Pharma's big opportunity as service integrators
Patients are more empowered than ever. They expect to interact with all businesses in the same way, regardless of industry. And there’s an enormous mix of technology driving this demand. While this technology-driven world poses challenges for the pharmaceutical industry, it also holds opportunities to build a positive human future by co-ordinating the health ecosystem to center on the patient.
We believe the pharma industry can do more—rethinking how it develops and delivers drugs to put the patient first and improve experiences and outcomes, and continually adapting and transforming to a constantly evolving ecosystem to meet the changing needs of patients.
The pressing need for the health ecosystem to design and deliver responses that meet patient needs at rapid speed has only been heightened by the COVID-19 pandemic. Advances in technology and more connected, empowered patients mean true patient centricity is now a tangible goal.
Pharma is perfectly placed to choreograph end to end services that deliver truly valuable health benefits to people. Our report explores the opportunity for pharma to become service integrators, orchestrating the healthcare ecosystem to focus on the patient.
The pharmaceutical industry has come a long way with patient centricity. The concept has gone from a buzzword, to a potential fad, to a tangible goal.
While the industry has matured in recent years, the evolving health-care model and health ecosystem, brought about by advances in technology and more connected, empowered patients, means true patient centricity is an ongoing pursuit—and a pressing need.
CUSTOMER 1.0
Product-driven customers
CUSTOMER 2.0
Brand-driven customers
CUSTOMER 3.0
Experience-driven customers
CUSTOMER 4.0
Outcomes-driven customers
To build a positive future for patients, pharma’s traditional commercial model of pushing products must evolve. Companies now need to position themselves within the universe of Customer 4.0 (above), where value comes from being available when and where the patient needs it.
Taking the right position in this universe will mean joining patients in the center of an ever-evolving health ecosystem, rather than relying on a strong brand. This can be disorientating for an industry limited by a traditional, product-focused mindset and relatively immature digital capabilities.
The health ecosystem is evolving and becoming more complex. There are now more stakeholders than ever before, including organizations outside the health-care sector. In this ever-evolving system, there’s an opportunity for a stakeholder to choreograph the others in a way that drives true patient centricity. We believe pharma should be that stakeholder.
Pharma has the intellectual and financial means to be the stakeholder that choreographs others. It also has established roles, such as chief patient officers, that will drive the transformation to become service integrators.
There’s a gap within the health ecosystem that pharma can fill—a central role of integrating services and co-ordinating stakeholders around shared patient-centered goals. To successfully adapt to this role, pharma should strengthen its service offerings and patient-centric partnerships.
Providing more of the services that work
Investing in services around patient behavior
Offering services that promote health
Strengthening patient-centric partnerships
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