The 80/20 Rule
May 21st, 2008 by the medical sales recruiter
The “80/20″ rule is very important in sales: medical sales, healthcare sales, pharmaceutical sales, clinical diagnostics sales, laboratory sales, medical device sales, pathology sales, imaging sales, cellular products sales, molecular products sales, and biotechnology products sales. Really, it’s a universal principle that can be applied/interpreted any number of ways: 20% of the people do 80% of the work; 80% of the sales come from 20% of the customers; 80% of the sales are made by 20% of the salespeople….you see what I mean. Knowing this principle and how it works is very useful in deciding where to focus your effort and what to plan for. It makes you more effective.
The “80/20″ rule was created by Joseph Juran, who passed away recently (at the age of 103–wow!). Juran named this rule the Pareto Principle, after an Italian economist who observed that 80% of the wealth in Italy was held by 20% of the people. Juran applied that idea to quality management issues in manufacturing, and it became one of the most useful tools available for modern-day managers as well as a general principle that the rest of us can depend on.
Dr. Juran’s contributions to sales, marketing, and mangement through his ideas and insights are tremendously important. I just wanted to pay my respects, and give you all a little education about where that “80/20″ rule you all use came from.




[…] Author Byline: the medical sales recruiter Author Website: PHCConsulting […]
I own a medical and pharmaceutical sales company, Tom Ruff Company, and we use this philosophy in our recruiting as well. It’s a timeless principle and good reminder to focus on where your business is coming from.
Thanks for the great post,
Tom Ruff
Tom Ruff Company
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