Effectively Elevating Required Field Force Knowledge

Pharma and MedTech field teams are under pressure like never before. Time for learning is scarce, and outdated training formats no longer keep pace with mobile, fast-moving commercial realities.

In this follow‑up conversation with Jaume Juan, CEO of Compettia, we explore how turning spare moments into learning opportunities can transform Sales and MSL teams. AI automation, gamification, and data‑driven reinforcement help them retain critical knowledge and act on it effectively in the field.

Karsten: Thanks so much for accepting the invitation for a follow-up interview, Jaume! Let's start with a quick reflection—how has the demand for bite-sized training evolved among Pharma and MedTech clients in the past 12 months?

Jaume: Thanks for having me. The urgency has shifted from "nice-to-have" to "business critical". What we're seeing is that “time scarcity” has reached a breaking point. Field teams report having less time for learning, and traditional two-hour training sessions don't fit their reality anymore.

At the same time, the cost of outdated knowledge is now measured in lost opportunities, and new information is widening the expertise gap faster than ever. Product portfolios have grown more complex, and without scalable solutions, companies cannot ensure their teams possess the expertise needed to succeed.

What's really striking is that mobile-first has become mobile-only—90% of our learners complete sessions while commuting or between meetings. If it's not accessible in 2-3 minute chunks on their phone, it won't be consumed.

Karsten: What are the most common learning challenges you see in the field—particularly around objection handling, compliance, or product positioning?

Jaume: The challenges all stem from one core issue: the inability to ensure expertise at scale. When it comes to objection handling, it fails when knowledge is outdated. Teams lack time to review new competitor data, so they default to old responses because updating takes too long. Missing knowledge gaps mean they can't pivot during crucial conversations.

One missed update can cost millions in penalties. Without time to absorb changes, reps fall back on outdated messaging—hurting credibility, differentiation, and market share.

Karsten: As field teams struggle to find time for learning, can you share an example where mobile-first, gamified learning turned idle moments into closing knowledge gaps?

Jaume: In a recent oncology launch, a 25-person field team faced an impossible choice: Either master complex mechanisms of action and competitive nuances or lose selling time to a 3‑day training off‑site during the critical launch window.

The solution was a mobile-first, three-phase microlearning programme that turned short breaks into learning opportunities:

1️⃣ Foundation (2 weeks, 5 min/day): AI podcasts + short quizzes built core knowledge. 

2️⃣ Competitive “battles” (<10 min/day): Gamified quizzes reinforced key facts. 

3️⃣ Gap-fixing: Missed questions triggered nano-content + a 5-question “redemption” quiz. 

The impact:

• 1,500 knowledge gaps identified across the team

• 68% of critical gaps closed

• Field readiness achieved without pulling reps off the road

By leveraging micro, mobile, and adaptive learning, the team launched with confidence—turning spare moments into measurable commercial impact.

Karsten: How can learning paths for individual users be personalised? And how does an AI engine identify and reinforce knowledge gaps without overloading the learner?

Jaume: AI is used in two different phases:

1️⃣ During program preparation while creating content, AI generates and translates content from existing customer documentation and

2️⃣ During program execution, when users play with the content and acquire the knowledge.

Modern adaptive learning tools can guide each learner toward the most relevant updates, minimizing time spent while reinforcing critical knowledge. Adaptive learning algorithms can personalise paths by detecting individual gaps and reinforcing critical knowledge multiple times for lasting retention.

The process culminates in a gap-fixing stage where anyone who fails critical content receives targeted nano-content followed by a five-question redemption quiz. While this happens at scale across hundreds or thousands of users simultaneously, each person experiences it as completely personalized remediation tailored to their specific knowledge gaps.

Karsten: In some cases, field teams miss key facts that directly affect their messaging—for example, misquoting a critical clinical statistic. How does your approach help detect and correct these gaps quickly and at scale?

Jaume: Traditional training often fails because you can’t fix what you can’t see. Knowledge gaps remain invisible without comprehensive assessment, and missing even one critical update can impact performance.

To achieve complete knowledge coverage, commercial teams often need to assess 200–500 discrete knowledge points. The challenge is to make this assessment digestible. Modern tools break it into bite-sized, gamified moments, which reps can complete in spare minutes without feeling overwhelmed.

Karsten: What do you define as “critical knowledge”?

Jaume: Critical knowledge is the information that drives field performance—winning HCP advocacy, protecting market share, and avoiding costly errors. It usually falls into five categories:

• Core Messages

• Competitive Differentiation

• Product Knowledge

• Scientific Knowledge

• Key Objections

By running targeted quizzes across these areas, companies can pinpoint exactly which knowledge is missing—and the results often surprise managers, as even experienced reps fail critical content.

Once identified, gaps are quickly closed with adaptive assessments and nano-content, scalable across multiple languages and team sizes.

Karsten: What kind of impact have clients reported in terms of knowledge retention or field productivity after switching from more traditional training formats?

Jaume: Initially, we obsessively measured knowledge levels at both the beginning and end of our programs. Structured microlearning programs often deliver around a 25% improvement in knowledge retention, measured across all assessed topics and categories.

An important industry shift has been recognising that the real driver of performance isn’t just what teams know—it’s the gaps in what they miss. By focusing on these gaps, we can drive meaningful performance improvements. A structured methodology can quickly identify and address critical knowledge gaps across field forces at scale. This methodology evolved to estimate a monetary value for each gap, reporting to managers not only knowledge levels and gaps addressed, but also their financial impact. Linking gap closure to measurable business outcomes has led some teams to reassess how they prioritise training.

Many factors influence product success—market conditions, product specifications, field rep relationships, and rep expertise.

Karsten: Finally, how do AI-generated conversational podcasts complement microlearning—especially for field teams constantly on the move?

Jaume: Field teams constantly struggle to find time to learn, making microlearning approaches essential. Modern mobile-first learning platforms are designed to enable minute-by-minute learning, by dividing complex topics into micro-content, easy to consume in spare minutes throughout the day. We realised even five minutes of driving time could become a learning moment. Short, AI-generated podcasts deliver knowledge without demanding extra time—a win-win for both reps and the organisation.

AI now makes it possible to automatically generate short, conversational podcast episodes from existing training materials and deliver them in realistic, engaging audio formats. After testing various formats, we found that conversational podcasts—where two AI avatars discuss topics or conduct role-plays—were most engaging. This conversational approach makes complex information accessible without screens and delivers knowledge through natural dialogue and storytelling.

Illustration: Driving Field Performance Through Smart Learning

Six pillars of transforming idle time into measurable commercial impact.

Karsten: Jaume, thank you for sharing these insights. They clearly show how microlearning, AI, and gamification can transform field force expertise.

This conversation makes one thing clear: winning field teams are those turning spare moments into learning moments. By closing hidden knowledge gaps and using AI to personalise microlearning at scale, companies can transform spare minutes into measurable commercial impact.

As Pharma and MedTech companies face faster product cycles and higher compliance stakes, ensuring field teams master critical knowledge without leaving the field is a true strategic advantage.

💡 Many field teams face this challenge today. How is your organisation approaching it?

#SalesExcellence #FieldForceProductivity #Microlearning #SFE