Cultivating collaborative and strategic relationships with key accounts is critical to ensuring access and meaningful engagement with managed markets customers. HIRC's Relationship Status and Customer Facing Access report benchmarks 40+ leading pharmaceutical manufacturers based on managed care customer evaluations of their relationship status and the level of access of customer facing personnel to key decision-makers. The report addresses the following questions:

• How do commercial health plan and PBM decision-makers rate their relationships with 40+ pharmaceutical manufacturers, from distant to strategic?
• Which manufacturers lead in cultivating strategic and collaborative relationships?
• How can a pharmaceutical firm move from having distant/tactical relationships with managed markets customers to more collaborative/strategic engagements?
• What attributes are critical to enhancing manufacturer account team customer facing access and strategic relationships?

Key Finding: Pharmaceutical manufacturers can enhance their relationship status with key accounts by demonstrating a commitment to managed care, innovative contracting, and enhancing engagement frequency, quality, and trust.

Novartis Rated as Having the Best Overall Relationship Status Among Managed Markets Customers. Managed markets customers were asked to rate their relationships with 40+ manufacturers from distant to strategic. Novartis leads in overall relationship status ratings, with 63% of managed care decision-makers reporting their relationship as collaborative or strategic.

Novartis is followed closely by Merck with 62% and Novo Nordisk with 61% reporting their relationship as collaborative or strategic. Managed markets KDMs are selective in building strong relationships with pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Relationships with Pharmaceutical Manufacturers. Managed markets key decision-makers were asked to rate 40+ pharmaceutical manufacturer relationships with their organization as either distant, tactical, collaborative, or strategic. A typical managed markets customer rates 7% of their relationships with manufactures as strategic, 26% of relationships as collaborative, and the remaining 66% as tactical or distant.

Data suggest that a typical managed markets decision-maker has fewer distant or tactical relationshios and slightly more collaborative and strategic relationships in 2019. For example, 33% of relationships for a typical managed markets customer are rated as strategic or collaborative in 2019, compared to 29% in 2018.

The full report includes a complete listing of relationship status benchmark ratings across 40+ pharmaceutical manufacturers, as well as in-depth analysis on how manufacturers can drive towards more strategic and collaborative relationships.

Research Methodology and Report Availability. In December-January, HIRC surveyed 85 key decision-makers from leading commercial health plans and pharmacy benefit managers. Online surveys and follow-up telephone interviews were used to gather information. The Relationship Status and Customer Facing Access report is part of the Best Programs and Best People Service, and is now available to subscribers at www.hirc.com.