Friends in the Pharma Industry are Losing Their Jobs!

We've known for a long time that the pharmaceutical industry is in a recession. The results of a poll of readers of Pharma Marketing Blog that I started back in March, 2008 has consistently said so (see "Is the Pharma Industry in a Recession?" and the chart above showing recent results; go to Pharma Marketing Blog to take the poll).

We've all seen the stories of decreasing pharmaceutical marketing and R&D budgets and resulting layoffs.

Now I am beginning to hear from friends -- including at least two bloggers who work at pharmaceutical companies -- that they have "left" their jobs to pursue other activities. Rich Meyer, blogger over at "The World of DTC Marketing Blog", recently left Medtronic Diabetes -- a medical device company -- because he felt they were not investing in the "e" channel and believed that his talents could be better used elsewhere.

Lending a Hand
Jobs come and go, but friends are forever. Whatever I can do to help my friends find new jobs or get their new endeavors a head start, I will do. Here are a few ways I can help anyone who is looking for new opportunities within the pharma space:

Make My Pharma Social Network Work for You: If you are reading this, you are probably a proponent of social networking. By all means, update your profile on LinkedIn and get a Facebook page. But also consider the Forums at Pharma Marketing Network if you wish to have a platform to draw attention to yourself as an expert in pharmaceutical marketing. See "An Online Community to Call Our Own" for more information about this social network for pharma marketers.

Ways in which the Forums can help:

• Post your resume to the Jobs Exchange Forum -- no charge!
• Volunteer to be a moderator of one of the many discussion forums and post your opinions and other information relevant to the topic area of the forum. There are forums devoted to DTC, physician marketing, eMarketing, CME, etc. The more you post, the more search engine visibility you get and the more people will read your Forum profile, which can include your bio and other information you wish to share. Potential employers and business partners may be among the 80,000 monthly visitors to the Forums site. Contact me (johnmack@virsci.com) if you are interested in learning more about becoming a Forum moderator.
• Join the Pharma Marketing Network Roundtable and be cited as an expert in Pharma Marketing News articles. The Roundtable is my advisory board that I go to first when I need expert opinion on a range of topics covered in my newsletter. It's an exclusive group of people who work inside pharmaceutical companies and in agencies or consultancies that service the pharmaceutical industry. The Roundtable Discussion Forum is a members-only, password protected forum where Roundtable members can post their opinions within a trusted community. You can use the social networking tools available to build a "buddy" list for exchanging personal messages. Apply to be a member here.
  

Be a guest on Pharma Marketing Talk live Internet talk show, which is also archived as a podcast. I am hosting a series of interviews of Pharma eMarketing Pioneers and would like to talk with you if you think you are a pioneer, whether you are currently employed or not. Apply to be a guest here.

I am sorry that I cannot do more. Good luck!