Account managers play an important role in facilitating pharmaceutical manufacturers' relationships with Integrated Delivery Network (IDN) customers. HIRC's report, Integrated Delivery Networks: Evaluation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturer Account Managers, reviews IDNs' evaluation of 35+ pharmaceutical manufacturer account management teams and provides insights into critical account manager success factors. The report addresses the following questions: 

• Which very large, large, and mid-size pharmaceutical firms receive the greatest number of "best-in-class" account manager nominations from IDN decision-makers? Which account manager attributes define the best-in-class? 
• Which very large, large, and mid-size pharmaceutical firms rank highest in overall account manager presence and quality? 
• How do 35+ manufacturer account management teams benchmark across six key account manager competencies? 
• How can IDN/Systems account managers enhance engagement and foster genuine working relationships with IDN customers? 

Key Finding: The industry’s best-in-class IDN/systems account managers are described as responsive, collaborative, and proactive in providing valuable information. Truly collaborating on customers' specific needs remains an opportunity area and sets leading account managers apart. 

Pfizer Leads in Account Manager Presence and Quality with IDN Accounts. Pfizer earns the highest combined account manager presence and quality scores from IDN decision-makers, followed by GlaxoSmithKline and Genentech. Boehringer Ingelheim leads the large manufacturer cohort while Sanofi Vaccines leads among mid-size firms. 

HIRC calculated manufacturers' overall account manager performance score based upon customer evaluations of account managers in two key categories. The full report provides scores in presence and quality for a listing of 35+ firms active in the IDN segment: 

• Presence: Contact with the Account Manager in the Last 12-18 Months 
• Quality: Overall Quality of the Account Manager 

Range of Account Manager Competency Scores. IDN decision-makers were asked to evaluate 35+ pharmaceutical manufacturer account teams on six unique account manager competencies. IDN/Systems account managers have the highest industry average scores in ‘Demonstrates deep product knowledge,' and 'Understanding of health care market trends/regional market dynamics.’ Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim, and BeiGene lead their size cohorts in performance across the six key competencies. 

Opportunities for improvement remain, particularly in 'Knowledge of our business model and strategic imperatives' and ‘Working towards collaborative solutions.’ The full report reveals customer insight into how account managers can deepen relationships with IDN decision-makers, as well as profiles for the leading manufacturers in IDN account engagement. 

Research Methodology and Report Availability. In December and January, HIRC surveyed 52 IDN pharmacy directors and senior leaders. Online surveys and follow-up telephone interviews were used to gather information. The full report, Integrated Delivery Networks: Evaluation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturer Account Managers, is part of the Organized Providers Service, and is now available to subscribers at www.hirc.com.