Redefining problem-solving and collaboration in pharma research

Day One Podcast: Insights Room 101 

Episode 18: Lisa Courtade 

In Room 101, a guest describes three of their worst insight industry pet peeves and aims to lock one of them away forever in Room 101, much like the popular British TV show. Our guest on this episode is Lisa Courtade, who is currently Executive Director of Commercial Insights and Analytics at Organon. Lisa joined Organon for the opportunity to build a new team with the power to leverage the full suite of insight capabilities to understand and deliver on unmet needs in women’s health. Lisa has been called an innovative disruptor and a change agent for challenging the status quo and harnessing emerging technologies and data. Along with the behavioral sciences, Lisa has a lifelong passion for improving the lives of patients, leading teams for Merck, Sanofi-Aventis and Pharmacia/Pfizer. Lisa is Ex-Officio Director and Past Chair of the Insights Association and serves on the Marketing Research Institute International and University of Georgia’s Masters in Marketing Research and a long-time member of the Healthcare Business Woman’s Association, having served many years as a National Board Director, lead for career development and as the first global research director. Lisa joins us on The Day One podcast to share what things in the industry she’d like to see banished to Room 101 forever. The main pet peeves Lisa describes are: the idea that there is only one right way to do things, the language around buyer and vendor, and archaic definitions in market research for primary and secondary. Lisa provides meaningful criticism during our conversation, and we hope you enjoy it. 

Lisa begins by introducing us to her career path that leaps from graphic design to market research. In some of her early roles, Lisa got an opportunity to profoundly change treatment practices and be a voice for patients, which left a mark with her.  

Lisa recalls the reactions she received from her son and nephew when they joined her at work and saw what it was that she spends her days doing. Their perspective and understanding of the difference she was making in patients’ lives serves as a reminder why we do what we do. Lisa also shares her advice for young women coming into the industry. 

As her first nomination for Room 101, Lisa challenges the traditional thought that there is “only one right way” to tackle a problem or seize an opportunity. Lisa talks about how this mindset can limit our abilities to think creatively and might even become an obstacle to success.  

Unpacking this concept further in the context of corporate and agency settings, Lisa shows how the best answer is useless if it’s not within the timeframe that decision must be made. She would much prefer internal teams see market research as somewhere they can go to ask “how can you help me solve this within the level of the decision I have to make, the time frame I have, and in the budget that I have”, rather than “something old and slow and expensive or when I need that rigorous answer.” Lisa explores where this idea that “there’s only one way to do something” has come from. Is it fear, risk, complacency or comfort? 

As her second pick for Room 101, Lisa has chosen to banish the language around ‘buyer’ and ‘vendor’. Lisa breaks down the dynamics between vendors and buyers, highlighting how these terms creates an ‘us and them’ mentality. Lisa believes if we are truly partners, and we’re trying to solve a business challenge, then that means that we’re going to take on some risk together, we’re going to experiment together and we’re going to succeed and fail together. There should be shared accountability. 

Lisa shares how these ‘buyer’ and ‘vendor’ relationships can shape the overall mindset within an industry. Lisa paints the picture of why a lot of client-side individuals are afraid to even enter an exhibit area because they feel like they’re being hunted in shark-infested waters! 

As the third and final nomination for Room 101, Lisa presents the archaic definitions in market research, particularly “primary and secondary research”. Historically these may have been separate, but now Lisa feels that blurring the boundaries between primary and secondary research can lead to a more comprehensive understanding of the customer and market dynamics.  

Lisa reveals how having a hybrid or bionic team, made up of a variety of skills, can create a more holistic view of a business question. We need to be open to learning from different sources and not being precious about the data, ultimately leading to  better problem solving. 

Lisa and Hannah agree to banish the idea that “there is only one right way to do things” to Room 101.  We enjoyed the conversation, and we hope you do, too. 

About – Lisa Courtade: 

Lisa Courtade is currently Executive Director of Commercial Insights and Analytics at Organon. Lisa joined Organon for the opportunity to build a new team with the power to leverage the full suite of insight capabilities to understand and deliver on unmet needs in women’s health. Lisa has been called an innovative disruptor and a change agent for challenging the status quo and harnessing emerging technologies and data. Along with the behavioral sciences, Lisa has a lifelong passion for improving the lives of patients, leading teams for Merck, Sanofi-Aventis and Pharmacia/Pfizer. Lisa is Ex-Officio Director and Past Chair of the Insights Association and serves on the Marketing Research Institute International and University of Georgia’s Masters in Marketing Research and a long-time member of the Healthcare Business Woman’s Association, having served many years as a National Board Director, lead for career development and as the first global research director. 

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Abigail Stuart