Pharmaceutical organisations are facing widening gaps in launch capability, with six of the seven core levers showing over a third of teams still operating at a ‘Foundational’ level.
In our latest industry research, the Uptake (part of Prescient) Launch Excellence Report 2026 exposes critical capability gaps at global, regional, and country levels when assessed against seven Launch Excellence levers.
The seven levers of Launch Excellence are the connected capabilities that help teams plan, align, assess and adapt their approach so a launch is better coordinated, more resilient and more likely to deliver strong performance from preparation through to post-launch optimisation.
Through supporting 200+ pharmaceutical launches, Uptake (part of Prescient) has identified these seven core capabilities that consistently determine launch success, and a team’s level of sophistication across each has a proven impact on overall launch performance.
The seven levers are:
- Launch governance framework: A structure intended to support organisations with launch decision making and planning to achieve an excellent launch
- Launch team resourcing and capabilities: The adequate investment in people with the required skill sets, tactical activities and organisational infrastructure required for an excellent launch
- Launch team activation: The timing and approach taken to convene a cross-functional team responsible for the launch of a new product at a global, regional or country level
- Launch critical path: The key milestones underpinned by cross-functional activities that must be achieved to support an excellent product launch
- Launch scenarios: The synthesis of key external and internal opportunities and risks that could have a significant impact on the ability to launch or post-approval launch performance
- Launch readiness: An objective evaluation of cross-functional preparedness to deliver an excellent launch at regular timepoints during the launch planning phase
- Maximising launch performance: The ability to harness and share launch insights and learnings to strengthen current and future launch performance
This report offers pharma organisations a unique insight into industry benchmarks, enabling launch teams to compare their capabilities to current standards, and demonstrating where targeted improvements can unlock significant competitive advantage.
Be among the first to discover the state of launch capability across the industry and understand essential insights to support your future LEx capability development priorities. PLUS, gain direct access to Uptake’s LExLevel Pulse benchmarking tool, with bespoke Launch Excellence advice for your organisation.
About the report:
This report uses zero-party data contributed by launch teams from global, regional, and country level roles in leading pharmaceutical organisations, between January 2025–December 2025. Insights have been prepared by the Uptake (part of Prescient) Launch Excellence Team.