Traditionally, the launch of any new therapy would be tracked across a series of milestones. Submissions are filed, value propositions and brand positioning are finalized, regulatory approval is achieved, the field force is trained, etc – all before market performance can be determined and analyzed. The assumption is that progress will be linear and unidirectional.
For years, this approach worked just fine – there was no real reason to pursue transformation. But now, numerous forces have combined to increase the pressure on medical and commercial teams, including:
- More aggressive competition
- Increased regulatory complexity (e.g., broadened expectations across digital, sustainability, and post-market surveillance)
- The rise of patient centricity
- Rapid technological development
- Complex data governance and management requirements
What worked previously is fast becoming obsolete within this new market paradigm.
“While the current commercial model may meet today’s business needs, it’s unlikely to do so in the future without major changes.”
– Deloitte
There are now clear incentives for teams to transform their launch processes and capabilities. But if there’s a growing imperative for launch teams to transform, there’s also a unique opportunity for them to do so. Technology has progressed to the point that pharma launches need no longer be linear and rigidly sequential.
The linear disadvantage
Traditional pharmaceutical launches can be broadly categorized as:
- Linear
- Static
- Siloed
- Slow
- Reactive
In markets that were similarly slow and predictable, this was rarely a problem. However, over the last few years, market change has outpaced organizational adaptability. Increasingly, teams need the ability to make timely, informed decisions capable of guiding strategy through market fluctuations. Linear launch processes and traditional organizational structures impede this ability.
“Overly complex, matrixed organizations present a major barrier to agility. In our survey of life science leaders on simplification, roughly one in five respondents say they believe their current operating model enables timely decision-making at the appropriate organizational levels.”
The feedback loop advantage
High-performing life science teams are now rethinking launch excellence as a continuous feedback loop, as opposed to a sequence of disconnected phases. Using this approach, launches become:
- Agile
- Data-driven
- Collaborative
- Cross-functional
- Proactive
- Strategic
“Organizations should seek to become a real-time reactionary launch force. Adopt a rapid-reaction stance as a launch team, versus a ‘waterfall development’ approach where you do all your planning and requirements up front before handing it off and hoping it goes well.”
– Lance Hill, CEO, Within3
As a leader in the technology space built for pharma, Within3 has developed a robust system to integrate previously-disconnected pieces – and effectively close the feedback loop for launch teams. Launch Intelligence™ enables teams to unify previously-siloed signals from field, social, and claims data into a single source of truth – generating continuous insight cycles that simultaneously feed off your launch strategy, and inform it. Using these loops, teams can validate assumptions pre-launch, adjust strategies in real time during the early phases, and identify expansion opportunities and competitive threats post-launch. In fact, it’s inaccurate to think of this process as a single feedback loop at all. It’s more precise to imagine a series of interrelated insight loops.
In today’s competitive market, successful launches aren’t executed through static planning or siloed reporting – rather, they require fast, iterative learning cycles that allow teams to refine strategy before, during, and long after a product enters the market. Book a demo today to find out how Launch Intelligence™ helps create these continuous insight cycles, and supports strategic decision-making through purpose-built technology paired with expert guidance.
