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The fastest way to make a good interview go bad is to avoid questions posed by the hiring manager. The one question candidates love to avoid is, “What is your great

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

est weakness?” Most candidates are quick to respond with superficial answers such as “I’m a workaholic” or “I’m a perfectionist.” Not only are those responses borin

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

g, but they are also predictable answers interviewers are used to hearing. So much so that an interviewer’s comeback line often is, “That doesn’t sound like a weakn

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

ess. Now why don’t you tell me about a real weakness?”

Ouch. What an uncomfortable position to be in—when a decision maker challenges you during an interview. Just

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

like you, the interviewer wants the process to go as seamlessly as possible, and they quickly become resentful when they are placed in a confrontational position.

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

When answering questions surrounding your greatest weakness, my advice is to tell the truth—to a point. Though I don’t advocate providing a play-by-play of every a

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

rea that may need improvement, it isn’t a good idea not to cop to a weakness either. A happy medium does exist, and it lies in focusing your response on an area tha

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

t doesn’t have a major impact on your ability to do the job. This should be an area that you are on your way to improving. Note, not an area you’ve already improved

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

, but one that is well on its way.

Interviewers recognize that jobseekers aren’t forthcoming when answering the “greatest weakness” question. As a result, there is

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

a new trend in hiring circles of interviewers cleverly disguising the question and using a variation of the theme. In doing so, interviewers are successfully stump

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

ng candidates, and are receiving responses that uncover the not-so-pleasant side of candidates.

Cleverly Designed “Greatest Weakness” Questions

* We all have aspe

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

cts of our job we prefer not to do. What aspect of your day-to-day responsibilities do you dislike?

In hopes of making you feel comfortable, interviewers may ask q

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

uestions that start with “we.” The psychology behind this is to make you feel as though you are with a friend, which can cause you to let your guard down.

* Think

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

back to your last review. What suggestions did your supervisor have for improvement?

The chances are extremely high that your supervisor offered suggestions for im

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

provement. Interviewers are aware of this and anticipate that you will disclose the details of your most recent evaluation.

* Describe a project you worked on that

t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel

didn’t turn out as well as you expected.

Interviewers find that job seekers reveal more when they are asked to tell a story. The assumption is made that the more

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

you talk, the more likely you’ll disclose your weaknesses.

* In what area of your work do you think you can be more effective?

This question is very similar to “g

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

reatest weakness” question. However, interviewers believe the way the question is phrased will make you feel less threatened, and therefore more likely to answer fr

.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de

eely.

Bottom line: whether or not you want to divulge sensitive information during an interview, an interviewer is going to try his or her darnedest to dig for ske

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

letons in your closet. Interviewers want to uncover any reasons why they shouldn’t hire you, and they hope those reasons will come straight from you. So be prepared

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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In Chapter Nine of Sun Zi Art of War, Sun Zi mentioned the principles of deploying troops in four terrains. They are mountainous region, water bodies, salty swamps and marshes, level terrain. Now comes the third part of the series, salty swamps and marshes. Read on to find out.

Job-seekers today get used to hearing some pretty awful things from recruiters and hiring managers. Since you can't reach through the phone and strangle a person, here are snappy comebacks to use when you hear one of those outrageous statements during a job search.

Did you know that you have an untapped source of revenue at your very fingertips? It’s true, but there’s no need to look too far for it because that source of revenue is you! If you’re ready to uncover the hidden skills inside you and leave the rat race of work-at-home job boards behind, then you’re definitely in the right place.

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