OBJECTIVES : Market access (MA) functions foster a specialist-driven culture, with performance usually perceived as “difficult to measure” and relevant stakeholders often struggling to monitor & analyze effectively the Value & Access activities over the full product life-cycle. The objective of this research is to identify the current ways of performance & outcomes monitoring in MA teams, with a focus on key performance indicators (KPIs).

METHODS : A qualitative research was based on 13 semi-structured discussions (60 min) with MA leaders having EU or global responsibility, across 13 groups covering large pharmaceutical firms, medical device, and biotech.

RESULTS : Findings were classified as 1. POSITIVE KPIs or 2. POOR KPIs. The KPIs identified as “positive” by the respondents refer to the metrics they prefer to use in opposition to the “poor” KPIs they listed as metrics to avoid when measuring a MA team’s performance. In POSITIVE KPIs, the following metrics were identified: 1. A sustainable and maintained market price with a year-on-year monitoring system tracking price fluctuations; 2. The number of positive HTA submissions; 3. A successful patient access via monitoring of patient coverage and diversification of therapeutic indications over time; 4. The growth and development of the MA team through new skills acquisition, appropriate training and increased product experiences. In the POOR KPIs, the following metrics were identified: 1. Market share due to the multiple variables involved within the metric; 2. Pricing, as it is set by commercial and is not patient-centric enough; 3. Go/No-Go decisions on products to launch.

CONCLUSIONS : The key finding from interviews showed that KPIs must be realistic and achievable to be considered as effective KPIs to measure a MA team’s performance, aiming to not only monitor how well an activity is going, but to establish the value it is generating for patients.