This was a turning point for Vos. The first statin, Merck's Mevacor (lovastatin), was about to launch, and Boehringer Mannheim
(today a part of Roche) had developed a convenient, portable cholesterol screening device. GTFH went after and won both accounts.
Barbara Blasso, president of GHG's accredited continuing education unit, International Meetings & Science, says, "As a result
of Lynn's thinking, leadership, and dedication to understanding the true impact this drug would have on people's lives, GTFH
got the business—and she played a significant role in how cholesterol is perceived."
The GTHF team understood that the new combination of a screening device and a drug to treat cholesterol could revolutionize
patient care—and the pharma industry. For Vos, it was one of the most significant experiences of her career. "We learned that
you can really create a market and help doctors and patients. It's an exciting, complicated business that requires thorough medical education planning and associating
yourself with the right issues," she says. "We connected early with the National Cholesterol Education Program [NCEP] and
developed the first consensus conference with Merck and Boehringer Mannheim and the NCEP, which helped create new cholesterol
education guidelines."
The Mevacor experience had two immediate effects. One was that GTFH was so successful that Grey Global Group acquired the
agency in 1987. And GTFH expanded its range of services with the launch of its own med ed company—Phase Five. In charge: 28-year-old
Vos.
"I launched Phase Five with a phone and a desk," says Vos. "It was probably the first model for raising consumer awareness,
educating doctors about the new goals, training them how to treat, and then bringing those two together to drive change."
"What Lynn did at Phase Five is now classic market conditioning. Back then it was pioneering," says Ilyssa Levins, who headed
GTFH's PR business at the time. (It later became Grey's wholly owned partner GCI. Levins continues as executive vice president
of GCI, a wholly owned partner of GHG, and managing partner of the GCI/GHG joint venture BrandEdge.)
"I'd Like to Run It"
In 1991, GTFH suffered a round of devastating losses. Partner Ronnie Hoffman suddenly died of a cerebral aneurysm. "Ronnie
was the creative genius of GTFH," says Vos. "She was also one of the most brash, direct, exciting women you'd ever want to
meet, and a brilliant copywriter and someone who was my personal coach and cheerleader. It rattled all of us."
Alan Gross and Jane Townsend retired and moved to the island of Bonaire. That was potentially fatal news for the firm they
had founded. "It's highly unlikely that a communications company can survive when all the partners leave," says Vos. But Gross,
Townsend, and Hoffman were people who inspired loyalty, and a group of executives kept the company alive.
Eventually Vos went to Grey with a proposal. "I said, 'Look, I'd like to run it.' So I jumped into being the CEO of GTFH.
We renamed it Grey Healthcare Group. It was an opportunity to reinvent a company."
The renamed company had strong leadership. Wendy Balter (currently president of Phase Five) and Blasso, Vos' partners, took
over Phase Five. Cindy Machles, currently president of BrandEdge, represented advertising, and Levins ran the PR business.
In 1998, Vos recruited Jane Parker, who had extensive experience on the consumer side, to be group president, worldwide advertising.
|
PharmExec Blog
Follow Us
RSS
Bookstore
