Academy courseInvitation onlyE6(R3)
Master strategic KOL relationship management, scientific exchange execution, congress strategy, advisory board participation, and field insights generation. Designed for MSLs ready to execute at the advanced level across diverse therapeutic areas. Course 2 of the MSL Excellence track.
This course is part of the Medical Science Liaison track. Access is provided by invitation.
Learning outcomes
Develop long-term KOL engagement strategies that evolve interactions from transactional data delivery to trusted scientific partnership
Execute proactive and reactive scientific exchanges within compliance boundaries using approved messaging frameworks and medical narratives
Plan and execute comprehensive congress engagement strategies including pre-congress preparation, real-time execution, and post-congress follow-up
Contribute to advisory board design, advisor selection, facilitation, and insight capture across multiple expert input formats
Navigate the boundary between MSL scientific exchange and commercial speaker programs while supporting medical education initiatives
Conduct compliant scientific exchanges with payer, formulary, and health system audiences as an individual MSL
Generate high-value field insights through systematic capture, categorization, and communication to influence cross-functional decision-making
Develop and execute a territory plan that aligns local MSL activities with national medical strategy and measurable objectives
Adapt engagement approaches to different KOL archetypes including academic researchers, community clinicians, digital opinion leaders, and patient advocacy leaders
Full curriculum
8 modules, 25 lessons, and 8 knowledge checks — all self-paced.
01
3 lessons · 2 hours
RequiredEvolving MSL-KOL interactions from data delivery to trusted scientific partnership, becoming the KOL's preferred industry scientific contact.
Tailoring engagement approaches for academic researchers, community clinicians, digital opinion leaders, patient advocacy leaders, and emerging experts.
This course is part of the Medical Science Liaison track. Access is provided to eligible learners by invitation.
Manage the professional and personal demands of a field-based remote scientific role with self-leadership discipline
Managing KOLs who are hostile to your data, competitors' key advocates, KOLs with conflicts of interest, repairing damaged relationships, and KOL fatigue.
02
4 lessons · 3 hours
RequiredPlanning and executing proactive engagements within compliance guardrails, approved messaging frameworks, medical narrative delivery, and handling off-label questions in the field.
Responding to unsolicited requests, medical information escalation, and fulfilling HCP information needs within regulatory boundaries.
Extracting field insights during interactions, identifying unmet medical needs, recognizing shifts in clinical practice, and capturing competitive intelligence compliantly.
Virtual MSL interactions, digital engagement platforms, social media scientific exchange, and asynchronous content delivery in the post-COVID evolution.
03
3 lessons · 2 hours
RequiredIdentifying key abstracts and presentations, building a congress KOL engagement plan, coordinating with medical affairs and commercial teams, and booth vs. scientific exchange separation.
Covering sessions, engaging KOLs between presentations, competitive intelligence gathering, rapid data interpretation, and daily congress debrief communications.
Congress summary reports, field medical insights synthesis, KOL follow-up strategy, and translating congress learnings into territory action plans.
04
3 lessons · 2 hours
RequiredWhen to convene an advisory board vs. other input mechanisms, selecting advisors, developing objectives and discussion guides, and the MSL's role in advisor nomination.
Facilitation skills, managing group dynamics, capturing insights, ensuring fair balance and compliance, and live vs. virtual format considerations.
Steering committees, scientific consultancy meetings, patient advisory panels, KOL speaker identification, and one-on-one scientific consultations — choosing the right expert input mechanism for the scientific question.
05
3 lessons · 2 hours
RequiredHow medical education is funded, the MSL's role in identifying educational gaps, grant-supported vs. company-sponsored education, and the independence requirement.
Commercial speaker programs vs. peer-to-peer scientific exchange, the MSL's non-promotional role, and supporting speaker identification without crossing into commercial territory.
Designing medical training for commercial teams, onboarding new MSLs, adapting scientific content for cross-functional audiences, and measuring internal education effectiveness.
06
3 lessons · 2 hours
RequiredP&T committees, formulary decision processes, AMCP dossiers, how coverage decisions are made, and the MSL vs. commercial market access team boundary.
Presenting clinical data to formulary decision-makers, the compliance framework for payer interactions, pre-approval information exchange with payers, and documentation requirements for payer scientific exchanges.
Identifying health system decision-makers, institutional scientific exchange, navigating IDN access models, and building relationships with pharmacy directors and medical directors.
07
3 lessons · 2 hours
RequiredDistinguishing high-value field insights from routine observations using the insight quality framework, mapping stakeholder needs, and recognizing common quality failures.
Implementing CRM documentation best practices, structured insight categorization, real-time versus aggregated reporting decisions, and field documentation technology to capture insights with the specificity needed for organizational decision-making.
Structuring quarterly field insights reports, presenting to cross-functional audiences with audience-appropriate framing, translating anecdote into aggregate evidence, and building credibility as a field intelligence resource that influences organizational strategy.
08
3 lessons · 2 hours
RequiredConducting a comprehensive territory assessment, mapping the full HCP universe, designing time allocation models, and performing SWOT analysis to invest limited field time for maximum strategic impact.
Translating national medical plan objectives into territory-level quarterly plans with SMART objectives, adaptive execution, activity and impact metrics, and quarterly business reviews that demonstrate strategic performance.
Designing personal accountability systems, maintaining home office visibility without micromanagement, preventing isolation and burnout in field-based work, and building a professional development plan that sustains career growth from outside the traditional office environment.
