Mike Boken, Shire

Mike Boken

Senior Director of Marketing, Vyvanse, Shire

BIG DEAL: Launching Prevnar, the first blockbuster vaccine

SUCCESS IS: 1 million Vyvanse scripts written 10 months after launch

You have to find a way to make your drug stand out from everybody else," says Mike Boken. He speaks from experience: Standing 7 feet tall, he never gets lost in the crowd.

Mike Boken

There's another truism that Boken lives by. As one of nine brothers and sisters, his mother expected chores to be done right—or else. "What I remember is that if you do it right the first time, you'll be in a better place."

Boken has applied that philosophy to promotion of Adderall XR and its ADHD follow up Vyvanse by developing smart adherence programs that keep patients on drug the first time around. It turns out that what's best for the patient is also best for the company: "We've seen the best ROIs coming from those retention programs."