How to hire a pharmaceutical sales representative

How to hire a pharmaceutical sales representative, step by step

Here's a step-by-step pharmaceutical sales representative hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a pharmaceutical sales representative job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new pharmaceutical sales representative
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a pharmaceutical sales representative do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a pharmaceutical sales representative, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A pharmaceutical sales representative's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, pharmaceutical sales representatives from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of pharmaceutical sales representative salaries for various roles:

   Type of Pharmaceutical Sales Representative	Description	Hourly rate
   Pharmaceutical Sales Representative	Wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives sell goods for wholesalers or manufacturers to businesses, government agencies, and other organizations. They contact customers, explain product features, answer any questions that their customers may have, and negotiate prices.	$20-52
   Representative	Representatives are lawmakers who represent the people in a specific district. They run for office to represent their districts in their hometown or their current place of living... Show more	$11-26
   Territory Representative	A territory representative is responsible for selling the company's goods and services within a designated area, negotiating offers with potential clients, and identifying business opportunities according to market trends and customer demands. Territory representatives analyze the sales performance and strategize techniques to reach sales targets by coordinating with the whole sales team... Show more	$14-24

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Pharmaceutical Products
   • Develop Strong Relationships
   • Territory Management
   • FDA
   • Business Plan
   • Persistence
   • Persuasion
   • Work Ethic
   • Market Share Growth
   • Product Knowledge
   • Neurology
   • Sales Performance
   • Medical Sales

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage and establish relationships within specialty urology and neurology markets to drive new and existing therapies.
   • Demonstrate strong teamwork skills by partnering with Novartis counterparts and other pharmaceutical consultants to achieve company and individual goals.
   • Manage Santa Rosa/San Francisco territories, marketing and selling respiratory, urology, cardiology to pharmacies and primary care physicians.
   • Retail sales division promoting drugs in gastroenterology, endocrinology, pain management and infectious disease.
   • Call on and maintain relationships with primary care physicians, cardiologists, nephrologists, internists, gastroenterologists, and endocrinologists.
   • Call on primary care physicians, cardiologists, neurologists, endocrinologists, and vascular surgeons.

   More pharmaceutical sales representative duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the pharmaceutical sales representative job description is a good way to get more applicants. A pharmaceutical sales representative salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a pharmaceutical sales representative in Arkansas may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level pharmaceutical sales representative. Additionally, a pharmaceutical sales representative with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average pharmaceutical sales representative salary

   $68,571yearly

   $32.97 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level pharmaceutical sales representative salary

   $42,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 21, 2026

   Average pharmaceutical sales representative salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$93,512	$45
   2	New York	$86,258	$41
   3	New Jersey	$76,133	$37
   4	Virginia	$73,660	$35
   5	California	$72,502	$35
   6	Pennsylvania	$67,907	$33
   7	Kentucky	$65,794	$32
   8	Illinois	$64,955	$31
   9	Maryland	$64,811	$31
   10	Texas	$63,980	$31
   11	Wisconsin	$63,016	$30
   12	Colorado	$60,872	$29
   13	Utah	$60,842	$29
   14	North Carolina	$57,942	$28
   15	Minnesota	$57,355	$28
   16	Ohio	$57,179	$27
   17	Indiana	$54,687	$26
   18	Michigan	$54,641	$26
   19	Florida	$53,432	$26
   20	Georgia	$49,239	$24

   Average pharmaceutical sales representative salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Eli Lilly and Company	$111,775	$53.74
   2	AstraZeneca	$93,701	$45.05	58
   3	QuintilesIMS	$65,431	$31.46	55
   4	Community Pharmacy Services LLC	$61,994	$29.80
   5	Fresenius Medical Care Windsor, LLC	$61,916	$29.77	1
   6	Ashfield Healthcare	$61,724	$29.68
   7	TrialCard	$61,341	$29.49	2
   8	Lilly & Company	$61,111	$29.38
   9	Indivior	$60,833	$29.25	4
   10	Fresenius Medical Care North America Holdings Limited Partnership	$58,594	$28.17	1
   11	Patterson Companies	$57,295	$27.55	81

4. Writing a pharmaceutical sales representative job description

   A good pharmaceutical sales representative job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a pharmaceutical sales representative job description:

   Pharmaceutical sales representative job description example

   *PHARMACEUTICAL SALES REP JOB DESCRIPTION: *
   
   We are a rapidly growing healthcare organization specializing in several therapeutic areas through our Pharmaceutical Sales Rep team members. We partner with physicians to improve patients' quality of life by providing safe, effective and customized healthcare solutions. We are currently looking to add to our Pharmaceutical Sales Rep team, so APPLY TODAY! Growth in the pharmaceutical sector shows pharmaceutical employment expanding at a greater rate than the economy, signaling impressive opportunities for a long term career in Pharmaceutical Sales. The pandemic has positively impacted the global market by propelling a rise in opportunities and advancements for drug development and manufacturing of vaccines for the disease. We are looking to add Entry Level Pharmaceutical Sales Reps to our already expanding team.
   
   *PHARMACEUTICAL SALES REPSRESENTATIVE JOB SUMMARY: *
   
   In this Pharmaceutical Sales Rep role, you will work to strategically pursue opportunities, represent and sell our cutting-edge services, provide excellent customer service, and close deals in an untapped market.
   
   We are seeking self-motivated, driven, enthusiastic candidates with exceptional interpersonal skills, eagerness to work as a team-player, a self-starter and an out of the box thinker, with the aptitude to work autonomously. Pharmaceutical Sales Rep candidates must possess the ability to institute traditional and creative approaches to build and maintain relationships, enhance overall performance, and collaboratively solve problems. Our Pharmaceutical Sales Rep top performers strategically identify, target, and develop accounts by utilizing connections and cold calling to secure meetings and finalize contracts. Each Pharmaceutical Sales Rep candidate will be expected to educate and influence new physician customers while nurturing and supervising existing relationships by identifying and tending to various needs and challenges.
   
   *ESSENTIAL DUTIES FOR OUR PHARMACEUTICAL SALES REPRESENTATIVES: *
   
   * Identify and target new accounts through the acquisition of information though internet search, followed by telephone inquiry and completed with office visit(s).
   * Secure meetings and pharmaceutical sales appointments to develop new offices and maintain existing offices
   * Provide exceptional customer service, available as main point of contact for all prospects, leads, and existing pharmaceutical sales rep accounts
   * Become proficient in selling our innovative products and healthcare services, skilled in all clinical information as well as business structure and financial offering
   
   *EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE SKILLS TO BECOME ONE OF OUR PHARMACEUTICAL SALES REPS: *
   
   * Proven track record of being a top performing Pharmaceutical Sales Rep who meets or exceeds goals
   * Be highly motivated, creative, and decisive Pharmaceutical Sales Rep
   * Industry training. certification or knowledge plus good sales abilities
   
   *PHARMACEUTICAL SALES REP ABILITIES AND CRITICAL SKILLLSET: *
   
   * Ability to work the assigned pharmaceutical sales rep territory
   * Excellent written and verbal pharmaceutical sales rep communications skills
   * Enjoyment of collaborative working relationships and a desire to participate in effective communication
   * Must maintain all industry credentials and certifications
   * Self-motivation and independence- developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done; someone who can thrive in a fast pace environment
   * High quality customer service- customer needs assessment and evaluation of customer satisfaction
   * Able to acquire and understand clinical and pharmacology science knowledge and then communicate it to a physician customer
   * Social Perceptiveness and active listening- Being aware of others' reactions and giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made and how you can contribute to the conversation effectively
   * Persistence and perseverance in the face of obstacles or undesired outcomes
   * Achievement/Effort- establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks
   
   *If this Pharmaceutical Sales Rep position sounds like an opportunity that is interesting to you, please apply today.*
   
   We are committed to leveraging the pharmaceutical sales representative talent of a diverse workforce to create great opportunities for our business and our people. EOE/AA. Minority/Female/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity/Disability/Vet
   
   Job Type: Full-time
   
   Schedule:
   * 8 hour shift
   * Monday to Friday
   
   Work Location: On the road

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find pharmaceutical sales representatives for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your pharmaceutical sales representative job on Zippia to find and attract quality pharmaceutical sales representative candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as salesjobs, salesheads, allretailjobs.com, sales trax.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with pharmaceutical sales representative candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new pharmaceutical sales representative

   Once you've decided on a perfect pharmaceutical sales representative candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new pharmaceutical sales representative first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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