MEDICAL SCIENCE LIAISONS: Know-how or Know Who?
By Robin L. Winter-Sperry, MD

Training can transform good Medical Science Liaisons into great ones. The challenge for them is to move beyond exchanging data to excelling at networking with thought leaders and communicating with demanding audiences.

The best MSLs toggle between science and business with clinical expertise and basic business acumen.

Some of the personality characteristics that go into making a great clinician and scientist are the ability to demonstrate attention to detail, scientific rigor, and discipline. Highly developed social skills are usually not a requirement. Through my experience building, managing, and training Medical Science Liaison (MSL) teams for over a decade, it has become clear to me that different personality types gravitate toward certain positions. MSLs generally have doctoral-level scientific degrees and clinical expertise. In college, many of them were the ones that competed in science classes for the best grades and stayed in the labs the longest. They usually weren’t the folks wearing lampshades on their heads at frat parties.

In the pharmaceutical and device industry, positions and personality types are particularly apparent when you look at the people who become sales representatives versus those who become Medical Science Liaisons (MSLs). Among the similarities, both sales representatives and MSLs are regionally based in the United States. However, both of these industry positions should be clearly defined with respect to their unique roles, responsibilities, and metrics. The best MSLs are the ones who can toggle between science and business with clinical expertise and basic business acumen. One of the primary functions of the MSL is to develop relationships with top clinicians in the medical community.

The Pressure Is On
As the pharmaceutical industry’s access to healthcare providers in U.S. institutions of higher learning and centers of excellence is decreasing, the pressure remains on all of us to do more with less. MSLs are increasingly asked to get more out of the peer-to-peer scientific relationships that they are hired to develop with leaders in the medical community. Of course, the exchange between the MSL and thought leader needs to be conducted in accordance with legal, regulatory, and industry compliance standards and guidelines, however, that alone is not enough.

From a practical standpoint, MSLs are one of the most expensive positions for a company and for its investment, so corporations continue to ask: What am I getting for my money? The value that a good MSL brings is multifaceted. Nevertheless, training and coaching can really make the difference between a good MSL and a great one. A good MSL can gain access to a list of thought leaders in his or her medical community; a great MSL transforms that access into a thought leader network. The art form comes into the equation when an MSL needs to move the relationship from a simple data exchange to one of a true relationship.

From a practical standpoint, MSLs are one of the most expensive positions for a company and for its investment, so corporations continue to ask: What am I getting for my money?

Scientific Expertise Is Just the Beginning
It’s interesting to watch MSLs progress in their development. Often the skills that bring them to the door of the industry for an MSL position (depth of scientific knowledge) are not enough to make them successful as an MSL. In order to move to the next level of thought leader relationship development, they need to go beyond the science to a level of social intelligence that many of them do not have at first. In this area, we can all take some lessons from some of the most successful sales and marketing people. They know how to find common ground with their audience at the right time. They know how to listen effectively and to learn from the environment around them. They are sensitive to social cues and cultural nuances and usually have probing question and good negotiating skills. They plan ahead when they go into a meeting (versus some MSLs who come armed with the latest data but get to an appointment without thinking about what their goals and objectives are for the visit). They are taught how to handle objections. When I first joined the industry and was involved with the medical training of sales representatives, I was amazed to learn that “no” didn’t mean a traditional “no” to them. It was a simple challenge that they were well schooled in getting around. Overcoming this challenge was a learned skill. While science is the currency that MSLs use, the ability to communicate that information effectively is a paramount skill.

MSLs must follow a path to develop relationships within their own companies and externally with thought leaders. They often deal with people who have high demands of the industry and the medical community. Working with a demanding audience is the price that MSLs pay to gain respect and to further their relationships both internally and externally. For those who try to meet the high expectations of their audience and who always strive to get the “A” in class—as most MSLs do—adding core skills such as deepening business acumen, social intelligence, and communication skills will not only expand their career development but also increase their value to the companies for which they work and to the leaders in the medical community.

Robin L. Winter-Sperry, MD, is President and CEO of Scientific Advantage in Bernardsville, NJ, a consulting, training, and medical information firm that specializes in the areas of Medical Science Liaisons and Medical Affairs. She can be reached at r.winter-sperry@scientificadvantage.com