Tech Exec 20 _ Mutlu Gunenc

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One of Einstein’s students once asked him: “Sir, you always ask the same questions,” Einstein replied, “Indeed, but the answers are different each time.”

The question of “How should Global help local teams for successful launches?” remains the same, but our approach changes from time to time, and there is no pure, definitive answer to that question. Each company and each team’s interpretation is different.

However, specific steps to launch readiness should not be neglected. I have defined four main pillars for successful launches:

1. Understanding our customers is paramount. Consider this: HCPs’ preferences indicate a shift towards virtual engagement, with over 55% of them choosing this mode. This presents a significant growth opportunity for us. EPG Health Report: The Future of HCP Engagement Impact 2023

It’s promising to note the annual increase in Pharma’s digital budget spending (28% in 2022 to 32% in 2023). However, our digital

activities are not meeting HCPs’ expectations. According to Across Health Market Insight (n:6658), only 45% of HCPs are satisfied with pharma digital offerings. This apparent disconnection demands urgent attention, as it’s a prerequisite for a successful launch. The longer we delay, the more adversely our relationship with HCPs will be affected.

The second largest customer group for pharma is Patients/caregivers. Particularly after COVID, they are not just using but actively seeking information through digital channels to stay informed. If you visit www. answerthepublic.com, which analyses Google search activities by region and country, you’ll see numerous searches conducted for various disease areas. For example, in 2023, 18,100 searches were undertaken in the UK for “Colon Cancer,” or 33,100 people searched for “Breast Cancer” with different questions. This active search behaviour of patients/ caregivers underscores the importance of our responsibility to ensure that we provide sufficient content or information about their diseases or treatment.

PHOTO: ANDREW GEORGE

2. Do we have the right mindset as a company? This is an Acid Test question because almost every company says it has a digital transformation. Sometimes, I wonder what that means exactly. We cannot have any transformation without the right mindset. This is purely my opinion, and for me, the mindset shift represents challenging our comfort zone, which needs considerable resilience and long-term commitment. I have found exciting market research from Across Health Management, in which they asked 217 pharma executives regarding the pace of digital transformation, the vision of digital

transformation, and commitment. The answers puzzled me because, according to that research, 50% of 217 executives think that the pace of digital transformation is languid, 39% of those positive about the vision of digital transformation, and only 40% mentioned that they have multi-year strategic plans for digital transformation. Thus, this is the situation: We do not have an agreed vision or long-term strategy, and our change is prolonged. That explains why there is a disconnect between our customers and pharma companies. Whether we like it or not, our customer’s expectations have changed after COVID-19;

they have become more digitally savvy, expect more up-to-date content, and demand to engage with pharma where they are, how they want, and when they need it. Patients and caregivers are similar; they are wellinformed or wish to be well-informed; if not, they seek and find relevant information. As an industry, we did not see this wave of changes coming towards us so fast. However, the sands of times are running low for us to adapt. Therefore, the mindset shift is the most critical component of the new reality.

3. Building the right capabilities: Before we

build any new capabilities, we should ask ourselves, “Do we need these capabilities today?” and “Do we need them tomorrow as well?” because these require long-term planning and commitment. A lack of vision or absence of long-term strategic plans probably leads to wrong investments or capability building. Thus, we must consider some aspects before making such investment decisions, like a clear vision to glue everybody around it and a clear strategic plan to address all the short and long-term priorities. Then, we must address one of our most important challenges: How do we

PHOTO: CHRISTINA VICTORIA

address the disconnection between our customers and us?

One of the most critical technical capabilities we need is data management, especially customer data management. We ought to collect proper data without any human judgment or bias, and this data collection should lead us to meaningful data stories about our customers. Writing this paragraph or putting it into the slide to present is so

easy. However, it is one of the most complex capabilities to build. Because it requires the right mindset: Why do we need to make proper data management capabilities? It should also focus on the appropriate challenge: How do we better understand our customers? How can we eliminate the disconnect with our customers? All those questions can be answered with proper data collection capabilities; then, they can be interpreted appropriately into meaningful

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stories, individualised without breaching data privacy laws and regulations. This is a significant investment and requires long-term planning, and results might not be short-term. So, each company’s appetite for long-term investment vs. short-term gain differs; the expectations should be handled precisely.

4. Creating a collaborative execution plan: The fourth pillar usually covers how global and local work together towards the same goal: successful launch readiness. I know this cliché sentence: We must have clear roles and responsibilities. Let us ask ourselves: Who knows the HCPs from Country X if we launch in Country X? The Global team or the local team? Who will set up proper customer engagement strategies in the driver’s seat? According to the Across Health Maturameter report, only 21% of the launch tactics and strategies were co-created by Global and Local Teams. I am not in a position to judge the standard approach. However, less co-creation creates less ownership of overall launch strategies.

The second important part of the collaborative execution plan is to align around KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) to measure success. Here, the question is, what is success? Should it be short-term? Or longterm? Should it only measure business results? Or emotional outcomes like trust? Who will set up KPIs? Only Senior Management? Or jointly? Remember that only 39% of pharma executives are optimistic about the company’s vision for digital transformation, and only 40% of companies have a long-term plan for digital transformation. Thus, I believe we should create internal alignment first, then start building up our capabilities and adapting ourselves toward fast-changing customer expectations. Because the mindset shift is a long journey, it requires a huge resilience and commitment. Building the correct ecosystems to meet our customer needs requires proper resource allocation and global & local alignment. In readiness for the journey ahead, this must be our number one priority.