8Planning Calls
Planning Calls
This chapter covers planning calls in Siebel Life Sciences. It includes the following topics:
About Planning Calls
This chapter describes the tools available in Siebel Life Sciences to plan account and contact calls. For more information on recording account and contact calls, see Completing Contact and Account Call Activities.
Using the procedures given in this chapter end users can create and apply target lists, define route plans, create activities, set up meetings, and schedule calls.
Tools for Planning Calls
Siebel Life Sciences offers end users the following tools for planning their account calls:
Targeting. For more information, see Targeting.
Routes. For more information, see Routes.
Activities. For more information, see Activities.
Targeting
Targeting using Global Target List Management is an extension of querying. In targeting, end users save the results of queries in a target list and then apply those saved lists to other views within Siebel CRM. In Siebel Life Sciences, a target list can be a set of contacts or accounts and can be applied to any view that contains contacts or accounts.
Using the account and professional targeting list views in the List Management screen, users can create advanced queries on contacts and accounts. Users can apply target lists to views individually or in combination with other target lists. If combining multiple target lists, users have the option of applying an intersection or a union of the lists. For more information on targeting, see the scenario Scenario 1: Users Create Target Lists and Creating and Applying Target Lists.
Routes
End users can create routes to schedule regular calls to groups of accounts. By defining a route, a user can plan the order in which to visit accounts and the determine a starting time for each account call. By arranging a group of accounts into an efficient route, users can minimize the amount of time spent traveling between accounts. After a route has been created, it can be used repeatedly to schedule future account calls. For more information on routes, see the scenario Scenario 2: Users Define Route Plans and About Defining a Route Plan.
Activities
An activity is a scheduled task or event. Activities represent the ways in which users spend their time. Although activities are typically performed or planned for opportunities, contacts, or accounts, they can also be personal tasks that users want to track. For more information on activities, see the scenario Scenario 3: Users Create Activities and About Creating Activities.
All activities with valid dates and times appear in the Calendar views as well as in the Activities views. The views in the Calendar screen provide a visual representation of each user’s scheduled activities and appointments. For more information using the calendar, see Creating a General and Specialized Activity in the Calendar.
Contact and Account Calls
Contact and account calls are a type of activity record. Although users create contact calls in the Contact screen, they actually record calls details in the Activities screen. For more information on scheduling calls, see Creating a Contact Call and Creating an Account Call. For information on recording calls, see Completing Contact and Account Call Activities.
Gantt Chart for Contact and Account Calls
An account-contact call planning Gantt Chart has been introduced specifically for the Japanese market in an earlier version of the Siebel Life Sciences application. The same functionality is now available for account calls and contact calls. Sales representatives can use these views to quickly create calls in a given timeline. For more information about Gantt Charts, see Planning Calls in the Call Planning Screens.
Scenario 1: Users Create Target Lists
This scenario describes how end users use targeting to create lists of contacts and accounts. Your company might follow a different process according to its business requirements.
A sales representative for a pharmaceutical company has just been assigned a new territory. As a first step in becoming more familiar with her territory, she queries her contacts and accounts and creates target lists of the following information:
Contacts located within specific postal codes, bricks, or cities with NRx (new Rx) in Product A greater than 100 over the last two months
The highest-potential contacts in a given postal code or city with a Best Time To Call setting that includes noon to 1:00 p.m. on Tuesdays (useful if a lunch appointment cancels)
Accounts with sales in Product B greater than $60,000 over the last half-year that are available for calls on Monday afternoons, located within a specific range of postal codes, and last seen over five weeks ago
Accounts or contacts with high ratings in a product’s therapeutic class but low ratings in a specific product
Once she has saved these target lists, she can apply them to other views within the application.
The process for this scenario comprises two steps:
Create and save a target list. For more information, see Creating and Applying Target Lists.
Apply target lists to other views. For more information, see Siebel Applications Administration Guide.
Scenario 2: Users Define Route Plans
This topic illustrates how end users can use the Routes views to group accounts by location and then use that information to schedule calls. It also describes how sales managers can create routes and schedule calls for the sales representatives they manage.
Your company might follow a different process according to its business requirements.
Sales Representative Creates Routes to Schedule Account Calls
A sales representative for a pharmaceutical company needs to plan his account call schedule. Because he always visits the same accounts in the same order, he decides to organize his accounts into routes so that he can efficiently schedule all account calls.
He begins by dividing up his accounts into specific geographic areas. Then, he creates a four-day route that includes all accounts in the outlying portions of his sales territory. In addition to specifying which accounts fall into what routes, he defines additional details such as the starting time and the duration of each call. Once all routes have been defined, he schedules calls to all accounts in his territory for the upcoming month.
Sales Manager Creates Routes for New Direct Report
A sales manager for a pharmaceutical company manages 10 sales representatives. One of her representatives, a new employee, is not familiar with his territory. To help her new representative get up-to-speed, she organizes the new representative’s accounts into a series of routes.
Each route is divided into sections and will be visited every two weeks. The sales manager creates 10 routes—one for each workday in a two-week period. Each route includes multiple accounts in the same neighborhood. Once the sales manager has finished creating the routes, she uses them to schedule a month’s worth of account calls for her new sales representative.
Once her new direct report becomes familiar with his territory, she gives him the responsibility of maintaining and updating his routes. The new sales representative can then add new accounts to a route, change the order in which routes are visited, or adjust the start time and duration of each visit.
The process for this scenario comprises four procedures:
Create a route. For more information, see Creating a Route.
Add accounts to a route. For more information, see Adding Accounts to Routes Using the Accounts View.
Schedule account visits using routes. For more information, see Using a Route to Schedule Calls.
Scenario 3: Users Create Activities
This scenario describes how end users use activities to manage their own time, keep their manager informed of their workload, and track their expenses. Your company might follow a different process according to its business requirements.
Typically activities are performed or planned for opportunities, contacts, or accounts, but they can also be used to track personal tasks. Consider the following example.
A sales manager for a pharmaceutical company wants to review her schedule. She uses the Activities screen to create, categorize, and track all the activities on which she plans to spend her time during the next month.
From the My To Do List view, she prints a report detailing her current activities, their due dates, and all pertinent account information. Remembering she wants to meet with each of her direct reports in next two weeks, she prints a report summarizing all the calls her team has made over a 20-week period. Then, she schedules meeting with each of her direct reports to discuss their sales goals for the next quarter. Finally, she schedules a contact call with a prominent customer whose regular sales representative is on a long leave. Then, she reviews the Calendar screen to review her schedule for the upcoming weeks.
The process for this scenario comprises four procedures:
Create general activities. For more information, see About Creating Activities.
Create contact or account call. For more information, see Creating a Contact Call and Creating an Account Call.
Set up a meeting. For more information, see Setting Up a Meeting.
View activities and create new activities on the Calendar screen. For more information, see Creating a General and Specialized Activity in the Calendar.
Process of Planning Calls
This topic details sample tasks often performed by end-users when planning calls. Your company might follow a different process according to its business requirements.
The following list shows tasks end users typically perform when planning contact and account calls:
(Optional) Scenario 1: Users Create Target Lists. Using target lists users can query for accounts or contacts and then apply those lists to other views within the application.
(Optional) Scenario 2: Users Define Route Plans. Route plans are groups of accounts sorted by location. Once created, users can use route information to schedule calls. See also the following topics:
Review About Defining a Route Plan
(Optional) Scenario 3: Users Create Activities. Activities allow users to manage their own time, keep their manager informed of their workload, and track expenses.
Review About Creating Activities
Creating and Applying Target Lists
Targeting is an extension of querying. In targeting, end users save the results of queries in a target list and then apply those saved lists to other views within the application. A target list typically consists of contacts or accounts and can be applied to various views and dialog boxes that contain lists of contacts or accounts.
For general information about creating and applying target lists, see Siebel Applications Administration Guide.
This topic describes how to create target lists using the account and professional targeting list views, which are unique to theSiebel Life Sciences application. These views present data such as best times to call, and prescriber habits that sales representatives typically want to query when creating their contact and account target lists.
This task is a step in Process of Planning Calls.
To create a target list from the List Management screen
Navigate to one of the following views:
View Navigate to the List Management screen then To create lists of Based on Contact Profile
In the link bar, click Professional Targeting List.
Contacts
Rx consumption
Contact Attributes
In the link bar, click Professional Targeting List.
In the visibility filter, select Account Attributes.
Contacts
Best times to call, ranking and rating
Account Profile
In the link bar, click Account Targeting List.
Accounts
Profile data such as number of physicians, call frequency, and market share
Account Attributes
In the link bar, click Account Targeting List.
In the visibility filter, select Account Attributes.
Accounts
Best times to call and sales data
Run a query in the view.
Review the query results in the list.
When the list of contacts or accounts contains the records you want to save as a target list, click the Save Target List button.
Note: The saved target list includes only those records that matched the query criteria when the query was generated. You should re-create your target lists periodically because data might have been modified or new contacts or accounts might have been added since you created the target list. For example, you must re-create your target lists after a territory realignment.
About Defining a Route Plan
End users can create routes to schedule regular calls to groups of accounts. By defining a route, a user can plan the order in which to visit accounts and determine a starting time for each account call. For more information, see Routes and the scenario Scenario 2: Users Define Route Plans.
When creating a route, users must complete the following tasks in the order listed:
Create a route. Users must specify the person for whom they are creating the route. Although each user can be assigned multiple routes, each route can only be assigned to one user. For more information, see Creating a Route.
Add accounts to a route. Once users have established a route, they can add accounts to it.
(Optional) Assign a target list to a route. If users are using the Account Targeting features to create target lists, they can assign them to a route using the Target Accounts view.
Schedule calls. When a route has been created, users can use it to schedule calls to every account in the route. For more information, see Using a Route to Schedule Calls.
Creating a Route
When creating a route, users must specify the person for whom they are creating the route (generally a field sales manager or sales representative). When creating a route remember that:
Each user can be assigned many routes
A route can have any number of accounts
A route can only be assigned to one user
A route name can only be used once for each user
The same route name can be used for routes assigned to different users
This task is a step in Process of Planning Calls.
To create a route
Navigate to the Routes screen.
In the Routes form, create a new record and complete the necessary fields.
Note: In the My Routes view, the Sales Person field is automatically filled with the current user name. If you are assigning a route to someone other than yourself, enter that person’s name in the Sales Person field.Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Active
Select this field if the route is active and available for use in scheduling calls.
Last Updated
The application automatically populates this field with the time and date the route was last changed.
Route Name
A user-defined name for the route, such as Northeast Richmond. A route name must be unique to the end user to which it is assigned.
Sales Person
The sales person to whom the route is assigned. A route can be assigned only to one person.
Start Day
The day of the week on which the route is designated to begin. This is used as reference information only and does not prevent you from using the route to schedule calls starting on some other day of the week.
Updated By
The application automatically populates this field with the name of the user who last changed the route.
Adding Accounts to a Route
Once users have established a route, they can add accounts to it. There is no limit to the number of accounts that can be assigned to one route. Three views are available for adding accounts to routes:
Accounts view. Shows accounts associated with the selected routes. For more information, see Adding Accounts to Routes Using the Accounts View.
Explorer view. Shows routes and accounts in a hierarchical format. For more information, see Adding Accounts to Routes Using the Explorer View.
Target Accounts view. Shows all accounts and allows you to choose which you want to add to the selected route. For more information, see Adding Accounts to Routes Using the Target Accounts View.
This task is a step in Process of Planning Calls.
Adding Accounts to Routes Using the Accounts View
The following procedure shows you how to add accounts to a route using the Accounts tab.
To add accounts to a route using the Accounts view
Navigate to the Routes screen.
In the Routes list, drill down on a route.
Click the Accounts tab.
In the Accounts list, create a new record and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Account
Only accounts where the user is on the coverage team can be added.
Call Duration
The scheduled duration of the account call.
Call Time
The application automatically enters the current time in this field. Edit the value to reflect the time at which the account is to be visited.
Last Call
Identifies the date and time of the most recent call to this account.
Offset Day
Allows you to create routes that span more than one day. Indicates the number of days after the beginning of the route that an account should be visited.
For example, if an account is to be visited on the first day of a route, this field should be set to 0. If the account is to be visited on the second day of a route, this field should be set to 1.
Repeat Step 4 until all accounts have been added to the Accounts list.
Adding Accounts to Routes Using the Explorer View
The following procedure shows you how to add accounts to a route using the Explorer view.
To add accounts to a route using the Explorer view
Navigate to the Routes screen.
In the Routes list, drill down on a route (in the Route Name field).
Click the Explorer tab.
In the Routes List explorer tree, do the following:
Expand the Routes folder
Under Routes, expand the route to which you want to add an account.
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Expand the Accounts folder under the route.
A list of all the accounts assigned to the route appears.
In the Accounts list, create a new record for the account you want to add to the route and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Call Duration
The scheduled duration of the account call.
Call Time
The application automatically enters the current time in this field. Edit the value to reflect the time at which the account is to be visited.
Last Call
Identifies the date and time of the most recent call to this account.
Offset Day
Allows you to create routes that span more than one day. Indicates the number of days after the beginning of the route that an account should be visited.
For example, if an account is to be visited on the first day of a route, this field should be set to 0. If the account is to be visited on the second day of a route, this field should be set to 1.
Repeat Step 5 for each account you want to add.
Adding Accounts to Routes Using the Target Accounts View
The following procedure shows you how to add accounts to a route using the Target Accounts view.
To add accounts to a route using the Target Accounts view
Navigate to the Routes screen.
In the Routes list, drill down on a route (in the Route Name field).
Click the Target Accounts tab.
Select the accounts to add to the route.
One way to select the accounts is to apply a target list and select the accounts in the list.
Click Commit.
Using a Route to Schedule Calls
After a route has been created, end users can use it to schedule calls to all the listed accounts. Users can schedule route calls from a number of views. The following procedures demonstrate how to schedule routes from the My Routes view, the Target Accounts view, and the Daily Calendar view.
This task is a step in Process of Planning Calls.
To schedule calls from the My Routes view
Navigate to the Routes screen.
In the Routes list, click Schedule.
In the dialog box, enter a start date and click OK.
Appointments for each account in the route are created in the calendar of the end user to whom the route is assigned.
Caution: It is possible to schedule multiple appointments for the same time period when using the Routes views to schedule calls. Such scheduling conflicts do not trigger any sort of automatic notification. Sales representatives should check the Daily Calendar view for possible conflicts after routes have been added to their schedules. If scheduling conflicts exist, they should adjust the starting times of appointments or delete them as necessary to resolve the conflicts.
About Creating Activities
End users use general activities to manage their own time and keep their manager informed of their workload. Managers can also create general activities and assign them to members of their teams. The kinds of activities that end users can create in Siebel Life Sciences include:
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General.
Used to track non-call and non-meeting tasks such as to-do items, personal events, and correspondence. Users can create an alert for a general activity to remind them of significant tasks or events.
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Contact call.
Used to track a planned or past call activity with a contact. Users can record details about contact calls such as the products detailed, the samples and promotional items dropped, and decision issues discussed.
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Account call.
Used to track a planned or past call activity at an account. Users can record products detailed, attendees, promotional items dropped, and decision issues discussed. For more information, see Completing Contact and Account Call Activities
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Meeting.
Used to track meetings, Designed to increase sales through product awareness. For more information, see Setting Up a Meeting.
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Time off territory.
Used to track blocks of time that users spend on activities not directly associated with an account or contact. Examples of time off territory can include field training sessions, national sales meetings, vacations, or personal activities such as doctor's appointments. For more information on working with time off territory activities, see Tracking Time Off Territory
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MedEd activity.
Used to track and plan medical education events such as “lunch-and-learn" meetings or seminars. A MedEd event is similar to a meeting activity, but offers planning, budgeting, and cost aggregation functionality. MedEd activities are only associated with the separate Siebel MedEd module. For more information, see Process of Managing MedEd Events.
For more general information on activities, see Activities and Scenario 3: Users Create Activities.
Creating a General Activity
End users use general activities to manage their own time and to keep their manager informed of their workload. Managers can also create general activities and assign them to members of their teams.
This task is a step in Process of Planning Calls.
To create a general activity
Navigate to the Activities screen, then the Activity List view.
In the Activity List, create a new record and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Duration
The length of time, in minutes, that you expect the activity to take.
Employees
Delegate the activity to someone else. Select the appropriate employee and click OK. If you delegate an activity this way, the activity appears in the My Delegated Activities view.
Type
The type of activity. If you select Alert, the activity appears in the My Alerts view. The values displayed in this drop-down list depend on the value of the Activity field. For example, the activity types that you can select for a contact call are different from those that you can select for a general activity.
Creating a General and Specialized Activity in the Calendar
The views in the Calendar screen provide visual representations of a user’s scheduled activities, or appointments; that is, activities with a start time. For instance, in the Daily view, users can see a particular day’s agenda, their unscheduled activities, or a to-do list. To appear in the Calendar views, all activities must have a start time.
Users who work as part of a team find it useful to share access to their calendar.
This task is a step in Process of Planning Calls.
Creating General Activities in the Calendar View
To create a general activity in the Calendar view and to grant others access to your calendar, then follow the procedures for adding an activity to the calendar and granting access to your calendar in Siebel Fundamentals Guide.
Creating Specialized Activities in the Calendar View
The following procedure shows you how to create specialized activities in the calendar view.
To create specialized activities in the Calendar view
Navigate to the Activities screen, then the Activity List view.
Do one of the following:
Click New Contact Call to schedule a call to a contact.
Click New Acct Call to schedule a call to an account.
Click New Meeting to schedule a meeting and to list activities, meeting speakers and invitees.
Setting Up a Meeting
Use the Meetings subviews of the Activities screen to manage information about activities, speakers, and invitees associated with meetings. Meetings themselves are activities that appear in the My Activities view.
Setting up a meeting involves the following steps:
Create a new meeting record. For more information, see Creating a Meeting.
Note: Users can also create a meeting by clicking the New Meeting button in the Activities list of the My Activities view.Create activities for the meeting. For more information, see Creating a Meeting Activity.
Add speakers for the meeting. For more information, see Adding a Meeting Speaker.
Add invitees for the meeting. For more information, see Adding a Meeting Invitee.
This task is a step in Process of Planning Calls.
Creating a Meeting
The following procedure shows you how to create a meeting.
To create a meeting
Navigate to the Activities screen, then the Activity List view.
In the Activities list, click New Meeting.
In the Meetings form, complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Account
The account associated with this meeting. Select an account from the Pick Account dialog box. The Location and Site fields are automatically filled based on the account you specify.
Cost
The application calculates this field based on costs entered for meeting activities. For more information, see Creating a Meeting Activity.
The application calculates this field when you click the Distribute Costs button in the Meeting Invitees view and updates it each time you click the Distribute Costs button again. For more information, see Adding a Meeting Invitee.
Start Date
The application automatically populates this field with the date and time that the record was created. If needed, make additional changes.
Status
This field is hard-coded so that its value cannot be set to Submitted to avoid interference with other activity types, such as contact calls and account calls that are based on the same class of Siebel business components.
Creating a Meeting Activity
The following procedure shows you how to add activity information to a meeting.
To create a meeting activity
Navigate to the Activities screen, then the Meeting List view.
In the Activities list, do one of the following:
Create a new meeting. For more information, see Creating a Meeting.
Select an existing meeting and then drill-down on the Name field.
Click the Meeting Activities tab.
In the Meeting Activities list, create a new record and complete the necessary fields.
Add information about speakers and invitees, as described in the following procedures.
Adding a Meeting Speaker
The following procedure shows you how to add speaker information to a meeting.
To add a meeting speaker
Navigate to the Activities screen, then the Meeting List view.
In the Activities list, do one of the following:
Create a new meeting. For more information, see Creating a Meeting.
Select an existing meeting and then drill-down on the Name field.
Click the Meeting Speakers tab.
In the Meeting Speakers list, create a new record and complete the necessary fields.
Affiliated contacts are those associated with the account (if any) specified in Step 3 in the topic Creating a Meeting. For more information, see Indicating an Affiliation Between an Account and a Contact.
Adding a Meeting Invitee
The following procedure shows you how to add invitee information to a meeting.
To add a meeting invitee
Navigate to the Activities screen, then the Meeting List view.
In the Activities list, do one of the following:
Create a new meeting. For more information, see Creating a Meeting.
Select an existing meeting and then drill-down on the Name field.
Click the Meeting Invitees tab.
In the Meeting Invitees list, create a new record and complete the necessary fields.
Updating the Cost Field in the Meeting Invitees List
The application calculates the value of the Cost field the Meeting Invitees list based on values entered in Cost field of the Meeting Activities list. It then distributes the costs across all invitees whose Invitee Status field is set to Attended.
To update the Cost field in the Meeting Invitees list
Click the Meeting Activities tab.
In the Meeting Activities list, record the costs associated with each meeting activity in the Cost field.
To distribute the meeting costs across those individuals who attended the meeting, click the Meeting Invitees tab.
In the Meeting Invitees list, update the Invitee Status for each invitee.
Selecting the status Attended includes the selected invitee in the count of contacts for distribution of meeting costs.
Click Distribute Costs.
As you add costs and attendees to the meeting, repeat the previous steps as many times as needed.
Creating a Contact Call
End users track details about calls made on a contact with contact call records. Although users can create and display contact calls on the Contacts screen, they enter details about the actual call on the Activities screen. Also, as activities, contact call records can also be viewed in the Calendar screen as planned events.
For more information on entering call details, see Recording and Submitting Contact Calls.
This topic presents four different methods of creating contact calls:
This task is a step in Process of Planning Calls.
Creating a Contact Call from the Activities Screen
This task describes how to create a contact call from the Activities screen.
To create a contact call from the Activities screen
Navigate to the Activities screen, then the Activities List view.
In the Activities list, click New Contact Call.
In the Contact Call form, create a new record and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Last Name
The contact to be visited during this call.
Ref #
A reference number for this call. This reference number becomes the transaction number (Transaction # field) for a samples transaction corresponding to this call. For information on samples transactions, see Managing Pharma Samples.
Smart Call
The Smart Call template to be associated with this call. Make a selection from the Pick Smart Call dialog box.
A Smart Call is a template that you apply to contact calls that defines information about the products detailed, samples and promotional items distributed, and issues discussed on a call. Once you apply a Smart Call template to a call, you can make additional edits any fields in the Contact Call Detail view. For more information on Smart Calls, see Creating Smart Calls.
Status
The status of this call. The default value is Planned. This value changes to Synchronized after synchronization.
Be aware, you cannot select the value Submitted. To change the status of the call to Submitted, you must submit the call. For more information, see Recording and Submitting Contact Calls.
For more information on how to enter information in Call Products Detailed, Sample Products Dropped, Promotional Items Dropped, and Issues lists, see Recording and Submitting Contact Calls.
Note: If you applied a Smart Call to the call (as described in Step 3 in the topic Creating a Contact Call from the Activities Screen), you only need to verify that all the information in the four lists is accurate.
Automatically Scheduling a Contact Call Using Auto Schedule
This task describes how to automatically schedule a contact call from the Contacts screen. When you use the schedule button to create calls, the auto-scheduling function:
Tries to schedule a call at a best time for each contact at their primary address.
Schedules a call even if it does not find a best time
Distributes the calls over the time period (For example, if you select 10 contacts to be scheduled over a 5-day week, two calls during each day are scheduled.)
To automatically schedule a contact call using Auto Schedule
Navigate to the Contacts screen, then the Contacts List view.
In the Contacts list, select one or more contacts.
Click Schedule.
In the Auto Schedule dialog box, review the displayed values, make any needed changes, and click OK.
Manually Scheduling a Contact Call from the Contacts Screen
This task describes how to manually schedule a contact call from the Contacts screen.
To manually schedule a contact call in the Calls view
Navigate to the Contacts screen, then the Contacts List view.
Drill down on a contact.
Click the Calls tab.
In the Call list, create a new record and complete the necessary fields.
Note: You cannot change the call’s Status field to Submitted from this view. To change the status of the call to Submitted, you must submit the call. For more information, see Recording and Submitting Contact Calls.To go to the Contact Call Detail view, drill down on the date hyperlink in the Start Date field.
The Contact Call Detail view appears.
For more information on recording calls, see Recording and Submitting Contact Calls.
Scheduling a Contact Call in the Calendar
This topic explains how to schedule a contact call in the Calendar.
To schedule a contact call in the Calendar
Navigate to the Calendar screen, then the Calendar view.
Select either the Daily or Weekly tab.
Navigate to the day on which you want to schedule the call and click New Contact Call.
The Contact Call Detail view appears.
For more information on recording calls, see Recording and Submitting Contact Calls.
Creating an Account Call
End users track details about calls made on specific accounts with account call records. An account call is a type of activity record. Although users can create and display account calls on the Accounts screen, they enter details about the actual call on the Activities screen. Also, as activities, account call records can also be viewed in the Calendar screen.
For more information, entering call details see Recording and Submitting Contact Calls.
This topic presents five different methods of creating account calls:
This task is a step in Process of Planning Calls.
Creating an Account Call From the Activities Screen
This task describes how to create an account call from the Activities screen.
To create an account call from the Activities screen
Navigate to the Activities screen, then the Activity List view.
In the Activities list, click New Acct Call.
In the Account Call form, create a new record and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Account
The account to be visited during this call.
Smart Call
The Smart Call template to be associated with this call.
A Smart Call is a template that you apply to contact calls that defines information about the products detailed, samples and promotional items distributed, and issues discussed on a call. Once you apply a Smart Call template to a call, you can make additional edits any fields in the Account Call Detail view. For more information on Smart Calls, see Creating Smart Calls
Status
The status of this call. The default value is Planned. You cannot select the value Submitted. To change the status of the call to Submitted, you must submit the call. For more information, see Recording and Submitting Account Calls.
For information on how to enter information in the Call Products Detailed, Attendees, and Activities lists, see Recording and Submitting Account Calls.
Automatically Scheduling an Account Call Using the Schedule Button
This task describes how to automatically schedule an account call using the Schedule button.
To automatically schedule an account call using the Schedule button
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
In the Accounts list, select an account and click Schedule.
In the Auto Schedule dialog box, review the displayed values, make any needed changes, and click OK.
Manually Scheduling an Account Call in the Accounts View
This task describes how to manually schedule an account call in the Accounts view.
To manually schedule an account call in the Account view
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
In the Accounts list, drill down on an account.
Click the Calls tab.
In the Calls list, create a new record and complete the necessary fields.
Note: You cannot change the Status field to Submitted from this view. To change the status of the call to Submitted, you must submit the call. For more information, see Recording and Submitting Account Calls.
To enter details about the call, drill-down on the Date hyperlink in the Date field to display the Account Call Detail view.
For more information on recording calls, see Recording and Submitting Account Calls.
Creating an Account Call Using the New Call Button
This task describes how to create an account call using the New Call button.
To create an account call using the New Call button
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
In the Accounts list, drill down on an account.
Go to the More Info tab and click New Call.
The Account Call Detail view of the Activities screen appears. The selected account automatically appears in the Account Call form.
For more information on recording calls, see Recording and Submitting Account Calls.
Scheduling an Account Call in the Calendar
This task describes how to schedule an account call in the Calendar.
To schedule an account call in the Calendar
Navigate to the Calendar screen, then the Calendar view.
Select either the Daily or Weekly tab.
Navigate to the day on which you want to schedule the call and click New Acct Call.
The Account Call Detail view appears.
For more information on recording calls, see Recording and Submitting Account Calls.
Call Planning Features Specific to the Japanese Pharmaceutical Market
The Japanese pharmaceutical market has some unique characteristics concerning patient safety as stipulated by government regulations. These market characteristics dictate how sales representatives engage with physicians and hospitals in their territories and how they plan future calls. For example, pharmaceutical companies must provide safety information about a product to a physician. Additionally, after a new product is released, sales representatives are required to meet with physicians at pre-determined intervals to gather information about any anomalous effects the product may be having on the patients.
The following Siebel Life Sciences features address the distinctive traits of the Japanese pharmaceutical market:
Post Market Surveillance (PMS). The purpose of the PMS process is to encourage feedback relating to adverse effects that may have been noted in patients taking new drugs to be reported back to the drug company. When a drug is approved, sales representatives must visit each institution that purchases the drug. As stipulated by government regulation, these visits must occur every 2 weeks for the first 2 months after a hospital purchases the drug, and monthly thereafter for a period of 6 months after the launch date of the drug. For a specific example of how calls are scheduled for PMS after a product is released, see Visit Timeline During the PMS Period.
The purpose of these visits is to remind the health care professionals of their obligations to report any adverse effects that they have observed, or that have been reported to them. This process is initiated only when a hospital (account) purchases a drug (product) for the first time. This an activity associated at the account level. For information about managing PMS, see Managing the PMS and Pre-Explain PMS Features.
Pre-Explain PMS. A process that is a precursor to the PMS process. This process is triggered when a new hospital (account) is targeted for a drug (product). Using the Pre-Explain PMS feature will automatically set up a call for each hospital. The goal of the ensuing call is for the sales representative to explain to the hospital (account) contact how the PMS process will work. The Pre-Explain PMS typically occurs before any hospital (account) purchases a new drug (product). For information about managing Pre-Explain PMS, see Managing the PMS and Pre-Explain PMS Features.
Package Insert Delivery (PID). Pharmaceutical companies are required to offer safety information about a drug (product). This safety information is called a package insert. Its purpose is to improve the doctor's recognition of the product, and protect patient safety in accordance with Japanese government regulations. Pharmaceutical companies are required to monitor whether their representatives are carrying out these calls whenever a package insert is updated for a product. After a modified package insert is delivered and the call has been made to the hospital contact, the sales representative is responsible for recording the call as having been completed. For information about managing PID, see Managing the PID Feature.
Visit Timeline During the PMS Period
As stipulated by Japanese government regulation, sales representatives from pharmaceutical companies must visit hospitals at preset intervals for six months after a drug is launched. These visits must occur every two weeks for the first two months after a hospital purchases the drug, and monthly thereafter for a total period of six months after the launch date of the drug.
For example, Drug XYZ is launched on February 1, 2009. The PMS period will also begin on February 1, 2009. The PMS period will end for Drug XYZ six months after its release: on August 1, 2009.
Hospital 1 buys Drug XYZ on February 1, 2009. This means that they will have the maximum amount of PMS visits from the pharmaceutical company. There will be a total of eight visits that will occur approximately on the following dates:
Biweekly dates: February 15th, March 1st, March 15th, April 1st
Monthly dates: May 1st, June 1st, July 1st, August 1st
Hospital 2 buys Drug XYZ on April 1, 2009. As a result, there will be a total of six PMS visits that will occur approximately on the following dates:
Biweekly dates: April 15th, May 1st, May 15th, June 1st
Monthly dates: July 1st, August 1st
Hospital 4 buys Drug XYZ on July 15, 2009. As a result, there will be a total of one PMS visit that will occur approximately on the following date:
Biweekly date: August 1st
Managing the PMS and Pre-Explain PMS Features
After a drug is released in the Japanese market, a series of follow-up calls must be scheduled with hospitals purchasing the drug in order to track any possible side effects. Although users can create and display account calls on the Accounts screen, calls can be created for this purpose using the PMS and Pre-Explain PMS features. For more information about PMS and Pre-Explain PMS, see Call Planning Features Specific to the Japanese Pharmaceutical Market.
This topic presents different tasks involved for creating account calls relating to PMS and Pre-Explain PMS:
Enabling a Product for PMS
The following procedure describes how to enable a product for PMS.
To enable a product for PMS
Navigate to the Administration - Products screen, then the Products view.
Select a product.
Define a date in the Period Start Date column.
Note: The date should be the product’s launch date.Define a date in the Period End Date column.
Scheduling Calls for Pre-Explain PMS
The following procedure describes how to schedule calls for Pre-Explain PMS.
To schedule calls for Pre-Explain PMS
Navigate to the Administration - Products screen, then the Schedule PMS Activities view.
Select a product.
Select an account list.
Enter a value for Due Date.
Click Pre PMS Call.
A Pre-Explain PMS call will be scheduled for each hospital in list of Accounts.
Scheduling Calls for PMS
The following procedure describes how to schedule calls for PMS.
To schedule calls for PMS
Navigate to the Administration - Products screen, then the Schedule PMS Activities view.
Select a product.
Select an account list.
Enter a value for Due Date.
Click PMS Call.
A series of follow-up calls will be scheduled for each hospital in list of Accounts.
Viewing or Editing PMS Account Products
The following procedure describes how to view or edit PMS Account Products.
To view or edit PMS Account Products
Navigate to the Administration - Product screen, then the PMS Account Product view.
All products set up for Pre-Explain PMS and PMS will appear in this view.
Select a product.
Modify any of the fields.
Viewing Upcoming Pre-Explain PMS and PMS Callsfor All Accounts
The following procedure describes how to view all upcoming Pre-Explain PMS and PMS calls for all accounts.
To view all upcoming Pre-Explain PMS and PMS calls for all accounts
Navigate to the Calendar screen, then the Account Call Planning view.
Select an account.
Navigate to past calls or future calls as required.
Different types of calls are denoted by different blocks of color, according to the legend specified in the Account Call Planning view
Viewing All Missed Calls for Account Contacts
The following procedure describes how to view all missed calls for account contacts:
To view all missed calls for account contacts
Navigate to the Home screen.
Go to the Missed Calls section.
Viewing All Account and Contact Level Attachments for a PMS Call
The following procedure describes how to view all account and contact level attachments for a PMS call.
To view all account and contact level attachments for a PMS call
Navigate to the Post Market Surveillance screen, then the Activity Details view.
Select a PMS account product.
Go to the end of the view.
The Account Attachment section will list any account-level attachments, and the Contact Attachment section will list any contact-level attachments.
Managing the PID Feature
After pharmaceutical companies modify safety information in a package insert for a drug in the Japanese market, a call must be scheduled with all the hospitals distributing the drug. Although users can create and display account calls on the Accounts screen, calls can be created for this purpose using the PID feature. For more information about PID, see Call Planning Features Specific to the Japanese Pharmaceutical Market.
This topic presents different tasks involved for creating account calls relating to PID:
Creating a Package Insert
The following procedure describes how to create a package insert:
To create a package insert
Create a product for the package insert.
While creating the package insert, ensure that the following fields are set:
Effective Start Date
Note: The value given to Effective Start Date should represent the issue date for the product.
Item Size
Note: The value given to the Item Size field should reflect the number of pages in the package insert.
Type
Note: The Type field must be set to Insert.
For more information about creating products, see Process of Managing Products.
Click the Release button.
- Add visibility through the category. For more information about product categorization, see Product Categorization Settings.
Scheduling a Call for PID
The following procedure describes how to schedule a call for PID.
To schedule a call for PID
Navigate to the Administration - Products screen, then the Schedule PID Activities view.
Select the product insert from the list of products.
Select an account list.
Enter a value for Due Date.
Click PID Calls.
A series of calls will be scheduled for each hospital in the list of accounts.
Viewing All Upcoming PID Calls for All Accounts
The following procedure describes how to view all upcoming PID calls for all accounts.
To view all upcoming PID calls for all accounts
Navigate to the Calendar screen, then the Account Call Planning view.
Select an account.
Navigate to past calls or future calls as required.
Different types of calls are denoted by different blocks of color, according to the legend specified in the Account Call Planning view.