Chief Commercial Officer — Interim, Branded Generics

The mandate

An internal inquiry into physician-engagement spending led to suspension and resignation of the commercial chief. Field morale and distributor confidence are deteriorating just as two priority brands face aggressive generic entry.

The executive should assume authority within three weeks for nine months while the inquiry closes and permanent recruitment runs. The successful permanent CCO will overlap for six weeks, provided the board is satisfied that controls no longer depend on interim oversight.

Handover demands revenue within three per cent of the reset plan, one hundred per cent certification of field interactions, closure of all high-risk distributor exceptions, and two clean monitoring cycles chaired by the successor.

The interim can redirect promotion spend within brand budgets, change territories and suspend non-compliant distributors. Product price changes, permanent vice-president hires and channel settlements over ₹1 crore require CEO or committee approval; the seat cannot influence the investigation's findings.

Manufacturing service, medical-affairs content approval and pipeline licensing are excluded. Commercial recovery must occur within approved claims and ethics rules rather than by inheriting scientific or supply authority.

Why this seat is open

The investigation removed commercial leadership with little transition. Appointing an internal caretaker could compromise perceived independence or perpetuate disputed field practices. The board wants a time-bound operator who can protect legitimate demand while rebuilding a commercially credible control environment.

What you will own

• Rebase the annual forecast by brand, territory and channel after removing unsupported field assumptions.
• Decide territory and resource moves needed to defend priority prescriptions under the reset ethics controls.
• Replace discretionary physician-engagement practices with approved, documented educational and service models.
• Review every high-risk distributor exception and resolve it through cure, suspension or governed exit.
• Redesign incentives around compliant demand, collection quality and sustainable brand indicators.
• Certify monthly commercial-control monitoring to the ethics committee with named breaches and remedies.
• Transfer brand choices, channel risks and two completed monitoring cycles to the permanent commercial chief.

Candidate qualifications

• More than twenty-two years in pharmaceutical commercial leadership, including national P&L and large field-force accountability.
• Demonstrated revenue stabilisation during a conduct investigation, compliance reset or material channel disruption.
• Deep understanding of Indian branded-generics economics, physician engagement, distributor controls and pricing regulation.
• Experience redesigning sales incentives to remove risky behaviours without causing uncontrolled talent or revenue loss.
• Evidence of partnering effectively with independent Medical, Compliance and Internal Audit functions under scrutiny.
• Board-ready judgment in distinguishing legitimate commercial urgency from conduct that cannot be tolerated.

Non-negotiables

• Able to assume Chennai-based duties inside three weeks and travel nationally.
• No involvement in the underlying investigation or recent employment with implicated distributors.
• Will sign enhanced interaction, gift, sponsorship and distributor-conflict declarations.
• Can work exclusively through the nine-month recovery and successor overlap.

1. 49 words maximum. Give your earliest start date and any current pharmaceutical relationship requiring disclosure.
2. 49 words maximum. What revenue variance did you contain during a field-conduct reset, and over which period?
3. 49 words maximum. Which sales incentive did you remove because it drove the wrong behaviour?