Is job hopping bad for your MSL career?

We had a lot of questions recently from MSL candidates who are worried about leaving their job after only 1-2 years and asked FSTP if it is bad to “Job hop”.

Here's our view as FSTP to MSLs, MSL managers and recruiters:

1) To the MSLs.

Yes, it is ok to "job hop". Most candidates job hop, because of the company culture or a toxic manager. MSLs don't generally leave jobs where they are being compensated fairly, they feel valued, are part of the team, have growth opportunities, and the culture is healthy. If these things are not in place, people start looking around.

TIP: be ready to provide a reason for your “early” departure. You can even write it on your CV (“left earlier than planned due to toxic environment” – recruiters and hiring managers understand). Try to not job hob after 6 months in 4 jobs. That starts to look suspicious.

2) To medical managers/advisors:

Make sure to set up 1:1 meeting with your MSLs every 2 weeks to discuss how they are doing. Don’t go straight to the KPIs or projects. Get to know the person behind the job, if things don’t go well in their personal lives it can affect work and be supportive at those times. And make to discuss professional development and put in place a development plan.

3) To recruiters and employers

Always balance what is best for the employees and what’s best for the company. Not increasing someone’s salary and saving $10,000 on your budget, but having this person leave and putting your medical drug launch on the line, is not a smart idea for you nor the company.

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