Category: news

90TEN acquired by Envision Pharma Group

Envision Pharma Group – a global provider of evidence-based communication services and industry-leading technology solutions.

90TEN will retain its brand and service offering, bringing its insight-led behavioral science model Feel-Think-Do™ to a broad spectrum of Envision Pharma Group’s communications solutions. This partnership will enrich Envision Pharma Group’s global reach in medical affairs, which include its flagship technology, iEnvision®, together with strategic publications planning and delivery, medical strategy and communications, market access, and creative and digital solutions. In adding 90TEN’s strengths in behavioral science, creativity, and insight-driven communications, this acquisition will deliver an enhanced service offering to the Group’s global client base.

“We’re delighted to welcome an award-winning healthcare communications consultancy into the Envision Pharma Group family,” said David Thompson, CEO, Envision Pharma Group. “90TEN will add its expertise across new verticals for the group – in corporate communications and public relations, while extending Envision’s current footprint in patient engagement and medical communications with its behavioral science methodology. This move bolsters our industry-leading scientific communications capabilities, and enables us to strengthen our offering to clients across the product life cycle.”

“Today marks an exciting milestone in the evolution of 90TEN,” said Paul Tanner, Chairman, 90TEN. “Envision Pharma Group will provide global support to accelerate our plans to extend into more markets and reach more audiences. Both companies share the same values, which is reflected in the similarities between our passionate, ambitious, and collaborative teams who are dedicated to improving patient outcomes.”

Carole North, CEO, 90TEN added, “We’ve always said, if we partnered with another company it would have to be one that was the right strategic and cultural fit for 90TEN, celebrating everything that is 90TEN and the people who make it so successful. Envision Pharma Group embodies all of this and will allow us to retain our individuality, culture, and entrepreneurial spirit as we continue to deliver life-changing communications.”

90TEN will be managed from its London headquarters by the existing management team, including co-founders Paul Tanner and Carole North, and Managing Directors Peter Impey and Alison Doughty.

Based in London, 90TEN employs around 70 members of staff, and works with over half of the top 20 pharma companies in the world serving clients across Europe and North America. The acquisition of 90TEN will bring the total number of Envision Pharma Group employees to around 800 across 14 offices and four continents.

About 90TEN

90TEN is a global healthcare communications consultancy with a mission to make people healthier and happier through life-changing education and communications. 90TEN provides PR, medical communications, and patient advocacy services that use behavioral science methodologies to maximize brand and health outcomes. 90TEN is one of the leading healthcare communications consultancies in Europe. In 2019, 90TEN was named Communications Consultancy of the Year at the Communiqué Awards; European Agency of the Year at the PR Week Global Awards; Specialist Consultancy of the Year at the PR Week UK Awards; and Support Agency of the Year at the PMEA Awards. To find out more, visit www.90ten.co.uk.

About Envision Pharma Group

Founded in 2001, Envision Pharma Group is a global, innovative technology and scientific communications company serving pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device companies. Envision is a leading provider of evidence-based communication services and industry-leading technology solutions (iEnvision®) that have applicability across many areas of medical affairs and related functional responsibility. Envision Pharma Group provides services and technology solutions to more than 90 companies, including all of the top 20 pharmaceutical companies.

Envision has 14 offices: six in the United Kingdom – Bishop’s Stortford, Glasgow, Horsham, London (Battersea and Hammersmith), and Wilmslow; one in Serbia – Subotica; one in Hungary – Szeged; four in the United States – Fairfield and Glastonbury, CT, Philadelphia, PA, Warren, NJ; and two in the Asia-Pacific region – Tokyo and Sydney. The company employs around 800 team members, including over 250 highly qualified and experienced in-house medical writers, and 190 technology solutions team members who provide software development and customer support. To find out more, visit www.envisionpharmagroup.com.

The acquisition was supported by Envision’s equity partners – Ardian, one of the largest European headquartered private investment funds, and the specialist investor in European healthcare, GHO Capital.

For further information, please contact:

Marsha Caplin
Global Head of Marketing
Envision Pharma Group
Email: marsha.caplin@envisionpharmagroup.com
Tel: +44 (0)7557 083549

Peter Impey
Managing Director, Communications Division
90TEN
Email: peter.impey@90ten.co.uk
Tel: +44 (0)7921 879688

Video conferencing like a pro: our dos and don’ts

Zoom, to weekly team huddles and our legendary Friday quiz, our meetings have moved entirely online with video conferencing.

Whilst we might have initially struggled to get to grips with juggling conference calls, childcare and inevitable technical mishaps, we are now getting into our stride. Have a read of our top ten video conferencing dos and don’ts and you’ll be a self-professed whiz in no time.

What’s working for us:

DO keep your camera on (if your Wi-Fi allows it)

Being camera ready 24/7 whilst working from home can sound a bit daunting, but being able to read visual cues and body language leads to clearer and more effective communication. You can always hide your camera view if you don’t feel like staring at your own reflection!

DON’T ignore lighting 

If possible, make use of natural light by sitting near a window. Alternatively, use overhead lights or lamps to ensure your face is well lit.

DO use the mute function

It’s best to stay on mute when on a busy call to keep background noise to a minimum. Top tip: if using Zoom, press and hold the space bar to temporarily unmute and let the host know that you’re still listening.

DON’T forget to take timing into consideration

When scheduling video conference calls, build in some additional time to get set up and tackle any technical difficulties. Join the call a few minutes early to make sure your audio and camera are working correctly.

DO get your hands on a headset

They might look a bit awkward, but using a headset for video conferencing improves audio quality and leaves hands free for note taking or tea drinking.

DON’T multitask

Whilst it might be tempting to catch up on emails or check your phone, try to stay focused on the task at hand. Eliminate distractions, maintain eye contact and concentrate on the individual speaking, just like you would in a face-to-face meeting.

DO take the time to mention any limitations up front

Taking a few minutes to acknowledge any potential bumps and hurdles before getting started can help to reduce the (often self-imposed) pressure for everything to run perfectly. For example, if you’ve got the kids in tow, you might have the reasonable expectation of an interruption or two.

DON’T forget to take breaks

If your meeting is scheduled to last for a few hours, try to split the call into smaller meetings, or build in chunky breaks away from the screen.

DO make roles and responsibilities even clearer than normal and up the pre-work

For longer meetings or workshops, try scheduling additional short calls prior to the meeting to share any pre-work and agree who will be acting in what capacity. Allocate roles and encourage people to stick to them to cut down on cross talk, then schedule in a set time for wider input.

DON’T ignore the chat function

For larger meetings, the chat function is a useful backup channel to avoid people talking over one another. It can also act as a ‘parking lot’, so that attendees can see their point being noted down, even if it’s not yet being addressed.

Remember to be flexible, this is relatively new territory for everyone and we’re all in this together. Discover more 90TEN working from home tips here.

Make working from home work for you

90TEN strengthens senior management team with five new additions in 2020

Danielle Forrester, Amy O’Connor and Jenny Squibbs have been promoted to Associate Director level. Danielle and Amy are valued members of 90TEN’s communications division having led multiple award-winning campaigns since they joined the consultancy in 2016. In addition, Amy was named PR Week’s Young PR Professional of the Year in 2018. Jenny Squibbs joined 90TEN in 2013 and is a long-standing member of the consultancy’s medical division; she was awarded Communiqué Young Achiever in Healthcare Communications in 2018.

“2020 is already off to a really strong start for 90TEN and we are delighted to welcome five new and inspiring leaders to our senior management team,” said Alison Doughty, Managing Director of 90TEN’s medical division. “We are looking forward to continuing to expand our client offerings with more hires anticipated throughout the year.”

90TEN has also announced the promotion of Stephanie O’Hagan to Senior Associate Director in the communications division, to support continued growth of the consultancy’s patient advocacy offering. Stephanie joined 90TEN in 2017.

“This is not only a really exciting time of growth and expansion for 90TEN as an agency, but also for the professional development of our team members,” said Peter Impey, Managing Director of 90TEN’s communications division. “We are so proud to see professional careers develop here at 90TEN, recognised by these internal promotions. I’m so pleased to welcome them to the senior management team.”

As 90TEN enters its new financial year, the consultancy’s growth is expected to continue, with plans to welcome more additions to its medical and communications divisions.

Cannes or Canned? New recommendations to stimulate braver and bolder communications

Cannes or Canned? report draws on expertise from within and beyond the pharmaceutical industry to make recommendations for pharma communicators.

The Healthcare Communications Association (HCA) in partnership with 90TEN today announced the publication of Cannes or Canned? – a report that makes five key recommendations to fuel greater creativity and innovation in healthcare and scientific communications.

The recommendations, available now on the HCA website, are the result of an initiative, Cannes or Canned? that was started in 2018 after pharmaceutical communications missed out on a Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity for the second year in a row.

“Given that the pharmaceutical industry is powered by experimentation and discovery, healthcare should be leading the way when it comes to innovative communications,” said Edel McCaffrey, an HCA Executive Committee member and one of the driving forces behind Cannes or Canned?“That isn’t always the case, so we set up this initiative to find out two things: what is holding back our creativity, and what can we do to set it free?”

Cannes or Canned? brought together UK and internationally based senior communicators from seven pharmaceutical companies. With input and inspiration from innovators in industries including banking, fashion retail, artificial intelligence and toy marketing, they identified four key forces stifling innovation in communications and five recommendations for overcoming them.

The five key recommendations discussed in the report are:

  1. Create a culture that embraces innovation
  2. Empower and value brave, innovative people from within and beyond healthcare
  3. Strip back processes and streamline activities to enable communications that are agile and responsive to customers’ needs
  4. Get up close and personal with customers
  5. Put learning at the heart of healthcare communications

“As healthcare communicators we help to put the pharmaceutical industry’s life-changing discoveries into patients’ hands, but healthcare is changing fast and unless we think creatively and embrace innovation, we risk losing our voice,” said Peter Impey, Managing Director of 90TEN’s Communications division. “These recommendations are a recipe for making our communications braver, bolder and more creative, and I’m very excited to see where they take the healthcare communications sector.”

Healthcare communicators are invited to join the movement to open up creativity and innovation in healthcare communications:

Further press information contact: 

Mike Dixon at the HCA

email: mikedixon@the-hca.org

call: +44 (0)7799 865794

About Cannes or Canned?

Cannes or Canned? is an HCA initiative in partnership with 90TEN. It brought together UK and internationally based senior communicators and included representatives from seven pharmaceutical companies:

  • Philip Atkinson, Global Head, Scientific Communications – Oncology & Haematology, Roche
  • Paul Dixey, Multichannel Lead, Novartis UK
  • Lilianna Husseini, Director Communications, Oncology, Pfizer Global
  • Heidi LaPensée, Brand Lead, CNS, Sanofi UK
  • Catherine Priestley, Head of BioPharmaceuticals R&D Communications, Global Corporate Affairs, AstraZeneca
  • Mark Reale, Director of Corporate Affairs, UK & Ireland, Celgene
  • Bhavin Vaid, Head of Global Corporate Communications and Public Affairs, Ferring Pharmaceuticals
  • Edel McCaffrey, Independent Communications Consultant

90TEN named Support Agency of the Year at the 2019 PMEA Awards

Last night, 90TEN was named Support Agency of the Year at the PMEA awards 2019. The consultancy also picked up the Excellence in Engagement Through Multiple Channels award for its work with Ferring Pharmaceuticals. The Pharmaceutical Marketing Excellence Awards recognise excellence in improving patient outcomes and are judged by a panel of industry experts and leaders.

Find out more with the full press release below

Global healthcare communications consultancy 90TEN was last night named Support Agency of the Year at the 2019 PMEA (Pharmaceutical Marketing Excellence) Awards. The consultancy also picked up the Excellence in Engagement Through Multiple Channels award for its work with Ferring Pharmaceuticals.

Commenting on the Support Agency of the Year win, Alison Doughty, Managing Director, 90TEN Medical division, said: “2018 and 2019 have been phenomenal years for us and our clients and we are delighted to receive this industry recognition for the life-changing work we have delivered across medical communications and public relations.”

The judges highlighted: “[We] loved 90TEN’s “feel, think, do” mentality. They have great people investment and an excellent focus on mental health. They are creative, energetic and have strong relationships with their pharma clients, delivering on some high profile, creative campaigns.”

90TEN won the Excellence in Engagement Through Multiple Channels category for its ‘Project Family’ programme for Ferring Pharmaceuticals, with project-specific support from Syneos. The campaign champions everyone’s right to have a family and tackles maternal health issues. “Our aim at 90TEN is to make people healthier and happier through our life-change communications programmes. We are honoured that our contribution to improving patients’ lives has been recognised with this award,” said Peter Impey, Managing Director, 90TEN Communications division.

The consultancy was also a finalist in the Excellence in Product Introduction and Healthcare Professional Education and Support categories for its medical education work.

The Pharmaceutical Marketing Excellence Awards recognise excellence in improving patient outcomes. They are judged by a panel of industry experts and leaders.

90TEN named Specialist Consultancy of the Year at 2019 PRWeek UK Awards

90TEN was named Specialist Consultancy of the Year at the 2019 PRWeek UK Awards last night. This is the second year in a row 90TEN has won this award, taking home both Specialist and Mid-sized Consultancy of the Year in 2018.

“The healthcare communications sector is rapidly evolving and this year we have championed multiple initiatives to keep 90TEN at the forefront of innovation, creativity and behavioural science,” said Peter Impey, Managing Director of 90TEN Communications. “This approach has enabled us to add 15 new clients to our roster and deliver award winning campaigns that make a difference.”

The judges described 90TEN as having an: “Obvious passion for what they do and how they do it”.

The submission for Specialist Consultancy of the Year was based on 90TEN’s consistently strong growth and achievements during 2018. It is the 20th accolade the consultancy has received in the last two years,  including recognition from the PRWeek Global, PRWeek UK, PM Society Digital and Communiqué Awards. The PRWeek UK Awards celebrate and honour the best examples across the PR industry. The submissions are judged by a panel of industry experts and leaders.

How to stop your brain putting the brakes on your next big idea

Peter Impey, Managing Director, 90TEN Communications

I love it when a plan comes together. I also love the process of putting one together – from diving into a brief and gathering insights, to formulating strategies and then, of course, finding those all-important creative solutions. While the creative side of PR is often the most exciting and rewarding part of our work, it can also be the most challenging.

When the pressure is on, the brainstorm is packed and the flip chart page is empty, that big, beautiful, traffic-stopping idea can feel as though it will always be just out of reach. We get there in the end and there’s no better feeling than reaching that creative epiphany and seeing heads nod around the room. What, though, is it that makes this process so hard, and is there anything we can do to free up our creative thinking as this year’s planning season begins and we get stuck into our 2020 plans?

While having the right team, the right insights and the right strategy are all key to nailing the creative, having an understanding of some of the cognitive biases that can block the ideation process can help us to free our minds. Cognitive biases are systematic, unconscious errors in our thinking that affect the decisions and judgements we make every day. While they play an important role in helping us to process information and make decisions quickly and efficiently, they can also limit our thinking and mean that the decisions we make are not as rational as we believe them to be.

When it comes to planning, our cognitive biases can sabotage our best ideas before we’ve even finished forming them, let alone shared them with our teams. Here are three of the common biases I’ve learned to look out for, and some tips for stopping them from short circuiting your creativity:

  • Loss-aversion bias – this bias can see us hang onto an idea for dear life, even if it’s not the right one. Our unconscious aversion to feeling that our time and effort has been wasted on developing an idea or strategy can make us ignore a nagging doubt that it isn’t as good as it could be. Listen to what that doubt is telling you. The best idea – the right idea – may be just around the corner but you’ll never know if you settle for what you have now.
  • Anchoring bias – this bias can see us latch onto the first idea we discuss or home in on something we’re already familiar with and close our minds to other – potentially better – approaches. The only way to manage this is to challenge and re-challenge your thinking: what is it about this idea that makes it better than the one that came next or the one after that?
  • Status quo bias – this is the bias that compels us to shy away from uncertainty and to favour the tried and tested over anything new. While this can make sense in some circumstances, we all know how the saying goes: if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got. If you’re aiming for something different – something bigger, better and bolder – you need to be watchful for this bias and question whether what you have done before is really what you should do again.

These are just three of the many cognitive biases that shape our thinking and play a part in our creative processes. By recognising these biases and others we can develop strategies to open ourselves up to exploring and embracing ideas that push us out of our comfort zone. These are the kind of ideas that will get our clients excited and make our plans for 2020 fly.  

90TEN appoints digital veteran Ged Carroll and Four Health’s Sarah Avent to the senior management team

90TEN today announced that Ged Carroll has joined the global communications consultancy in the newly created role of digital director. Ged has two decades of consumer and healthcare digital experience in advertising and creative agencies, most recently as a director at Digitas Health. He previously built digital functions in London for Racepoint Global and in Hong Kong for Burson-Marsteller. Prior to this, he worked at Ruder Finn, Yahoo! and Edelman. Ged is tasked with bolstering 90TEN’s expertise to deliver insights-driven, multichannel campaigns that combine an earned-first and paid approach.

“90TEN has a strong track record in making social and digital channels work harder for our healthcare clients, especially through our influencer marketing approach”, said Peter Impey, Managing Director of 90TEN Communications. “Having worked with Ged in the past I know personally how transformative his work is. We not only have an amazing planner, but also a creative and digital strategist rolled into one”.

Sarah Avent has joined the team from Four Health Communications. Sarah brings over fifteen years of healthcare communications and patient advocacy experience, having led multiple award-winning campaigns focused on connecting and empowering patient communities.

Both Ged and Sarah have joined 90TEN Communications, the PR division of the company, and report to its Managing Director as members of the consultancy’s senior management team.

In addition, senior account managers Chloe Francis and Georgie Eccles have joined 90TEN’s PR division from 3 Monkeys Zeno and Syneos, respectively. The team has also welcomed account managers Kirsty Somerscales and Nilüfer Münür from Aurora and Edelman.

90TEN was recently named Communications Consultancy of the Year at the 2019 Communiqué Awards and Best Agency in Continental Europe at the 2019 PRWeek Global Awards. The consultancy’s digital work has consistently won awards, including Best Global Influencer Marketing Campaign (PRWeek Global, 2019), Excellence in Social Media Strategy (Communiqué, 2018) and Excellence in Engagement Through Digital Channels (Communiqué, 2017).