For pharma Sales Ops and IT leaders, the biggest drain on ROI isn’t the technology itself — it’s how effectively the field learns to use it.
Pharma invests millions in systems like Veeva and Concur, but the success of those investments often hinges on the part of the rollout that gets the least attention: equipping the field to navigate these tools in real-world scenarios.
What typically happens is technology training gets squeezed into the final hours of a national sales meeting, after days of product strategy, when attention is fading and flights are waiting. By then, there’s little time for real absorption. Adoption slows, tools feel cumbersome, and field teams find themselves pausing mid-workflow to track down answers.
“More than ever, companies expect technology to be intuitive. But the real return comes when people are trained to use it effectively. Good training turns features into productivity, and investment into measurable results.”
– Anthony Bianciella, VP of Enabling Business Services, Conexus Solutions, Inc
Why Technology Training Gets Sidelined — and What It Costs
In commercial pharma, product training takes center stage. It fills most of a national sales meeting and drives short-term performance evaluations. Technology training; the “how” behind call entry, expense submission, data change requests, and compliance workflows — rarely gets the same attention.
In a sales-driven culture, there is a shared belief that these systems are intuitive or that field teams already know how to use them. Tools like Veeva or Concur are treated as familiar, so deepdive training slips down the priority list.
This approach risks breeding a reactive model, where formal training is triggered only after problems appear. By then, adoption has already stalled and bad habits have taken root.
Even just two quick “how do I…?” questions per rep per month can cost a 60-person sales team over $100,000 annually in lost productivity — before counting the time managers spend answering ad-hoc questions.
The bigger cost, however, comes in underleveraged technology investments, where systems built to streamline work are used at a fraction of their capability.
“If a rep only touches a process twice a year, you can guarantee they’ll need a refresher. Without it, the same questions keep cycling back to managers”
– Anthony Bianciella, VP of Enabling Business Services, Conexus Solutions, Inc
The Top Two Training Gaps That Drain ROI
Gap 1: Onboarding
New hire class groups get formal technology training as part of a structured onboarding program. But staggered hires often have a different experience, relying on informal learning, shadowing, or a district manager to fill the gaps.
This leads to uneven adoption, missed steps in workflows, and inconsistent data quality. Managers also end up spending significant time acting as ad-hoc trainers instead of focusing on their core responsibilities
Gap 2: Ongoing Enablement
Even seasoned reps lose their grip on workflows they touch only a few times a year. Submitting a data change request or handling fleet compliance fades from memory until the task pops up again, and the scramble begins.
We’ve already seen how this can lead to thousands in lost productivity, with the same cycle repeating over time. Without reinforcement, knowledge peaks after initial training and fades quickly, keeping teams from ever becoming fully fluent in the tools they depend on.
Rethinking the Learning Curve
Single-event, classroom-style training can create a short-term spike in knowledge, but it rarely sticks.
The “forgetting curve” first documented more than a century ago and confirmed by modern studies, shows that
learners can forget up to 50% of new information within an hour.
Without reinforcement, even well-trained reps struggle to recall the details when they need them most.
Closing these gaps means embedding learning into the way the field works every day — making resources easy to access, simple to follow, and updated as processes evolve.
“The goal is to smooth the curve. You want to take that initial spike of learning and keep it from dropping off, so the field stays confident and consistent over time.”
– Anthony Bianciella, VP of Enabling Business Services, Conexus Solutions, Inc
Practical steps to make that happen:
STEP 1
Give reps on-demand access to clear, role-specific resources, which lets teams review training in the field anytime they need it.
STEP 2
Keep instructions and formats consistent so they’re quick to reference under real-world pressure.
STEP 3
Use knowledge checks and performance metrics to catch gaps before they cause issues.
When training is woven into everyday operations, the field stays aligned, tools are used as designed, and technology investment delivers sustained value.
Training vs. Rehearsal: Why Both Matter
Understanding the mechanics of a new system is only half the battle. When new visual aids, applications, or multimedia content are released, reps also need time to rehearse using them in context.
It is not enough to know where the buttons are — they must practice presenting on their device until it feels natural and conversational.
Without that rehearsal, interactions with healthcare providers can come across as awkward or clumsy, undermining both the message and the rep’s credibility. Once a rep struggles in front of an HCP, the opportunity is lost. Iteration and practice ensure that when the technology meets the moment, the conversation flows smoothly and the focus stays where it belongs: on delivering value to the HCP.
From Rollouts to Results
Closing the Compliance Loop
A global pharma company needed to strengthen compliance across its MSL team. The challenge was not a lack of training but making sure it happened consistently and had staying power.
Conexus developed 15 custom interactive videos covering topics such as completing key reports, CRM basics, and company policies. Each team member now follows an annual training plan, with progress tracked at the individual level. What used to be scattered reminders and ad-hoc follow-ups has become a predictable rhythm of reinforcement that frees managers to focus on higher-value work
Sustaining CRM Adoption
A specialty biopharma company’s transition from a legacy CRM to a new platform required its 60-person sales team to gain fluency quickly.
Conexus delivered live, instructor-led sessions paired with Learning Cloud, so reps could revisit workflows anytime, and new hires could get up to speed without waiting for the next formal training.
This combination of live and on-demand learning supported fast adoption and sustained proficiency because the “how” was always within reach.
Making Training Stick for the Long Term
To make training stick, pharma teams need to treat learning as a core part of the rollout, not an add-on. The most successful teams embed training into the operating rhythm, ensuring technology delivers results long after launch.
Five Steps to Lock In Technology Adoption
- Identify the weak spots early
Pinpoint where onboarding, reinforcement, and infrequent workflows are most likely to fail — before they do. - Integrate training into the rollout
Make it a core workstream so skills go live at the same time as the system. - Mix your delivery formats
Blend live sessions, on-demand videos, and quick-reference tools to fit different learning needs and time constraints. - Monitor and adjust continuously
Use metrics and feedback to close knowledge gaps before they erode adoption or compliance. - Align every team involved
Keep Sales Ops, IT, and training moving in lockstep so the field’s reality shapes the design.
From Launch Day to Everyday
When technology training becomes part of everyday work, it stops being a distant memory and turns into a habit. Processes run smoother, adoption is stronger, and technology delivers the value it was designed for.
“Learning isn’t a onetime event — it’s part of the operating rhythm.”
– Anthony Bianciella, VP of Enabling Business Services, Conexus Solutions, Inc
How Conexus Helps:
Conexus combines deep commercial expertise with technology know-how to help life sciences teams bridge the gap between system build and daily use. We help you:
- Embed training from day one: Design programs that integrate directly into the rollout.
- Build consistent onboarding and ongoing support: Include reinforcement and rare workflow guidance so no knowledge gaps develop.
- Provide on-demand, role-specific resources: Give reps clear, easy-to-access tools they can use in the field.
- Align Sales Ops, IT, and internal training: Ensure workflows reflect real-world execution, not just theory.
- Sustain adoption over time: Use measurable reinforcement strategies to keep skills sharp long after launch.