Introduction

The pharmaceutical industry faces a fundamental contradiction: while drug development and commercialization processes remain notoriously slow, scientific innovation is accelerating at breakneck speed. Kavya Gopal, SVP and Head of US Oncology at GSK, argues that resolving this contradiction requires focusing on talent development and leadership mindset rather than technology or process alone.

The Speed Paradox in Pharma

The pharmaceutical industry operates at two drastically different speeds. On one side, commercial processes move glacially—TV ads take a year to produce, drug development spans 12 years, and only 10% of molecules ever reach patients. On the other side, scientific innovation is explosive, with 50 new FDA drug approvals in 2024, 52,000 new oncology trials started in 2023, and 7,000 abstracts submitted to ASCO last year.

"The pace of change of science is moving very quickly. So how can we on the other side of the business move at a similar pace of change?"

Gopal asks.

This disparity became evident during the pandemic when the industry demonstrated it could transform rapidly when necessary. "In 2020, when the world shut down on March 14, I don't think a single pharma company was ready to do virtual calls," Gopal notes. "We went fast because we had to. There was a need and we did it because we needed to do it. Now imagine what you could do if you made it a want and not a need."

Preparing for the Pivot

In today's rapidly evolving healthcare landscape, speed has become critical. Gopal emphasizes that in oncology, "we go from conference presentation to changing guidelines and changing standard of care within a month. If physicians can change their behavior that quickly, we as an industry need to be able to react the same way."

The key lies in scenario planning that goes beyond presentations. "Why can't we take it one step further and say, this is the plan B, we've worked it out and we're ready to actually pull the trigger on it if we need to?" Gopal challenges.

She argues that leaders must shift expectations from perfection to progress: "Are we asking our teams for perfection or are we asking them for progress? You don't need 100% of the answers to make those choices and decisions."

Bridging the Medical-Commercial Divide

One of the most significant barriers to agility is the traditional separation between medical and commercial functions. Gopal uses the metaphor of the Millau Viaduct in France—a bridge that creates a direct path above challenging terrain—to illustrate how organizations should approach this challenge.

"Medical and commercial will always have their separate roles. They will always be distinct in what they need to do. But there is no reason why you cannot have a single objective or single set of objectives what you're trying to accomplish,"

she explains.

The solution isn't about breaking down regulatory boundaries but aligning on common goals: "If you can align on the goal, it's not about the activities, it's not about the details of the road, it's about, are you trying to move in the same direction?"

Fostering Innovation Through the 90/10 Rule

To drive meaningful innovation, Gopal advocates for the "90/10 rule"—dedicating 90% of resources to essential activities while reserving 10% for creative exploration. She cites Google's approach of allowing employees to spend 20% of their time on creative projects, which led to innovations like Gmail and Google News.

However, she cautions that once an innovation shows promise, it requires full commitment: "They cannot be side projects once you choose to do something with them. If you decide you're going to do something coming out of that 10%, you have to be all in."

Implementing Change

Gopal outlines three key principles for implementing change:

1. Establish clear objectives and stay committed: "Pick a lane, get alignment and stay committed. You cannot have a different plan every six months."

2. Involve the right stakeholders early: "Get the right people around the table to say, okay, this is the idea. How are we going to make this happen? Not do I have permission to make it happen."

3. Proceed with determination: "You have to be enthusiastic when you're trying to make change. You have to believe and you have to commit. And you can't back down."

"Agility in pharma is not a contradiction. It is absolutely possible," Gopal concludes. "We are nimble when we need to be. How are we going to be nimble when we want to be?"

Key Takeaways

1) Shift from reactive to proactive change: "Imagine if you could turn that around and make it about, I see a need, I see an opportunity, and I want to change something. That's what creates agility."

2) Align medical and commercial objectives: "If you can align on the goal, it's not about the activities, it's not about the details of the road, it's about, are you trying to move in the same direction?"

3) Implement the 90/10 rule for innovation: "Let's dedicate 90% of our budget to things that need to happen... But let's leave 10% to think about things that we normally wouldn't think about."

4) Prepare concrete action plans, not just scenarios: "Being competitive means preparing for the pivot and having a plan in place that we can use immediately."

5) Learn from cross-industry approaches: "We need to be curious. I learn a lot from other industries. I don't think any industry is better or worse at moving with speed than pharma is."

"That's one of my big missions in my team – that people are getting a flavor and a taste of all of the different components of this ecosystem between the data, the digital and the operations,"

she says. "The more we are thinking of that holistically across this whole area, the better off we're going to be anticipating and seeing around corners."

Key Takeaways

1) Start with the customer experience: "A big part of it is really starting with our customer as the first point. How do we think about that person's experience? The things that are making them frustrated or standing in their way."

2) Embrace difficult change management: "Standing true to the notion that ultimately, on the other side of those tough decisions, there's a better future for the organization and maybe even for those individuals who are impacted."

3) Adapt to the digital-native clinician: "Our clinicians are changing and that inherently means that the way we engage with those clinicians has to evolve with them."

4) Maximize each interaction: "The number of times we get in front of these clinicians nowadays is going to be a lot fewer per time period, so each one of those conversations needs to be that much better and that much more planned out."

5) Foster cross-functional thinking: "I want the entire team to be thinking about data, thinking about digital and thinking about operations, regardless of which place you are in your function."

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