CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – September 3, 2010 – Pharmaceutical companies have historically focused on physicians and pharmacists to drive new product uptake in the marketplace.  Now, however, relationships with patient advocacy groups and professional organizations are proving ever more critical to new product success.  Consequently, pharmaceutical companies' Professional and Advocacy Relations (PAR) functions warrant increased attention and are receiving heightened scrutiny, according to a study by Best Practices, LLC.  
The detailed report provides executives with insights into the methods that leading companies are utilizing to create effective cross-function collaboration. Key topics covered in Managing Cross-Functional Teams for Pharmaceutical Product Commercialization Excellence include:

In the compelling benchmarking report, Patient Advocacy and Professional Organizations: Building Effective Relationships, (available at http://www.best-in-class.com/rr749.htm) top pharmaceutical companies, including Merck, Abbott Labs, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Wyeth and Eli Lilly broach the multifaceted issues faced by their PAR divisions.  In addition, these industry leaders share myriad patient advocacy best practices such as:

• Maintain a contact database to track spending across patient advocacy groups and professional associations.
• Encourage C-level management to attend professional organizational meetings and networking events to cast the company in the public spotlight.  

To learn more, download a complimentary summary of this report at: http://www.best-in-class.com/rr749.htm. For deeper exploration and discussion of the captured data, please contact Dexter Beals at 919-767-9229 or dbeals@best-in-class.com