How to raise morale in your medical sales team

Medical sales is a demanding industry. With constant competition and a changing, ever-growing market to contend with, it’s important that sales representatives stay enthusiastic and engaged if they are to thrive in a challenging industry. Studies show that highly engaged teams are 21% more profitable than their disengaged peers, which suggests that the matter of morale should be high on the business agenda for sales teams, managers and organisations alike. 

Whether you’re a sales representative or a team leader, here are some pointers for raising morale within the workforce and increasing your employees’ job satisfaction.

Give clear feedback

Everybody wants to know whether or not they’re doing well at their job. In the competitive world of sales, this is even more important: regular feedback helps employees improve on what they’re doing, which in turn makes for happy, engaged employees. Employers should hold regular review sessions in the workplace, where staff can air any issues that need addressing, and offer advice should they need it. This form of feedback is especially important for new sales staff, for which the regulation-heavy world of medical sales can often feel overwhelming.

It’s also important to offer praise. 70% of staff say that motivation and morale would improve with appreciation from managers, yet 34% of senior decision-markers say they don't believe providing regular recognition and thanks has a significant influence on staff retention. This shows a disconnect which medical sales manager should focus on this year, providing regular positive feedback to develop a happy, engaged workplace. 

Give employees a sense of purpose and responsibility 

People need to be invested in their company’s visions and values: if they are, they’ll be much more motivated to do well. Your employees should feel like they’re part of something that’s much bigger than themselves: an employer’s challenge is to make sure they know it, especially as 68% of people who find an organisation’s vision meaningful will be highly engaged at work. As a profession that has direct benefits for millions of people suffering from illness around the worldwide, medical sales is an ideal industry in which to inspire others. However, potential medical sales people know that the industry is competitive, hard work and that they need to be fully invested in it if they want to be successful within it.

Provide room to grow

Many people see their job as a stepping stone in their career: if they do their job well, they’ll have the chance to learn new skills, take on new responsibilities and progress within their role, and within the company. However, many organisations have no clear development pathways, resulting in ambitious and qualified employees looking elsewhere for their next career opportunities.

To combat this, it’s important to have a clear career path in place and hold regular review sessions for all employees. Ask them how they feel they can progress,and what you can do to help them do so. Encourage employees to improve by rewarding the best ones with promotions, more responsibilities or raises; promoting from within is also an excellent way to show appreciation for hard-working staff, as is investing in training. Taking the time to show employees that you are invested in their career will motivate your team and help them see the upsides that come with doing well at work. 

Work on team building

Team building isn’t a wasted exercise: it’s a good way of creating a strong, cohesive group of employees who feel valued whilst at work. Whether it’s something small like drinks after work, or something more adventurous like paint ball, spending time together outside of work helps to build bonds between team members and also indicates that they are appreciated by the company. Similarly, remembering and celebrating little things like birthdays, work anniversaries or promotions also goes a long way towards creating a friendly culture where everybody can feel valued.  

Find your next medical sales job with IQVIA CSMS

At IQVIA CSMS, work-life balance and career development are important to us and our medical sales representatives. We pride ourselves on knowing the medical sales industry inside and out, helping to match innovative job openings for companies worldwide to the most talented candidates in the market. Find out more about what we do here, or browse our medical sales jobs.