The Global Players Have Injected A Dose Of Professionalism In Device Marketing...
Mr. Sanjay Lohani, Head, Marketing (India) of Orthopaedic Company – Zimmer (USA), has an experience of nearly 14 years of MNC general management, marketing, sales & business development across medical devices & pharmaceutical sectors. Sir has worked with renowned companies like Baxter Healthcare (Mumbai) as Sales Manager – Western India, Edward Life sciences (Mumbai) ICI Pharmaceuticals (Chennai) at various levels.
The PUMBA GAZETTE team had the opportunity to catch up with Sir and obtain his views on the upcoming segment of biomedical devices.
Q1. Pharmaceuticals and medical devices being similar where do you think the difference lies in marketing strategy?
Pharmaceuticals and medical devices though two seemingly similar fields are actually quite different. Pharmaceutical industry is a huge industry with hundreds of fragmented players whereas the device industry is relatively small and has restricted number of players.
In layman’s terms, devices are often used by interventional doctors or surgeons which are very- very few in numbers while the pharmaceutical industry has the comfort of huge number of customer (doctor) base.
The Pharma marketing relies more on representatives who can effectively communicate the benefits and limitations of the drugs (emphasis mainly on kinetics, metabolism, and eventual disposition in body) they are selling. Medical devices, on the other hand, are more hands-in, as far as both the doctors and the patients are involved, thus it relies heavily on close knit relationships with such few customers (doctors). It heavily relies on hands-on demonstration and in-Cath Lab/Operation Theatre (emphasis on interaction with body and possible failure modes). In other words, technical support and service of the sales person plays a major role as far as the devices are concerned whereas theoretical product knowledge, good communication and ability to differentiate oneself among the clutter plays a major role in Pharma marketing/selling.
Q2. When did you enter into medical devices sector?
I have been associated with marketing of medical devices for last 10 years and have worked for reputed multi national companies which are global leaders in the field they are in.
Q3. From the time you entered the sector and now what is the major difference you notice in this segment?
Ten years back when I entered in the Device segment, big Indian distributors ruled the roost. They were the ones who had close relationships with the surgeons/doctors and would import devices as per their needs.
In last few years, as the market in India is becoming attractive, more and more global players are setting up their own shops in India, slowly taking the relationships away from the distributors. These global players have injected a huge dose of professionalism in device marketing.
Q4. How do you anticipate the future of the medical devices industry by 2012?
India's growing population of over 1 billion presents a great market opportunity for the Life Science or Device companies. With the liberalization of Indian economy and its willingness to adapt to the new technologies, time to market devices in the Indian market is now. Also, India's large pool of talented scientific and technical
manpower, low R&D cost and lower cost of manufacturing has made it an attractive destination for sourcing.
In next couple of years as the affordability, awareness and access of the huge middle class population of India improves, the device industry is all set to relieve the morbidity and mortality of the said population and likely to increase the quality of life as well as lifeexpectancy. The industry will continue to deliver a strong double digit growth in coming next few years.
Q5. With the life span of an individual increasing, orthopaedic surgeries are on a rise however the cost is beyond the reach of an average Indian. What can be done to make medical devices affordable for the average Indian?
In last 5-6 years, the affordability of Indian middle class has consistently been improving which has made the access of treatment involving medical devices within the reach of a large section of middle class. For poor class of patients, I am aware of many Government hospitals which do not charge the patient for the hospital and surgeon fee. For last many years we have been hearing a lot about insurance sector gaining ground, but so far their coverage is way below the expectation. But it surely holds a big promise.
Q6. Medical tourism is gaining a strong foothold in India with more and more people coming to India for surgeries related to replacement therapies. What are the major benefits India offers in this respect?
Good that you have asked this question! It is still more a dream than reality. I believe India is far off than realising the true potential of medical tourism. So far only a few big corporate hospitals have been able to attract patients (that too, from the markets like Middle East and Africa). For India, to be a successful medical tourism destination, we need to have better systems, facilities, results and focus.
Q7. What is the technological innovation you have carried out at Zimmer?
At Zimmer, we believe in making available technologically superior devices to improve quality of life of patients world over. In India, we have strived to make available these technologically superior devices almost at the same time at which they are being introduced in developed world, that too at a price in-line with the existing devices for similar disorders. An example is the Gender Knee which is a knee designed
specifically for women anatomy. We were the first country in Asia to make available this knee for the ailing arthritic women in our country. It has been accepted very well by the Orthopaedic community. Their confidence in us keeps us focusing on our vision which is to be the global leader in enhancing quality of life for orthopaedic patients worldwide.
Compiled by: The PUMBA Gazette Interview Team
