Orly Kolatkar
Senior Product Manager, Patient and AHCP Promo, Esbriet
Genentech
The Heartfelt Marketer
Orly Kolatkar is living proof that it’s possible to be a consummate professional, a leader and strategist, and be personally invested in the well-being of your fellow humans. Orly has a heartfelt understanding of the patient community and constantly works with them to determine how she can better serve them.
The flagship product that has come out of this approach is IPF Digest, a magazine-style educational piece that features useful and authentic content about idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and Esbriet for patients and caregivers. This innovative piece is displayed in doctors’ offices and is aimed at empowering patients to be their own best advocate by providing them with the tools and resources on how to live their life to the fullest with IPF.
In a similar way, Orly is leading the way in allowing patients to share their experiences through online videos and at live patient programs with an audience eager to learn what it means to face the challenges of living with IPF. No matter what form of outreach or through which channel: Orly believes in the power of the authentic patient voice to best address the “why” of disease management and treatment.
Orly also involves real patients in various forms of market research and internal engagements. Her colleagues from manufacturing to corporate relations, sales, and marketing have all had the opportunity to hear from patients and caregivers from the IPF Community. This reminder of why they go to work every day has been credited with a major boost in motivation across functions.
In previous roles, Orly has transformed the way her brands are marketed and, more importantly, how they reach their patient audience. She’s conducted disease awareness campaigns, including the launch of the allergicasthma.com which resulted in an intent to change behavior significantly above industry benchmarks. And through optimization, she also achieved a measurable increase in targeted attendance for live patient events.
Successes such as these did not go unnoticed: Orly has been recognized for her achievements, including several nominations and recognitions within Genentech, including a Marketing Excellence Award for Best Branding Campaign, and an Interactive Marketing Vision Award.
