Our Strategy Team are at the first Pharmaceutical Launch Excellence Summit in London this week, which is a conference dedicated to revolutionising launch strategy and management from clinical development into post-launch commercial success.
Discover their immediate takeaways from day two in their article below.
Reflections on Day Two of the Pharma Launch Excellence Summit 2024
Day two of the Pharma Launch Excellence Summit built on the momentum of day one, with a focus on navigating geopolitical dynamics, fostering collaboration, and adapting to the evolving expectations of healthcare systems and patients.
Global Strategies, Local Realities
The opening panel explored the tension between centralised global strategies and local execution. While products often behave similarly across markets, cultural differences, market maturity levels, and pricing pressures require tailored approaches. William Okkerse of Teva proposed a tiered pricing strategy linked to GDP, recognising the increasing scrutiny organisations face over global pricing disparities.
Margarita Saakova of Alexion Pharmaceuticals emphasised the importance of aligning global and local teams early in the planning process. Her advice? Bring local markets into decision making from the start to create meaningful partnerships and enable tailored execution.
Enrico Magnani echoed this sentiment with a clear message: trust local teams to deliver the best customer experience. Centralised oversight is important, but autonomy in execution is critical for success.
Patients or People?
A standout session from Maria Petersen (Novo Nordisk) and Jo Christon (Johnson & Johnson) challenged the audience to reframe how the industry views patients. “Let’s stop calling them patients; they’re people first,” Petersen urged. Understanding the broader impacts of treatments on individuals and healthcare systems is essential for delivering real value.
COVID has accelerated this shift. With people now more informed about their treatments, organisations must profile target audiences and adapt investments to meet their diverse needs. Angeliki Nikoli of Galderma stressed the importance of building meaningful connections and using content to engage audiences authentically.
Agility and Cross-Functional Collaboration
Amgad Abulfutouh of Galderma revisited the importance of agility in launch planning. Case studies highlighted how brands that adapt to market insights and pivot as needed achieve greater success.
Catarina Santos of Novartis reinforced the enterprise-wide effort required for launch excellence. Organisations must prioritise their “Big Bets” to focus resources where they matter most, avoiding dilution of effort across competing launches.
The importance of cross-functional working was another recurring theme. Stephan Brocker of Ipsen emphasised that successful teams are those that approach collaboration with humility, openness, and a shared purpose. Clear accountability, combined with respect for each team’s expertise, can help overcome grey areas in the transition from pre-launch to post-launch.
Access and Value
William Okkerse returned to discuss the growing challenge of ensuring global market access. With two-thirds of the pharma pipeline originating from US-focused biopharma companies, early planning is vital to ensure global success.
Closing presentations by Jo Christen (Johnson & Johnson) and Marc van Unen (Asparg Labs) reinforced the importance of addressing market access early in clinical development. By focusing on fundamentals and delivering a strong value story, organisations can meet the demands of healthcare systems and patients alike.
Key Takeaways
Day two underscored the need for agility, collaboration, and patient-centred approaches in achieving launch excellence. As the industry evolves in response to new challenges, success will depend on how well organisations adapt to meet the needs of people, healthcare systems, and global markets.
The summit closed with a sense of shared purpose: launch excellence is a team effort, built on insights, innovation, and a commitment to delivering real impact.
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