Posted on

The future is bright

We believe that the future is bright, that health will improve and that progressive pharma will be successful. Led by emerging science, amplified by technology and powered by engaged patients.

The scale and impact of progress, will be at the discretion of a new breed of physician, the millennial HCP (mHCP). Digitally native, their number increases year-on-year.

Of course, they exhibit many of the traits of their predecessors; knowledge, empathy, ambition. We’re comfortable with the healthcare professional in them. But what about this other side – the millennial? What does it mean when your homework group included Google and Wikipedia? When you spent 14 months of your medical education online? And when you haven’t written by hand for more than a month?

Millennials are visual. They choose SnapChat, YouTube and Instagram. 72% of them use emojis to communicate their emotions – no language has ever grown more quickly.

Millennials are visual
Millennials are visual

Millennials embrace progress. 95% make positive associations with the word ‘change’. Their digital tools of choice are in a constant state of beta, as they look to optimise their digital being.

Millennials demand more. They believe big business should take as much responsibility as the government. And, as illustrated by the UK Government and Junior Doctor dispute, they believe in collective power.

It would be wrong to define this generation by their birth certificates, and to suggest that this population only includes those born after 1980. Instead, it is a generation that was forged in the last two decades as its members immersed themselves in a new world. Their habits and personalities have evolved with the technology around them. Put simply, they are digital.

In this world, insight, creativity and design are more important than ever. CREATIVE agencies have a critical role to play, aiding and supporting mHCPs to leverage the science and technology at their disposal.

Scientific knowledge has been, and always will be, the critical capability of physicians. The shift, is in their expertise and confidence with technology. And our opportunity is to recognise these new skills, supporting mHCPs in improving outcomes.

Capabilities
Capabilities

Much of the industry boasts an exciting pipeline of products. As we look to build these brands and partner with healthcare professionals, let’s not forget the millennial within them 😉

To find out more about the impact of the millennial generation on healthcare, sign up for the new white paper, podcast, and YouTube series from Havas Lynx at www.m-hcp.com

References
The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. State Health Facts 2015. http://kaiserf.am/1VfEncN (Accessed May 2016)
Ofcom. Media Use and Attitudes Report 2015 http://bit.ly/1E3fFyO (Accessed May 2016)
Docmail. The death of handwriting. 2012 http://bit.ly/1srFRoG (Accessed May 2016)
Bangor University & Talk Talk Mobile. Linguistics Research. 2015. http://bit.ly/1HseRrW (Accessed May 2016)
Pepsi Optimism Project. 2008. http://bit.ly/1R6meY1 (Accessed May 2016)

Posted on

The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Millennial Healthcare Professional

Originally written in the late 1970s, Douglas Adams’ well-loved sci-fi masterpiece, The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy, tells the story of Arthur Dent as he flees Earth shortly before it’s destroyed to make way for a hyperspace bypass. Accompanied by his alien friend Ford Prefect, Arthur finds himself floating around a universe in which small digital devices can tell you everything about anything; where foreign languages can be instantly translated into native tongues; where machine intelligence dwarfs the cognitive capabilities of mankind; and where flagging down a lift is as simple as pressing a button. A universe…rather like the one we live in now.

More than just another sci-fi oracle, Adams has proved an inspiration for those defining a future well beyond his own lifetime, including Dr. Jack Kreindler. A medical technologist and investor, Kreindler is one of a new wave of physician redefining what we expect from HCPs. He spoke to Havas Lynx as part of their research for Generation Now, a new white paper about the millennial HCP (mHCP).

Kreindler’s introduction to Adams set him on an extraordinary and unorthodox career path. To help support himself through medical school, a young Kreindler worked as an IT consultant for Adams: ‘I realised through working with Douglas that we were practicing medicine in kind of the Stone Age. And it got me thinking that perhaps the use of connected devices and information technology would absolutely transform what we regarded as truth in medicine.’

Since then, Kreindler has worked in A&E, specialised in high-altitude medicine, founded a centre for health and sporting performance, and invested in practices driven by machine learning. Each venture has vastly progressed his medical understanding and clinical practice. Moreover, they’ve provided a career diversity that is commonly sought out by millennials. Speaking at an RSM Digital Health Entrepreneurs event last September, Adam Tulk, CEO of Frameshift  (who connect HCPs with temporary work), reported that ‘a lot of doctors want to have less of a purely clinical career and more of a portfolio career.’

Many seek extra-clinical opportunities in digital. Having grown-up with digital engrained in their everyday life, and seen its transformative impact firsthand, they have ambitions to harness this power to shake-up healthcare. ‘The key thing that is redefining those ambitions,’ says Dr. Kreindler, ‘is the generation of entrepreneurs that have made it very big; the Larry Pages, the Elon Musks, and the Zuckerburgs of the world. People don’t have the fear any more. They are thinking if they can do it so can I.’ Systems and providers are moving to support such ambitions. NHS England launched its Clinical Entrepreneurship Programme at the end of 2015, as part of a drive to open-up entrepreneurship and innovation to professionals. It’s a clear indication from Sir Bruce Keogh and his colleagues that, far from harming clinical practice, engaging professionals in non-clinical initiatives could benefit the nation’s healthcare.

And why wouldn’t it? Many mHCPs are as motivated by a sense of social conscience as theyare any personal ambition. Kristian Webb is a cardiac devices specialist who started up a number of initiatives to provide quality patient information. ‘It was the inaccuracies in medical information online that worried me,’ says Webb, ‘I felt I had a professional responsibility to put more accurate information out there.’ Unlike large healthcare companies and organisations, Webb felt no problem with engaging with patients online, using forums and social channels to direct them to robust clinical information before eventually starting up his own repository for cardiology information.

Engaging with patients online, monitoring them remotely, and providing timely information and advice will all be vitally important as mHCPs move away from treating sick patients and towards facilitating sustained good health. It’s a shift that’s vital if we are to alleviate the burden of aging populations suffering multiple comorbidities. But there will be challenges. mHCPs are going to need skills their predecessors never dreamed of, not least in communication. ‘We know more about when to inspire people, when to motivate them to make a change from the advertising industry than we do in medicine,’ says Kreindler.

Interpreting the wealth of data at their disposal will be as critical. As in The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy, where the creators of the Deep Thought super computer so struggle to understand the answer it gives to ‘The Ultimate Question of Life, The Universe, and Everything’, so we have not yet mastered the reams of data available in such a way that professionals can easily make use of them.

There’s going to be plenty to keep mHCPs on their toes, especially with the expectations of increasingly empowered patients and the rocketing rate of medical innovation. As such, they’ll need support from all corners. For pharma, this means new opportunities in unchartered galaxies. It’s an exciting, challenging and important time. Just whatever you do, remember The Hitchhiker’s Guide’s golden rule; don’t panic.

More information available at www.m-hcp.com

Posted on

Generation Now.

The Millennial HCP, by David Hunt

The impact of the millennial healthcare professional on our world.

Millennials are criticised as narcissistic, entitled and technology-obsessed, but our new campaign shows millennial healthcare professionals – mHCPs – in a different light. They have certainly grown up in a digital and interactive world, but have a strong social conscience, are entrepreneurial and are adept at communicating, collaborating and adapting to the world as they find it.

Through a series of in-depth interviews with medical students, academics, innovators, physicians, authors and patients from around the world, Generation Now identifies a new & inspired generation of healthcare professionals. It is a generation with different attitudes and ambitions to their predecessors, and it is a generation who will drive our industry forward and embrace innovation to offer improved outcomes for all.

In our new campaign, we outline key considerations for communicating and collaborating with this new generation, outlining how we can create effective healthcare campaigns that truly make a difference.

For more information on our YouTube & Podcast series, and our White Paper visit www.m-hcp.com

#LXAcademy
#MillennialHCP

Posted on

Getting Better.

2016 Ambition, by David Hunt

Havas Lynx, formerly Creative Lynx, celebrates its 30th anniversary this May. Of all its achievements, I believe the greatest is just that – 30 years of great people, producing great ideas that have great outcomes.

Whilst the whole world has changed, and changed again, Havas Lynx has remained a valuable, expert and trusted partner to its many clients & friends. I believe in culture, I believe in values and I believe in people, and certainly Havas Lynx is blessed with the very best of these, but in addition, I believe thatsustained success requires evolution and it requires balance.

“Havas Lynx are not just preparing for the future, they are creating it” is undoubtedly my favourite endorsement in 2015, from a very generous PME Judge.

Our reputation was forged upon our prowess in digital, and whilst this remains at our heart, our success since joining Havas is based on our scientific, strategic and creative development. And whilst we have been maturing, so too has digital. Of course, we are all aware of how it has changed our lifestyle, our behaviours and our society. But behind the agency curtain, there has been an equally significant shift – digital is no longer the “Dark Arts”, it is no longer the playground of engineers. It is now about insight, ideas, innovation. And not the sort that requires code, but the exciting sort that requires imagination. The democratization of technology is another catalyst for change at Havas Lynx, and one that we are embracing as we enter 2016.

There is always a risk that you can stretch too far, ask too much of yourself & those around you, perhaps try that little bit too hard. In 2015 we were named Communiqué Communications Consultancy of the Year, but if we are honest at times we could have done a little less, a little better. You can always squeeze in one more opportunity, but should you? All agencies will be beaten, sacked & left by their loved ones, but to what extent will often be dictated by balance. Our priorities in 2016 will be our team, our standards and our existing partners. Building upon the #LXAcademy, and by combining our expertise in science, strategy, creativity & technology, this year we will deliver our best work yet.

But above all, I think we should enjoy 2016. We work in a great industry, alongside great people, that do great things. I’ve enjoyed Christmas, spending time with the family and re-charging the batteries, but I’m excited to be back doing what I do best, and not nearly enough people can say that – here’s to another good year.

Posted on

#ChangeForGood

Almost three years ago I attended my first Havas Health Global Leadership Meeting. The theme was, “Change Faster”. It was a brilliant meeting, incredibly inspiring and a fantastic first taste of the network. It entirely validated our decision to join, and had me ready to change the world.

Except, on returning to Havas Lynx, whilst I was now beset on change, I had no idea where to start. On the 6th of October, I’ll be hosting the Havas Health Global Leadership Meeting in Miami, with Cris Morton. So that delegates can avoid similar confusion, the theme this year is very clear: #ChangeForGood.

Since that first meeting in January 2013, Havas Lynx has gone from strength-to-strength; building capabilities, winning awards, hitting targets and producing work that makes a real difference. At the heart of this success is an agile agency culture. We’re responding to the needs of the market, the needs of patients and healthcare professionals and the needs of our team.

I’m sure that managing an agency has never been easy. Certainly Mad Men provides an indication of the trials and tribulations of a previous – and less moral – era. But today, agencies must blend extreme diversity, from traditional creatives to engineers and mathematicians. Moreover, they then need experienced heads alongside digital natives who are ready to turn the working world upside down. And all this against increasing austerity, fiscal pressure and ambitions established in a golden age.

Changes to the market have been as profound as those within our agencies. We’ve moved from manufacturing brands to earning them, as we’ve witnessed the profound impact of our behaviour. We’ve moved from engaging consumers to prosumers, as we start to understand social dynamics. We’ve started to use creativity to maximise outcomes, and not points of sale.

Healthcare professionals and patients have also changed significantly, in both their behaviours and their expectations. Agencies are challenged to build relationships through new means, and in new ways. The format of the idea can now be as important as the idea itself.

We’re incredibly lucky. The world is amazing. Fuelled by technology, it changes every day; it’s fascinating, interesting and challenging, in equal measure. Our success is born from changing faster.

Posted on

Why I don’t care what’s next

Innovation, by David Hunt

Firstly, I do care, and perhaps should be less flippant. However, commentating on the next pioneering technology is a really good excuse to ignore our deficiencies with the current tools at our disposal. I’d argue that we already have the technology necessary to build meaningful relationships, and our focus should be on maximising these.

Fully leveraging new technology during its infancy is unlikely. In the gaming world, it typically takes 12-18 months for engineers to fully utilise the power of the hardware offered by the latest generation of console. It’s okay for us to take our time, assuming we are making progress, building expertise and confidence. If we are getting closer to adopting the technology and enhancing the breadth of our communication platform – that’s okay. Progress doesn’t always have to be quick, but it should still be progress. Ask Yahoo, MySpace and Blackberry if they’d have sacrificed being first to be the best.

And, while we’re exploring what we already have, let’s play with what the future holds. I’ve always considered myself to be curious, and therefore quick to try the latest technology. Today, at Havas Lynx, I’m surrounded by millennials. To my astonishment, they are more demanding than me and more impatient than me – no mean feat. They are also much more agile in their take-up of technology. Aligned with experience, it is meaningful innovation beset on making a difference.

Do we need more technology? Or do we need to be better at using it? I’d argue that, if we ensure the latter, the former will bring more value.

Orchestrator

Posted on

Ideas

Creativity, More Important Than Ever by David Hunt

You can have a strong brand & commitment to fulfil it. You can have the necessary culture to respond in a real fashion. You can have a relevant, quality, dynamic content strategy. And most importantly, you can share a genuine ambition with your community. But you can still, and most likely will, fail in social media.

In a world that besieges individuals with content, news & entertainment across all manner of devices & channels, standing-out from the crowd is more important than ever. Pharma has spent so long wrestling with social, that when we finally do arrive, we expect that they will come. The world has not been waiting. The world is oblivious to our fraught self-interrogation. That is not to say, we can’t add significant value to our respective communities, it is just that we need to earn the right to be socially significant. Turning-up, standing on the periphery, is not enough.

In my opinion, you need an idea that grabs attention and acts as a catalyst for your social campaign. It requires insight into the community, imagination to be unique, the potential to be valuable & engaging, but it also requires appreciation of social dynamics. It is not an advert, but it is creative. It is an idea that drives participation & interaction, from incremental approval & shares, to endorsement & actions. It takes great talent, with great ideas to unlock the great social opportunity.

In South America we have seen the Colombian League Against Cancer “Cancer Tweets” campaign demonstrating the creative opportunity social media represents.

Great ideas that leverage the social opportunity are still the exception in healthcare. I’m excited to work with clients and colleagues with the imagination and bravery to seize the initiative and make a difference.

lightbulb

Posted on

Closed-Loop Marketing is simply not difficult

Closed-Loop Marketing, by David Hunt
Part II, a roadmap to success

Please first read Part I, Start and therefore finish with insight

map

It’s a well-trodden path, yet very few make it to the ambition – high value customer interactions that build long-term brand equity. What happens? Where does it all become too difficult? When do organisations default to the status-quo?

Below are five tips established through more than a decade’s experience of hits and misses (from which you tend to learn more, ask Google).

 

Is imagination more important than perspiration in the pursuit of CLM?
Of course not. It takes commitment, it takes expertise & it takes total belief across an organisation. But how do we ensure dedication? How do we engage exceptional talent? How do ensure buy-in? Through case studies – we’ve seen them. Through stats – we’ve heard them. Due to awards – big deal. You win by imagination, you win by inspiring your organisation, you win by conceptualising an experience that really will be exceptional.

Tip 1 – Lead with an idea, lead with a vision, lead with imagination.

 

“Hire people who are better than you are, then leave them to get on with it.”
David Ogilvy
The smartest people know to surround themselves with knowledge & expertise. I’m often amazed at individuals appetite for adventure, their brazen embrace of the unknown, and utter conviction in succeeding where others fail. It’s even more surprising when their qualifications are at odds with their latest challenge. Find someone with the t-shirt, someone with the battle scars, someone who knows how to succeed in CLM. Work with an expert, someone who can realise the ambition & become a catalyst for your success.

Tip 2 – To be the best, you need to work with the best.

 

The more you put in, the less they need to
Today we need almost instant gratification. We are spoilt in our interactions, and accept nothing less than an exceptional experience. As such the field demands an intuitive, flexible & rapid interface. The more we invest, the more 1% improvements we drive, the more we will engage the field, build their confidence and improve their performance. The more we do, the less they have to.

Tip 3 – The field force are your consumers, they need a consumer digital experience and not a pharma digital experience.

 

All platforms are equal, but some are more equal than others
I have never heard: “We’re really pleased with our platform, it’s exceeded all of our expectations!” Equally, I’ve never heard someone describe their OS, office software or email package as exceeding their expectations. Bizarre that whilst we are ambivalent to bugs from software power houses like Apple, we expect flawless solutions from software service providers to pharma. I’m not saying we should expect shoddy work, just that perspective will ensure we focus our efforts most appropriately. It’s easy to identify flaws in a platform, and easy to blame. Be brave and focus on the real issues limiting success.

Tip 4 – Remember it’s just a platform, and only part of the answer.

 

Perfection is enemy the enemy of good
In a digital world the best we can hope for is #FinalForNow. There will always be something new on the horizon. Waiting & wondering, standing on the side, reserving judgement – that’s easy. Being bold, seizing the initiative, capitalising now – is much more difficult. Guaranteed, in less than 12 months there’ll be better hardware, better software, more developed philosophies. Also guaranteed, the company that acted will be the company that leads.

Tip 5 – Don’t wait for the next technology push, it will always come round the corner.

 

 

Posted on

#LionsHealth – A great few days in the South of France

The first ever Lions Health took place on June 13th and 14th 2014, at the famous Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France.

Cannes

No one knew quite what to expect. Who would be there? What would we learn? Who would win? And what would become of the #LionsHealth?

The speakers were mixed. But importantly, when they were good, they were great. Events such as this often have one or two highlights. At #LionsHealth there were multiple. The event was opened by the brilliant @JimStengel. He spoke passionately about creating a culture of creativity & the importance of team engagement. It was impossible to not be impacted by Jim’s ideas & results. They will certainly shape my thinking as we plan for the continuing success of HAVAS LYNX.

Equally great, if a little more unorthodox, was R. John Fidelino. When I sat down for a session labelled, “Chasing Cool in Healthcare”, I was ready to be unimpressed. I’m proud of pharma & would choose significant over cool everyday. Fidelino’s presentation convinced me otherwise. He was meaningful, authentic and immersive – he embodied all the values he felt health communications must represent. He convinced me that perhaps we can have even more significance on people’s lives, if we are just a little cooler.

Not too many people have heard or considered narrative medicine. The always brilliant Dr. Rita Charon mesmerised much of the audience on day two. Having spent much of the event discussing technology, it was very refreshing to then consider content, emotion and stories. Technology is a platform, it’s the experience that counts. As Fidelino had explained, we must be meaningful, authentic and immersive. Dr. Rita Charon talked from the heart of her patient experiences & the importance of relationships. As we look to the future and our digital world, it is clear that HCP interactions will become ever more fragmented, and as such, relationships will be critical to improving outcomes.

We joined Havas to help drive our strategic thinking & creative pedigree. We were delighted to be part of a network that claimed three lions; a bronze, silver & gold. The network has amazing talent & we love the collaboration. It fuels our growth and ambition. We were also delighted for the team at Langland. A great agency, that represented the UK with great success.

So what will become of #LionsHealth? For me, that question remains unanswered. Much worked, but a lot didn’t. Did it meet year one expectations? Yes. Does it need to evolve significantly for year two? Almost certainly. Will we be there to support that growth? Absolutely.

 

Posted on

The death of traditional consumerism: what does it mean for pharma?

HAVAS Worldwide’s latest paper, The New Consumer & The Sharing Economy, outlines a growing sentiment against over consumption. Seven in ten of us believe it to be putting our society and the planet at risk, and the majority feel that current models of consumerism are not sustainable. More than this, we feel weighed down by the sheer amount of ‘stuff’ we own.

72983288

Put simply, we’re tired of consumerism and bored of adverts that try to manipulate us by pushing products at us like they’re the answer to life’s problems. We want to be in control, we want to be able to make informed decisions about how we spend our time and money and we don’t want others telling us what to do.

This goes for healthcare as much as consumer markets. Patients no longer expect to merely be prescribed a pill that they unwittingly swallow down once a day and hope for the best. Facilitated by an abundance of information technologies, they are knowledgeable about treatments and want to be actively involved in managing their own health care.

The wealth of monitoring apps across treatment areas (AsthmaCheck, MoodPanda and Diabetes In Check are but a few) is a fair indicator of a general desire for information and authority regarding personal treatment regimens. For financially hamstrung public health providers such as the NHS, this is a welcome trend. Empowering patients with greater control of their treatment reduces the burden of care placed on public providers, and has the potential to garner much better results by actively engaging patients.

So where does pharma fit into all this? The patent model and subsequent relationship with healthcare providers has always followed traditional models of consumerism; ‘we are a drug company and we’ve produced this drug which you can buy from us’. So how can we who work in pharma support and facilitate patients’ desires for greater inclusion and authority in their care and still turn a profit?

Firstly, we need to reshape our relationship with the people we serve. Pharmaceutical companies can no longer act as vendors and must become partners to professionals and patients alike. In doing so, we need to provide solutions, not pills, and increasingly this will mean delivering holistic services and systems of care. ‘Beyond the pill’ solutions are an arena in which there is massive potential for pharmaceutical companies to add real value.  At HAVAS LYNX we’ve worked on a series of patient care programmes that have been shown to half the number of days patients spend in hospital.

When pharma partners its expertise with other parties, it opens up a world of new revenue streams. Start-up accelerator organisations such as Healthbox are stimulating the sort of innovation and collaboration that pharma should be looking to more and more. Even amidst the context of Pfizer’s efforts to secure the acquisition of AstraZeneca, pharma companies need to look beyond traditional development pipelines when seeking to expand their offering.

We need to innovate past the sector mainstream and recognise outsider trends, much in the same way that Facebook is making moves to expand beyond social by purchasing of ProtoGeo. There are so many exciting and disruptive technologies being developed that have the potential to transform the lives of patients. Far more than offering supplementary revenue, these areas that currently lie on the fringes of the market are likely to be the mainstay of pharmaceuticals in the future.