Allison Vogel is a senior solution consultant at MMIT, and has spent almost two decades at the company. Staying on top of new drugs and therapies coming to market, her team anticipates challenges clients might have in the prelaunch stage and assists the sales team in matching clients to solutions.
What do you do in your role?
We’re responsible for supporting the entire commercial team at MMIT with subject matter knowledge on MMIT’s core solutions. We keep a pulse on what’s happening in the market, how it’s impacting our clients, how their needs could be changing and how we might have to change our approach at MMIT, either with the products we offer or the way that we deliver them to clients.
The other thing we work on is how to message and position what we do at MMIT to our clients so they can understand how what we do is going to help with their challenges.
What is your day to day like?
We’re on a lot of sales calls with the sales team supporting them. We do a lot of demos of our solutions, and we spend a lot of time answering questions internally. It’s also a lot of what we call enablement, which is educating the commercial team on what’s going on in the market, what we’re hearing from clients and what MIMT is doing to change and adjust. We own the training and education function on the commercial team.
Have you always worked with the solution consulting team?
I actually started on the operations team and was really instrumental in figuring out how we get data, where we get it and ensuring its accuracy. I started in an entry-level position, and had to roll my sleeves up and really understand what we were doing. I switched over to a client-facing role about 11 years ago, so I’ve spent the majority of my career there. I feel like the company has a real mission, and it’s an important mission.
What are some of the common challenges of your role?
The solution consulting team is considered the expert on our clients’ needs and MMIT solutions. With all of the available information out there and the fast pace of change in the industry, making sure we’re always on top of what’s happening in the market can be challenging. MMIT is also growing really fast, and so quickly gaining a deep understanding of our new capabilities and the subsequent problems we can help our clients solve is a big challenge!
What are trends you’re seeing in the industry?
There are new drugs coming to market for new disease states constantly. For instance, oncology is exploding. Previously, insurance companies would cover treatments for oncology without question, it was not an issue. That’s really changed. Now with the number of drugs coming to market, how expensive they are and how specialized they are, there’s a lot of requirements that have to be fulfilled before they’re going to pay for a drug. And those requirements are changing a lot.
What has been one of your biggest achievements?
I’ve been at MMIT for 15 years. I think my biggest achievement is watching this company grow from what it started out as in 2006, to where it is now and feeling like I’ve had a hand in that growth. I’m even able to make an impact in the business. We have a culture at MMIT that shows that everyone matters, everyone has an impact, and employees are valued. And that’s something that I’m proud of at our organization.
In your own words, what does MMIT do?
Our mission is to smooth access to lifesaving therapies for patients. We help all the different stakeholders across health care. We understand why payers have to put certain coverage parameters in place. Sometimes they’re appropriate, sometimes they’re not. But it’s our job to ensure that everyone who has some sort of influence on the patient journey is equipped with the knowledge they need to be able to get access to a drug or therapy for a patient who needs it.
Which of MMIT’s company principles would you say you resonate with the most?
This idea of learning, which is hearing what our client’s needs are, asking questions and getting to the bottom of it. The first thing I do to answer a question is to ask another question. When you stop and listen to what your client has to say, you can go back and work internally with colleagues to collaborate on how we could help that client. That’s one of my favorite things about my job — constantly learning and sharing information.
Where do you see the company going in the next five to 10 years?
Patient access is going to continue to evolve. We’re going to need to remain on the pulse of what’s happening, and we’re completely equipped to do that. We’re working on revamping our data architecture for next year. I think you’re going to continue to see our company grow, and potentially solve additional challenges that patients experience.
What do you like to do in your free time?
I have three kids all under age six. We spend a lot of time at the beach, and we’re a huge football family. My husband and I both went to Penn State, so we’re big college football fans.
by Lisa Gillespie
