Correspondence: Jane Parker, 103 E. 84 St New York NY 10028, USA. Tel: +1 212 879 5390; e-mail: jcassparker@yahoo.com

¹is an accomplished industry veteran who brings over 20 years' management expertise, marketing insight and proven brand-building success to the healthcare industry. She began her career in marketing at Johnson & Johnson Baby Products and then spent ten years at Bristol-Myers Squibb rising through the ranks to become Director of Personal and Healthcare marketing. She then went on to become Vice President, Personal Care, for Colgate-Palmolive. She began her agency career at Saatchi & Saatchi Healthcare, where she established and built their Direct-to-Consumer Group, one of the pioneers of DTC advertising in the US. Over the past ten years, she served as the worldwide president of Grey Healthcare Group, which she left this past April.

Received 14 May 2007; Revised 14 May 2007.

Abstract

Until recently the 'ethical' pharmaceutical industry had an unassailable set of social, political, technological and economic credentials. Its single-minded pursuit of integrity was widely respected, and its reputation, image and influence were without equal. The reputation that took decades to build has now become severely tarnished. With stakeholder trust at an all time low, the industry is now the recipient of especially vehement criticism. The strategy to rebuild the reputation of the industry will require a deep understanding of the agendas and needs of all relevant stakeholders so that expectations can be fully met. This document explores a number of possible strategic and tactical initiatives to rebuild stakeholder trust and to restore the reputation, image and influence of the industry.