# Discovery Call Prep

> Prepare for discovery calls with clinical trial prospects by researching their company, pipeline, therapeutic areas, and generating targeted questions mapped to Talosix solutions.

- Skill: `nroze22/discovery-call-prep` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add nroze22/discovery-call-prep`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/nroze22/discovery-call-prep/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Product & Planning
- Author: nroze22 (https://skillmd.com/u/nroze22)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/nroze22/discovery-call-prep

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# Discovery Call Preparation

## Purpose

Prepare sales reps for effective discovery calls with clinical trial technology prospects. A well-prepared discovery call uncovers the prospect's real pain points, establishes credibility through informed questions, and maps needs directly to Talosix capabilities.

## When to Use

- Before any first meeting with a new prospect
- Before re-engaging a dormant opportunity
- When a new stakeholder joins an active evaluation
- Before expansion conversations with existing customers

## Information Gathering

### Pre-Call Research Checklist

Gather as much of the following as possible before generating the prep document:

**Company Information:**
- Company name, headquarters, size (employees, revenue if public)
- Company type: large pharma, mid-size biotech, CRO, academic/government
- Public or private, recent funding rounds if applicable
- Recent news: press releases, earnings calls, M&A activity, layoffs

**Clinical Pipeline:**
- Active clinical trials (search ClinicalTrials.gov by sponsor name)
- Therapeutic areas and lead indications
- Study phases in progress (Phase I, II, III, IV)
- Estimated number of active studies, sites, and subjects
- Geographic footprint of clinical operations

**Technology Landscape:**
- Current EDC vendor (check job postings for clues, ask during outreach)
- Other clinical technology in use (CTMS, eTMF, IRT, safety)
- Known IT preferences (cloud-first, on-premise, specific security requirements)
- Any public statements about digital transformation or technology strategy

**People on the Call:**
- Names, titles, LinkedIn profiles
- Role in the buying process (champion, decision maker, influencer, blocker)
- Professional background (clinical ops, data management, IT, procurement)
- Any mutual connections or shared conference appearances

## Buyer Persona Research

### Clinical Operations / VP Clinical Ops

**What they care about:**
- Enrollment timelines and site performance
- Operational efficiency and resource allocation
- Regulatory inspection readiness
- Cross-functional coordination

**Discovery questions:**
- "How many studies are you running concurrently right now, and how do you manage the operational complexity across them?"
- "What's your biggest bottleneck between first-patient-in and database lock?"
- "How are you currently handling risk-based monitoring, and is your EDC helping or hindering that?"
- "When was your last regulatory inspection, and were there any findings related to your data capture systems?"

### Data Management / Head of DM

**What they care about:**
- Data quality metrics (query rates, protocol deviations)
- Study build timelines and change management
- Medical coding efficiency
- CDISC compliance and submission readiness

**Discovery questions:**
- "How long does it typically take your team to build and validate a study in your current EDC?"
- "What's your current query rate, and what are the main drivers of queries?"
- "How do you handle mid-study protocol amendments in your current system?"
- "Walk me through your process from database lock to CDISC submission-ready datasets."

### IT / Information Security

**What they care about:**
- Security posture, compliance certifications
- Integration architecture and data flows
- Validation burden and computer system validation
- Vendor management and risk

**Discovery questions:**
- "What are your must-have security requirements for a clinical SaaS vendor?"
- "How does your current EDC integrate with your other clinical systems?"
- "What does your CSV process look like, and how much effort does your team invest in vendor system validation?"
- "What's your policy on data residency for clinical trial data?"

### Procurement / Finance

**What they care about:**
- Total cost of ownership and budget predictability
- Contract flexibility and terms
- Vendor stability and risk
- Competitive pricing

**Discovery questions:**
- "What's your current annual spend on EDC across all studies?"
- "Is your current licensing model per-study, per-user, or enterprise, and is that working well for you?"
- "What's your typical procurement timeline from vendor selection to contract execution?"
- "Are there budget constraints that would shape how we structure a proposal?"

### C-Suite / Executive Sponsor

**What they care about:**
- Strategic impact on pipeline timelines
- Competitive advantage through technology
- Risk mitigation
- Board-level metrics (time to market, cost per study)

**Discovery questions:**
- "What's driving the evaluation of new EDC technology right now? Is there a specific catalyst?"
- "If you could change one thing about how your clinical data systems work today, what would it be?"
- "How does clinical technology investment fit into your broader digital strategy?"

## Pain Point Mapping

Map common pain points to Talosix solutions:

| Pain Point | Probing Question | Talosix Solution |
|-----------|-----------------|-----------------|
| Slow study build | "How many weeks from protocol final to first patient in?" | Rapid study build with form libraries, no-code configuration |
| High query rates | "What percentage of data points generate queries?" | Intelligent edit checks, real-time validation, conditional logic |
| Poor site adoption | "What feedback do you get from sites about your current EDC?" | Modern UX, minimal clicks, mobile-friendly, offline capability |
| Costly integrations | "How much do you spend annually on EDC integrations?" | Open APIs, pre-built connectors, CDISC-native architecture |
| Slow amendments | "How long does a protocol amendment take to implement in your EDC?" | Agile amendment workflow, version management, impact analysis |
| Limited visibility | "How do you currently monitor enrollment and data quality across studies?" | Real-time dashboards, KRI tracking, portfolio analytics |
| Compliance burden | "How much effort goes into maintaining 21 CFR Part 11 compliance?" | Built-in compliance, automated audit trails, validation packages |
| Vendor lock-in | "If you wanted to switch EDC vendors tomorrow, how difficult would that be?" | CDISC-standard data export, data portability commitment |

## Call Structure Recommendation

### For a 30-Minute Discovery Call

```
Minutes 0-3:   Introductions, agenda confirmation
Minutes 3-5:   "Tell me about your clinical operations" (open-ended)
Minutes 5-15:  Targeted questions based on persona and research
Minutes 15-20: Deeper dive on top 2-3 pain points
Minutes 20-25: Brief Talosix positioning (only address stated needs)
Minutes 25-30: Next steps, stakeholder mapping, timeline
```

### Key Rules

- **Listen more than talk.** Target 70% prospect / 30% rep.
- **Never pitch on a discovery call.** Earn the right to present by understanding first.
- **Take detailed notes.** Capture exact phrases the prospect uses to describe problems.
- **Confirm understanding.** "So if I'm hearing you correctly, [restate problem]. Is that accurate?"
- **Map the buying process.** "Besides yourself, who else would be involved in a decision like this?"

## Competitive Intelligence Gathering

During discovery, naturally gather competitive intel:

- "What systems are you currently using for data capture?" (current EDC)
- "What do you like best about your current setup?" (what to match)
- "If you could change anything about it, what would that be?" (competitor weakness)
- "Are you looking at other solutions as part of this evaluation?" (competitive set)
- "What criteria will you use to make your decision?" (decision framework)

## Output Format

Deliver as a structured prep document:

1. **Prospect Research Summary** - Company overview, pipeline, technology landscape (1 page)
2. **Attendee Profiles** - Role, background, likely priorities for each person on the call (half page)
3. **Recommended Questions** - Prioritized list of 8-10 questions tailored to the attendees and research findings
4. **Pain Point Hypotheses** - Top 3 likely pain points based on research, with Talosix mapping
5. **Competitive Positioning Notes** - If current vendor is known, key differentiators to reference
6. **Call Agenda** - Suggested minute-by-minute flow
7. **Post-Call Action Items Template** - Pre-formatted follow-up template to complete during/after the call