Area Business Manager

Area Business Manager / First Line Manager (FLM)

Paediatric and Kids Nutrition

Age Group: 3238 years

Experience: 7+ years in Pharmaceutical Sales (Minimum 2 years as FLM in Nutrition OR 2–3 years in Pediatrics)

About Panacea Biotec

Panacea Biotec is an integrated Indian biotechnology company with over 30 years of innovation and care. We have played a pivotal role in the eradication of Poliomyelitis — supplying over 10 billion doses of the polio vaccine and over 220 million doses of the world's first fully liquid combination vaccines. A two-time recipient of Thomson Reuters Top 50 Innovator of the Year award.

Our consumer business offers science-driven solutions for newborns and children — Staart Prime (infant formula free from maltodextrin, palm oil, fructose, and table sugar, fortified with prebiotics), NikoMom (baby care range — diapers, wet wipes, massage oil, head-to-toe wash, lotion, diaper rash cream), and ChilRun (clinically proven nutrition with over 18% higher protein absorption for ages 2+ and 7+).

Position Overview

We are looking for an experienced First Line Manager (FLM) to lead a team of Territory Business Managers / Medical Representatives. In this role, you will be the custodian of the Paediatric and Kids Nutrition portfolio in your area — responsible for how customers perceive, trust, and recommend our brands. You will build brand equity in your geography while delivering sustainable business outcomes.

You are a business leader for your territory — not just a field supervisor. You will balance three equally important dimensions: building your brands, developing your people, and delivering consistent business results.

Key Responsibilities

Therapy Ownership and Brand Building

1. Own the paediatric and kids nutrition therapy category in your territory. You are accountable for how deeply our brands are understood, trusted, and prescribed by every relevant doctor in your geography.
2. Build and maintain a structured engagement plan for high-potential accounts — from awareness to advocacy — ensuring our brands are the preferred choice.
3. Execute brand strategies at the clinic level with precision. Ensure every brand communication is therapeutically relevant, and scientifically accurate.
4. Drive brand salience and consideration among paediatricians through consistent, high-quality detailing and patient-centric conversations.
5. Continuously gather market intelligence — competitor activity, prescription trends, emerging therapy preferences — and feed insights back to the marketing team for strategy refinement.
6. Protect and enhance brand reputation in the market through ethical engagement and scientific credibility.

Team Leadership and People Development

1. Conduct Joint Field Work (JFW) with each team member regularly — observe in-clinic performance, communication effectiveness, and objection handling.
2. Diagnose root causes of underperformance and execute corrective action plans through structured coaching and mentorship.
3. Perform weekly performance reviews with team members covering sales progress, doctor conversions, and coverage deviations amongst others.
4. Identify learning and development needs within the team and provide continuous coaching tailored to each individual's growth stage.

Sales Execution and Business Outcomes

1. Drive business objectives (Primary and Secondary) for the assigned area.
2. Execute systematic conversion plans to grow the prescriber base month on month.
3. Conduct regular Retail Chemist Prescription Audits (RCPA) to evaluate retail availability, monitor real brand demand, and course-correct field efforts to make our brands widely available.
4. Manage stockist and distributor relationships to ensure wide product availability and healthy channel inventory.

Process Discipline and Operational Rigour

1. Ensure strict adherence to Sales Force Automation (SFA) compliance — daily call reports (DCR), campaign logs, and monthly tour plan submissions.
2. Monitor coverage deviations and visit frequencies — prioritise visits to core missed doctors at the earliest opportunity.
3. Maintain data integrity in all field reporting. Accuracy and timeliness are non-negotiable.

Who You Are

Experience and Background

• Qualification: B.Pharm or B.Sc.
• Experience: 7+ years in pharmaceutical sales, with minimum 1–2 years as an FLM in Nutrition or 2–3 years in Pediatrics.
• Track record of working with leading pharmaceutical or paediatric nutrition companies.
• A strong existing network of 30–40 prominent Paediatricians in the target territory is preferred.

Competencies and Mindset

• Therapy depth: Strong domain knowledge in Paediatrics and Nutritional therapy.
• Territory intelligence: Deep understanding of territory dynamics, stockist/distributor networks, and competitor strategies.
• Coaching ability: Proven team management and mentoring skills with the ability to diagnose and develop individual capability.
• Analytical thinking: Ability to analyse territory data, identify patterns, and make informed decisions.
• Results orientation: Highly self-motivated with a consistent track record of achievement.
• Communication: Excellent verbal and written communication with strong interpersonal skills.

What We Offer

• Fast-track career growth and personal development opportunities.
• Competitive compensation with attractive sales incentives.
• An open, collaborative culture within a high-growth biopharmaceutical company that values how you achieve result