Collaborator roles in businesses

(Baonghean) - In recent years, many businesses in various fields have been looking to recruit collaborators and build a network of "subordinates" to expand their market. With relatively simple recruitment requirements and decent income, this is an attractive job opportunity for many, especially young people. However, managing the activities of this network of collaborators still faces many shortcomings.

The joys and sorrows of the profession

Being a freelancer with plenty of free time, Ms. Thanh Thuy (Vinh Tan Ward, Vinh City) applied to be an insurance consultant to supplement her income. She submitted her application, went through training, passed the certification exam, and became a consultant for Bao Viet Life Insurance Company. She shared: "Becoming a consultant isn't too difficult, but staying in this job is not easy at all. To put it simply, being an insurance consultant is like selling a product; the buyer asks you about the product's quality, but they have doubts about what you've advertised. How do you convince the customer? That's a major obstacle that consultants have to overcome. We have to be flexible, understand customer psychology to persuade them by offering insurance products that provide the highest benefits; we allocate income to customer care expenses on birthdays, holidays, illnesses, etc. Not to mention, my assigned area is in a mountainous region, so I often have to travel far." Sometimes we can't get a single contract in a whole month, so our income is very unstable. Many people even have a negative impression of us, feeling that they are being bothered too much and that our advice is a waste of time.

Ms. Thanh Thuy, a consultant at Bao Viet Insurance Company in Nghe An, advises customers on insurance products.

Also working in "high-end marketing," Le Na (from Dien Tan commune, Dien Chau district) after graduating from Vinh Medical University, wanted to stay in the city, so she applied to work as a pharmaceutical sales representative for Vibapharco Vietnam Investment Joint Stock Company. Assigned to cover the Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital, the Oncology Hospital, and pharmacies along Ton That Tung and Nguyen Phong Sac streets, with a sales target of 200 million VND/month, her job was quite busy. The dynamic work environment, good income, flexible hours, and opportunities to expand social relationships are considered factors that make the pharmaceutical sales representative profession attractive to young people. However, not everyone easily gains respect and earns high income. In the beginning, the job required Le Na to actively seek out connections. She faced many difficulties because most of the territories had already been assigned to senior colleagues, and the areas that remained "untouched" had very little market demand or very slow sales. To sell successfully... For the product, I'm willing to accept a lower commission to lower the price and remain competitive.

Le Na shared: "This job requires a bit of 'thick skin.' There are times when you know the doctor is busy, but you still have to barge in and ask for a few minutes' consultation. If they agree, you quickly explain and leave. But you also face all sorts of situations like being turned away, being refused service, or complaints about the medicine being too expensive and not cooperating... If you don't meet sales targets, pharmaceutical representatives have to explain the reasons to the company. Not to mention that sometimes you have to use up your sales bonus to invest in relationships. If you're lucky enough to find the right person, you get the job, but if you invest in the wrong person and the conversation doesn't go well, you have to accept the loss."

Despite the difficulties and hardships, if you are passionate and do well, the job of a consultant for businesses is also an attractive profession. This is because this job allows for flexible working hours and is not bound by office schedules. In addition, collaborators have the opportunity to expand their social network. And most importantly, the income for good collaborators is quite high. Typically, when hired by a company, pharmaceutical sales representatives are paid a negotiated salary with accompanying binding regulations; the more experience, the more attractive the salary. Besides the fixed salary to ensure sales targets are met, pharmaceutical sales representatives also receive commissions depending on the amount of products they sell.

Difficult to manage

The regulations requiring insurance agents are stipulated in Article 86 of the Law on Insurance Business, which states that individuals must be Vietnamese citizens residing in Vietnam, aged 18 or older, with full civil capacity and competence; and possess an insurance agent training certificate issued by an insurance company or the Vietnam Insurance Association to be permitted to operate as an insurance agent. Thus, the law on insurance business does not require a certain level of education as a mandatory condition to become an insurance agent, which has created certain limitations in the work of insurance agents. In reality, some agents lack complete or accurate information about services and products, leading to errors when advising customers.

However, more concerning are the cases of individuals exploiting the title of insurance consultant for personal gain. According to Mr. Nguyen Chi Bac, Deputy Director of Nghe An Life Insurance Company, in previous years, in some remote and rural communes, there have been instances where consultants, taking advantage of close relationships with customers, would collect money and issue invoices, then return under the pretext of borrowing the invoices back, and subsequently abscond with the money. For example, four years ago, a collaborator in Yen Thanh collected over 100 million VND in insurance premiums from a customer and then fled to Laos. Currently, Nghe An Bao Viet Life Insurance Company has approximately 3,000 consultants operating in the area. Therefore, to effectively manage the team of consultants and limit violations, the company has had to strengthen management measures by regularly contacting customers by phone; "We regularly hold monthly customer conferences (averaging 250-300 sessions) to provide official information about the company's products and services. This helps customers choose suitable products and avoid being exploited by malicious individuals."

The pharmaceutical business is a specialized industry with specific conditions, and pharmaceutical sales representatives are salespeople with expertise in modern medicines. They act as intermediaries between drug manufacturers and consumers, introducing pharmaceutical products. According to Circular 13/2009/TT-BYT on "Guidelines for Information and Advertising Activities of Pharmaceuticals," Article 11 stipulates that only those who have been issued a "pharmaceutical sales representative" card are permitted to provide information and introduce pharmaceuticals to healthcare professionals. Article 28 also stipulates that the unit recruiting pharmaceutical sales representatives must submit the required documents to the local Department of Health where the unit is headquartered or has a representative office. Within 20 working days of receiving a complete and valid application, the Department of Health will review the documents and issue the pharmaceutical sales representative card.

According to incomplete statistics, there are currently about 40 branches of pharmaceutical companies operating in Nghe An province. According to Mr. Nguyen Sy Tai, Deputy Head of the Pharmaceutical Management Department of the Department of Health, compiling data and managing the team of pharmaceutical sales representatives is very difficult because they are mainly recruited by domestic and foreign pharmaceutical companies (based in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City). In addition, some companies with branches in Nghe An also recruit pharmaceutical sales representatives, but to date, the department has not received the application files from these units requesting drug representative cards. Furthermore, due to the nature of the job, which often involves working outside of regular business hours, managing the team of pharmaceutical sales representatives is impossible.”

It is thought that the expanding network of collaborators for businesses is an inevitable trend in society, given the increasing market development needs of businesses. However, strict management measures are necessary, along with the involvement of regulatory agencies to inspect and monitor the activities of this force. Only then will the activities of these collaborators be as effective as desired.

Dinh Nguyet - Ngoc Anh