Skip to Content
  • Offices

    Offices

    North & Latin America
    • Atlanta
    • Austin
    • Bogota
    • Boston
    • Buenos Aires
    • Chicago
    • Dallas
    • Denver
    • Houston
    • Los Angeles
    • Mexico City
    • Minneapolis
    • Monterrey
    • Montreal
    • New York
    • Rio de Janeiro
    • San Francisco
    • Santiago
    • São Paulo
    • Seattle
    • Silicon Valley
    • Toronto
    • Washington, DC
    Europe & Africa
    • Amsterdam
    • Athens
    • Berlin
    • Brussels
    • Copenhagen
    • Dusseldorf
    • Frankfurt
    • Helsinki
    • Istanbul
    • Johannesburg
    • Kyiv
    • Lisbon
    • London
    • Madrid
    • Milan
    • Munich
    • Oslo
    • Paris
    • Rome
    • Stockholm
    • Vienna
    • Warsaw
    • Zurich
    Middle East
    • Doha
    • Dubai
    • Riyadh
    Asia & Australia
    • Bangkok
    • Beijing
    • Bengaluru
    • Brisbane
    • Ho Chi Minh City
    • Hong Kong
    • Jakarta
    • Kuala Lumpur
    • Manila
    • Melbourne
    • Mumbai
    • New Delhi
    • Perth
    • Seoul
    • Shanghai
    • Singapore
    • Sydney
    • Tokyo
    See all offices
  • Alumni
  • Media Center
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • Global

    Select your region and language

    Global
    • Global (English)
    North & Latin America
    • Brazil (Português)
    • Argentina (Español)
    • Canada (Français)
    • Chile (Español)
    • Colombia (Español)
    Europe, Middle East, & Africa
    • France (Français)
    • DACH Region (Deutsch)
    • Italy (Italiano)
    • Spain (Español)
    • Greece (Elliniká)
    Asia & Australia
    • China (中文版)
    • Korea (한국어)
    • Japan (日本語)
  • Saved items (0)
    Saved items (0)

    You have no saved items.

    Bookmark content that interests you and it will be saved here for you to read or share later.

    Explore Bain Insights
  • Industries
    Main menu

    Industries

    • Aerospace & Defense
    • Agribusiness
    • Chemicals
    • Construction & Infrastructure
    • Consumer Products
    • Financial Services
    • Healthcare & Life Sciences
    • Industrial Machinery & Equipment
    • Media & Entertainment
      Industries
      Media & Entertainment
      • Media Lab
    • Metals
    • Mining
    • Oil & Gas
    • Paper & Packaging
    • Private Equity
      Industries
      Private Equity
      • Due Diligence
      • Exit Planning
      • Firm Strategy & Operations
      • Portfolio Value Creation
    • Social Impact
    • Retail
    • Technology
    • Telecommunications
      Industries
      Telecommunications
      • Capital Expenditure
      • Telco Digital Transformation
    • Transportation
    • Travel & Leisure
    • Utilities & Renewables
  • Consulting Services
    Main menu

    Consulting Services

    • Customer Experience
    • Sustainability
    • Innovation
    • M&A
    • Operations
    • People & Organization
    • Private Equity
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Strategy
    • AI, Insights, and Solutions
    • Technology
    • Transformation
  • Digital
  • Insights
    Main menu

    Insights

    • Industry Insights
    • Services Insights
    • Bain Books
    • Webinars
    • Bain Futures
    View all Insights
    Featured topics
    • Tariff Response
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Thriving in Uncertainty
    • Executive Conversations
    • Macro Trends
    • M&A Report
    • Healthcare Private Equity Report
    • Paper & Packaging Report
    • Technology Report
    • CEO's Guide to Sustainability
    • CEO Insights
    • CFO Insights
    • COO Insights
    • CIO Insights
    • CMO Insights
    View all featured topics
  • About
    Main menu

    About

    • What We Do
    • What We Believe
    • Our People & Leadership
    • Client Results
    • Awards & Recognition
    • Global Affiliations
    Further: Our global responsibility
    • Sustainability
    • Social Impact
    • World Economic Forum
    Learn more about Further
  • Careers
    Main menu

    Careers

    • Work with Us
      Careers
      Work with Us
      • Find Your Place
      • Our Work Areas
      • Integrated Teams
      • Students
      • Internships & Programs
      • Recruiting Events
    • Life at Bain
      Careers
      Life at Bain
      • Blog: Inside Bain
      • Career Stories
      • Our People
      • Where We Work
      • Supporting Your Growth
      • Affinity Groups
      • Benefits
    • Impact Stories
    • Hiring Process
      Careers
      Hiring Process
      • What to Expect
      • Interviewing
    FIND JOBS
  • Offices
    Main menu

    Offices

    • North & Latin America
      Offices
      North & Latin America
      • Atlanta
      • Austin
      • Bogota
      • Boston
      • Buenos Aires
      • Chicago
      • Dallas
      • Denver
      • Houston
      • Los Angeles
      • Mexico City
      • Minneapolis
      • Monterrey
      • Montreal
      • New York
      • Rio de Janeiro
      • San Francisco
      • Santiago
      • São Paulo
      • Seattle
      • Silicon Valley
      • Toronto
      • Washington, DC
    • Europe & Africa
      Offices
      Europe & Africa
      • Amsterdam
      • Athens
      • Berlin
      • Brussels
      • Copenhagen
      • Dusseldorf
      • Frankfurt
      • Helsinki
      • Istanbul
      • Johannesburg
      • Kyiv
      • Lisbon
      • London
      • Madrid
      • Milan
      • Munich
      • Oslo
      • Paris
      • Rome
      • Stockholm
      • Vienna
      • Warsaw
      • Zurich
    • Middle East
      Offices
      Middle East
      • Doha
      • Dubai
      • Riyadh
    • Asia & Australia
      Offices
      Asia & Australia
      • Bangkok
      • Beijing
      • Bengaluru
      • Brisbane
      • Ho Chi Minh City
      • Hong Kong
      • Jakarta
      • Kuala Lumpur
      • Manila
      • Melbourne
      • Mumbai
      • New Delhi
      • Perth
      • Seoul
      • Shanghai
      • Singapore
      • Sydney
      • Tokyo
    See all offices
  • Alumni
  • Media Center
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • Global
    Main menu

    Select your region and language

    • Global
      Select your region and language
      Global
      • Global (English)
    • North & Latin America
      Select your region and language
      North & Latin America
      • Brazil (Português)
      • Argentina (Español)
      • Canada (Français)
      • Chile (Español)
      • Colombia (Español)
    • Europe, Middle East, & Africa
      Select your region and language
      Europe, Middle East, & Africa
      • France (Français)
      • DACH Region (Deutsch)
      • Italy (Italiano)
      • Spain (Español)
      • Greece (Elliniká)
    • Asia & Australia
      Select your region and language
      Asia & Australia
      • China (中文版)
      • Korea (한국어)
      • Japan (日本語)
  • Saved items  (0)
    Main menu
    Saved items (0)

    You have no saved items.

    Bookmark content that interests you and it will be saved here for you to read or share later.

    Explore Bain Insights
  • Industries
    • Industries

      • Aerospace & Defense
      • Agribusiness
      • Chemicals
      • Construction & Infrastructure
      • Consumer Products
      • Financial Services
      • Healthcare & Life Sciences
      • Industrial Machinery & Equipment
      • Media & Entertainment
      • Metals
      • Mining
      • Oil & Gas
      • Paper & Packaging
      • Private Equity
      • Social Impact
      • Retail
      • Technology
      • Telecommunications
      • Transportation
      • Travel & Leisure
      • Utilities & Renewables
  • Consulting Services
    • Consulting Services

      • Customer Experience
      • Sustainability
      • Innovation
      • M&A
      • Operations
      • People & Organization
      • Private Equity
      • Sales & Marketing
      • Strategy
      • AI, Insights, and Solutions
      • Technology
      • Transformation
  • Digital
  • Insights
    • Insights

      • Industry Insights
      • Services Insights
      • Bain Books
      • Webinars
      • Bain Futures
      View all Insights
      Featured topics
      • Tariff Response
      • Artificial Intelligence
      • Thriving in Uncertainty
      • Executive Conversations
      • Macro Trends
      • M&A Report
      • Healthcare Private Equity Report
      • Paper & Packaging Report
      • Technology Report
      • CEO's Guide to Sustainability
      • CEO Insights
      • CFO Insights
      • COO Insights
      • CIO Insights
      • CMO Insights
      View all featured topics
  • About
    • About

      • What We Do
      • What We Believe
      • Our People & Leadership
      • Client Results
      • Awards & Recognition
      • Global Affiliations
      Further: Our global responsibility
      • Sustainability
      • Social Impact
      • World Economic Forum
      Learn more about Further
  • Careers
    Popular Searches
    • Agile
    • Digital
    • Strategy
    Your Previous Searches
      Recently Visited Pages

      Content added to saved items

      Saved items (0)

      Removed from saved items

      Saved items (0)

      Case Study

      Recharging the pharmaceutical sales model

      The salesforce at this pharmaceutical company was growing rapidly, but yielding lower returns. Bain helped design, track and analyze new sales model experiments that led to a plan for smaller, more focused selling teams. The result: 15 percent higher productivity and stronger relationships between doctors and sales representatives.

      • min read

      At a Glance

      • 15% Improvement in sales rep productivity
      • 5-8% Higher revenues on core products

      The Story

      The Situation

      Rapidly escalating sales force levels yielding lower returns.

      Our Approach

      PharmaCo* used experimentation to create new sales design.

      Our Recommendations

      The key recommendations include:

      • Create smaller selling teams focused on fewer physician offices and physicians
      • Reduce number of PharmaCo reps that see the same doctor
      • Treat physician offices as accounts rather than just individual doctors
      • Train reps and district managers in account management skills
      • Create single point sales manager accountability for products in a given region
      • Change tracking measures to realign incentive system to new model

      The Results

      PharmaCo's expected results from the new sales model include:

      • 15% improvement in sales rep productivity
      • 5-8% higher revenues on core products
      • Stronger physician-rep relationships as measured over time
      • Greater flexibility to add and remove products and resources

      * We take our clients' confidentiality seriously. While we've changed their names, the results are real.
      Related Industries
      • Healthcare & Life Sciences
      • Pharmaceuticals
      Related Consulting Services
      • Sales and Marketing
      Healthcare & Life Sciences
      Accelerating Growth and Innovation in European Mid-Sized Pharma

      Insights from the last decade of growth and portfolio innovation can help crack the growth code for EU mid-size pharma.

      Read More
      Healthcare & Life Sciences
      How Life Sciences Leaders Are Widening the AI Capability Gap

      Most pharma and medtech companies agree that a strong data foundation is table stakes. Few invest equally in the behaviors needed to move from pilots to adoption.

      Read More
      Healthcare & Life Sciences
      From Silos to Pods: Scaling AI in Life Sciences

      Cross-functional collaboration is the real differentiator between those that see meaningful returns and those that don’t.

      Read More
      Healthcare & Life Sciences
      Pharmaceuticals M&A

      Dealmaking in 2026 may redefine what it means to buy growth.

      Read More
      Healthcare & Life Sciences
      Innovation Rewired: When Imagination Meets AI

      AI can’t dream. Humans can. The smartest companies combine them into a dream machine.

      Read More

      How We've Helped Clients

      A Pharma Company’s Finance Function Gets a Shot in the Arm

      Read case study

      Pharma oncology growth strategy

      Read case study

      Pharma go-to-market strategy

      Read case study

      Ready to talk?

      We work with ambitious leaders who want to define the future, not hide from it. Together, we achieve extraordinary outcomes.

      Stay ahead in a rapidly changing world. Subscribe to Bain Insights, our monthly look at the critical issues facing global businesses.

      *I have read and understand Bain’s Privacy Notice.

      Please read and agree to the Privacy Policy.
      Bain & Company
      Contact us Sustainability Accessibility Terms of use Privacy Modern Slavery Act Statement Cookie Policy Sitemap Log In

      © 1996-2026 Bain & Company, Inc.

      Contact Bain

      How can we help you?

      • Business inquiry
      • Career information
      • Press relations
      • Partnership request
      • Speaker request
      See all offices