Summary
The mission at Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) is to extend and enhance human life by providing the highest quality health care products and services. In line with that mission, BMS went in search of a new outsourcer that could deliver the high quality customer interaction services it was seeking. In 1999, BMS partnered with Source One to build a dedicated workforce of seasoned customer service and healthcare professionals to handle consumer interaction for its over-the-counter product line, which includes Comtrex, Excedrin, Keri Lotion and Theragran. The relationship expanded in 2001 when Source One increased its staff to handle the adverse events and product quality complaints for BMS's prescription medicines (Rx).
As part of the partnership, Source One built and maintains SECRTS, an innovative and robust CRM and data collection system, for BMS. SECRTS provides BMS access to critical customer information quickly and efficiently, and enables the pharmaceutical company to react quickly to its customers needs.
Situation/Challenge
"Having a dedicated workforce creates a team atmosphere and true partnership between Bristol-Myers Squibb and Source One."
Carla Navallo, Senior Project Manager; Consumer Affairs
Bristol Myers Squibb's pledge is "excellence in everything we make and market and to provide our customers with the safest, most effective and highest-quality products." To deliver on this pledge and support customer queries and concerns for its products, BMS needs its customer care calls answered by educated and knowledgeable phone representatives.
Additionally, the FDA guidelines on how pharmaceutical companies report incidents of adverse reactions to its products. BMS needed to significantly change its data collection software in order to effectively gather the information the FDA required and to better understand its customers.
Creating the Solution
Source One offers BMS a dedicated workforce of highly skilled customer service representatives and healthcare professionals from diverse medical backgrounds, including Licensed Practical Nurses, Registered Nurses, Nurse Practitioners and Pharmacists from 8 AM to 5 PM eastern time, Monday through Friday. Source One built an extensive and customized two-phase training program so its customer service representatives could learn both the finer points of BMS's diverse products and the wide-ranging customer care protocols needed to assist demanding customers.
Source One's customer service representatives always go beyond the call of duty. Shortly after beginning to take customer calls, Source One informed BMS that the staff exclusively dedicated to its account had periods of low call volume that could be utilized for managing additional BMS customer service responsibilities. BMS eagerly took advantage of the additional resources, and now Source One answers BMS's white mail and e-mail, periodically handles product quality returns, runs ad-hoc reports and maintains and updates BMS's online desk reference. The desk reference, which is an integral part of the custom-built data collection software called Safety Events/Consumer Reports Teleservice System (SECRTS), contains detailed product information and standardized answers to customer queries. SECRTS must be maintained, revised and audited according to meticulous FDA guidelines and procedures.
Customized Software Solutions
"When you are customizing software there are always obstacles. Source One has proven that we can count on them to find solutions to our needs." Carla Navallo
To improve the quality and usability of captured customer data, Source One's IT staff consulted with BMS to create a software solution that addressed the specific needs of the pharmaceutical company. SECRTS is designed to identify calls under numerous hierarchical categories that are unique and important to BMS. Using the system, healthcare professionals documenting adverse events can enter the detailed information required by the FDA and then quickly generate concise reports that provide a snapshot of customer interaction. The system allows BMS to sort the data collected in multiple ways, including adverse events, fulfillment issues, policy, or special promotions. Previously, BMS had to print large documents and manually scan through unrelated information to extract needed data and trends.
Results
BMS hired The Center for Client Retention, an independent research firm that measures customer satisfaction and loyalty, to evaluate the satisfaction levels of calls handled by Source One. The research firm's findings confirmed that nearly 90% of BMS customers reported that their contact with the consumer affairs department "either met or exceeded" their expectations.
Satisfied Customers Make More Loyal Customers
The same study showed that more than 60% of BMS's customers believed that their interaction with Source One's consumer affairs department "either maintained or increased their loyalty" to BMS. The study's findings validated Source One's strategy of using a dedicated workforce with extensive healthcare experience to bring greater attention and satisfaction to BMS customers.
Expanding the Relationship
After a successful two-year relationship with its over-the-counter products, BMS awarded Source One its adverse events and product quality complaints business for its prescription medicines (Rx). Source One welcomed the new challenge by assembling a team of customer service representatives comprised entirely of healthcare professionals to work on the account, including a dedicated account manager to manage the prescription business.
BMS continues to benefit from Source One's knowledgeable healthcare professionals and sophisticated data collection and reporting technology. Today, Source One handles more than 3,000 inbound calls per month on BMS's behalf, as well as outbound follow-up calls to customers, adverse events reporting, and fulfillment for BMS's over-the-counter and prescription business. Although answering customer calls remains the number one priority for Source One representatives, working on additional administrative responsibilities related to BMS's customer service operations allows them to be a greater resource and true partner to the pharmaceutical company.
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