies strive at conquering the generics market by offering, as they say, just the same as a brand only much cheaper. The market is literally overwhelmed with fourth and fifth generics of famous brands. At first glance it may seem as a simple and not so costly way. But from the long term business point of view it s absolutely non-efficient. Promo-Med tends to introduce first generics of socially important medications into the market. For example our weight reduction medication called Reduxine was available at drugstores right on the next day after original brand patent expired. Operational efficiency helps us to define prices looking back just at the brand, and such approach makes our business more profitable. As for the high demand for this medication together with the company s multiple promotion possibilities, it provides rather large scale sales. As a result, according to Pharmexpert, Reduxine showed in 2008 the highest growth rate among all medications available in this market segment. Moreover we aim at offering only high quality products. The efficiency and safety of all our medications are tested during wide-scale clinical studies, which is not quite typical of generics market. Usually our competitors save the funds they could spend on such tests. Finally very few companies at the market try to improve the reproduced medication profile. It is also wasteful. We at Promo-Med highly welcome improvement of medications in what is related with auxiliary components and additions to the basic component. For example, introduction of an additional active substance into Reduxine allowed us to make its effect gentler if compared to the branded medication. It was clinically proved. 

- Of course, our results do. I m absolutely happy with our financial and economic indicators, I like watching the growth in the level of our products sales. But there are things that can t be statistically counted, like for example team creation without which it s impossible to come to any results. I can safely say that we managed to gather the best of the best, the highest level professionals. Our team is quite united. People are ready to share their experience which is the true value in everyone s life.

Graduate from Bauman Moscow State Technical University. Engineer. During perestroika she went into business, spent about ten years working for the Delta-sport company, and grew from assistant manager to head of the sales department. She also worked as financial manager for the Camel Active – Shoes Company. Competent recruitment approach and creation of a working team were the reasons for her coming to the Promo-Med company to the stuff manager position. 

- From the career point of view today s pharmaceutical market is very attractive. Each year brings more and more people who wish to work in this business. But it s no easy thing to find a suitable applicant. Formal rules are as follows: usually people with pharmaceutical, biological and medical educational background come to us; we welcome working experience which is yet not that crucial. Positions are occupied on a competitive basis. That said, Promo-Med current employees may as well take part in such competitions and they will be preferred all else being equal. We at our company think that it s important for a person to be able to work in a team together with possessing high professional skills (specific character of our business implies serious, intensive team work), drive for results, wish to learn and to grow are also quite important. We need goal-seeking, creative people ready for compromises who share our corporate values. Promo-Med has to compete with major international corporate groups that traditionally pay much attention to forming a team. So to gain success in business we ve got to have a united professional team which is at least as good as our foreign competitors  teams apart from offering quality products. 

- Not an easy thing to do. But judging from the successful sales of the company s leading medications I can say you manage to do it. Olga, can you share the secret of the Promo-Med team efficiency? 

- Fist of all, we initially staked on training personnel inside the company. We set our employees for creation of a team seeking one single goal which is shaped by the leader – a team that is steadily trying to reach this goal using all its knowledge and skills. Secondly, the company invests a lot in its personnel. We pay much attention to education, testing, motivation, encouragement. Education at Promo-Med has nothing in common with one-day training courses which are often organized in many Russian companies. Our educational structure resembles the system used in western countries. We adopted the best foreign experience; we use their school and methodology. Competent specialists and highly experienced trainers hold such courses at our company, which gives an articulate system of professional knowledge. The educ
ational program is meant for two years. This is the time when our specialists take different courses, make trips to workshops held in the Moscow region or abroad two or three times a year and  finally get the corresponding certificate, and all of that is done on-the-job and without any loss in salary.