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In part one of this article I told you about how perceptions are changing in the workplace. In part two, I want to tell you more about the “Merge Point Method” and how it helps you create training programs that lead to stronger collaboration between individuals and teams.

The Wrong Focus

It is fascinating that the first thing we do when identifying human resources needs is list the job skills for the position (cognitive and tech

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

nical). But when given the choice between two equally qualified applicants we tend to choose based on their level of “personal maturity”. Traits like self-confidence and other characteristics (like guiding awareness of values, goal orientation, awareness of their strengths and weaknesses, evidence of self-development, decisiveness, etc.). We say that we choose the best fit for the team or the company culture.

What we really mean

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

Examples of combination products may in

s that we found traits in that person that really appealed to us. Traits that sometimes aren’t clear or tangible. We just like them based on their personality and character. You just know that you want people like that in your department and your company. We choose our friends, softball teammates, and our mate similarly; perceiving a connection and an attitude that supports collaboration.

Incidentally, as we base our decisions to

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

hire people solely on skill or technical competence, we also resort to the same thinking to correct unexpected behavior (diversity training, disciplinary action, and sometimes termination). Yet, fewer employees are fired for not knowing their job than for problems like: lack of trust and motivation, failure to adapt, lack of initiative in work performance, and apathy towards customers. The same can be said about thousands of fail

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

d marriages in the United States. The number of divorces filed under dissolution of marriage increases at an astonishing rate every year. And it isn’t because they lack marriage skills. The shortcomings are in their lack of personal skills; skills necessary for resolving problems.

So if the problem is so obvious; if our inability to collaborate is the result of a lack in personal and social skills, then why aren’t we addressing t

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

Combination pro

he problem at the source? Perhaps it is because of our insistence in applying quick intellectual fixes to our collaboration problems. One of my favorite quotes by Fyodor Dostoyevsky reads, "It is not the brains that matter most, but that which guides them—the character, the heart, generous qualities, progressive ideas." I find myself talking with clients about things like generosity, courtesy, and respect, which I know our cultur

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

promotes, but seldom ever talks about in the workplace. I emphasize that customers won’t care about web design, slogans, or product features (and employees won’t care about your tactics and business initiatives) until they are clear about your values and until they trust your character.

Teaching People to “Fake It”

We have been teaching employees for the last 20 years to fake their way through collaborating with others. We have

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

forced them into an irrational pattern of isolating who they truly are and behaving by the law of the “corporate land”. But the idea of separating personal values from corporate behavior is hypocritical at best; irrational for sure. We do it most often by teaching “teamwork” but not the character that drives sincere collaboration; by asking employees to embrace innovation, but quenching the emotional qualities behind “being” inno

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

ative. We tell employees to “care” for customers, but do not teach them empathy. Our marketing and advertisement tells people that our company is “world-class”, while employees walk out the back door to work for the competition. We talk big, but the heart of your customer service and retention strategies is missing the same component that has been missing from the heart of your employee development strategies for a long time: hear

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

t-felt service.

Tactics, technical skills, and expertise are only a part of what will make your company succeed. Interpersonal ineptitude is killing companies (even with the best products and services in the market). It is degrading performance, it is corroding motivation and commitment, building hostility and apathy, and subsequently it is preventing us from growing as human beings.

We have created a culture where people act wi

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

h the same disregard for each other as they do on the road. It is a pattern of pushing mission statements based on goals instead of on values; explaining integrity instead of exemplifying it; assigning responsibilities without promoting accountability; expecting good service instead of heart-felt, giving service; demanding trust instead of earning it.

Building a MERGE Training Program

So, if you are serious about building a trai

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

Following aspects would a

ing program that has a strong values framework, let me suggest that you use the Merge Point Method to create it. At a minimum, include training that addresses:

1. Mission based on Values: Individuals can build a common mission based on shared values. Even in cultures driven by conflict, values can serve as the foundation for every interaction. Working from a platform of common values is not enough, though. People should also lear

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

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

n to become aware of their behavior (their “driving strategies”), understanding the impact of their agreements with others, and dealing with conflict when there is a lack of alignment between values and behavior.

2. Exemplifying Integrity: Explaining integrity is different from exemplifying it. Teach people what integrity looks like and they will know the right behaviors to emulate. Integrity is living by your values and managing

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

risk. It is demonstrating consistency of values-driven behavior and building a safe environment to practice those values. Integrity is about the agreements you make with yourself and about clearly defining the right attitudes and actions to pursue, even if you have to make personal sacrifices to behave appropriately. People who behave with integrity not only act in accordance with their values, but also communicate that they are a

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

cting according to them.

3. Responsibility with Accountability: There are two aspects of daily behavior and collaboration that need definition: responsibility and accountability. Start by ensuring that people understand their roles; your expectations for what they do and how they do it. Then teach them to develop a sense of ownership that leads to accountability. This includes understanding ownership, rewarding accountability, an

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

describing liability for blind-spots.

4. Giving Service: Beyond our practices for providing great customer service to internal and external customers is another criterion for service: developing a servant’s heart. Quality service is a great goal that improves our relationship with customers and helps them feel rewarded for doing business with you. But when you go beyond the practice and tap into the “heart” of service you develo

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

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

p genuine service orientation. Incorporate the ideas of reliability, credibility, responsiveness, and empathy into your training program.

5. Earned Trust: Build a program where trust is earned rather than automatically expected based on title, position, or experience. Edward Marshall, in his book “Building Trust At The Speed of Change”, identifies something called “The Transaction-Based Organization”. Within the Transaction-Base

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

Organization, the emphasis is on fear and blame with no willingness to take risk. People are nice, but not honest. Groups of people form conflicting turfs based on their mutual struggles. Competing cultural norms are based on negative drivers like control, power, and self-promotion rather than positive drivers like openness, honesty, trust, and service. As a result, individuals create false or unclear expectations and behavior wh

.

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

ich they feel powerlessness to address. The first four components of MERGE will help you defeat the “transaction-based” mentality. But you should incorporate the definition of trust and methods for gaining / regaining it into your training program.

If you strive for excellence in every aspect of your life, you are probably already practicing many of the principles taught by MERGE. The principles are nothing new. They are simply

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

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

rganized to give you a fresh perspective in achieving collaboration in work and personal life. You have the unique opportunity to make a difference where you live and work by practicing these principles and by training every member of your company to practice MERGE. Amidst the frustrations you experience every day, you can now make an educated decision to change the patterns that keep you from enjoying a successful life and career

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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Cold calling can be a very effective method of contacting hiring managers to uncover relevant job opportunities for yourself. When it's done correctly, that is. Learn how to effectively cold call and give a kickstart to your job search.

Serbia, like the most of the Eastern European countries, which are in the process of transition, has appeared in terms of the development of entrepreneurship, especially or the women entrepreneurship. Small or micro businesses became an important actor of growth and employment in these countries, although these potentials had not been completely used. This unusual possibility has especially related to those women who, despite their high education and high participation in labor market, became entrepreneurs twice as little as men. This difference can be noticed in all countries, regardless to the degree of participation of small or micro businesses in their economies.

Many people wish to help entrepreneurs get started and become successful. Of course if you have never run a business before, well it can be tough indeed. Now then if one were to use a little creativity to apply themselves then it might be possible to help a whole lot of people fairly easily you see?

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