In 2025, many pharma companies have been busy selecting technology vendors to enhance their customer engagement ecosystems due to vendor market dynamics. As a business leader, where should your focus lie next, while your IT and vendors are crafting and building these technologies? What key actions should you prioritise in 2026 to set yourself up to start realising business value (e.g., increased sales, operational efficiency) and return on investment (ROI) immediately? Let’s turn this forced shift in customer engagement solutions into a strategic advantage for your business.
As your organisation embarks on this journey, there are several critical steps on the business side to lay the groundwork for future deployment. Here’s your action plan:
1. Unite the team Sharpen the plan. Deliver the value.
Now that you’ve chosen your vendor, system integrator and business integrator, bring all stakeholders (both business and IT) together. Align them on a shared, compelling customer experience transformation narrative to ensure they all understand the overall ambition and business value from the transformation. This way, everyone is on the same page on the “why” to start making aligned decisions on the “what” (e.g., build design, roll-out strategy, change management approach).
Collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders to refine a dynamic business case focused on value realisation and outcomes (not just IT/tech spend). This business case will serve as a commitment to deliver and build consensus.
Design an agile programme operating model (POM) that includes a value realisation office (VRO) which tracks benefits, enforces lean governance, and keeps everyone focused on strategic delivery. Review and adapt your POM as you progress in your transformation.
Secure business buy-in and lock in resources to start executing your business case and planning for deployment. Start implementing your engagement strategy with all stakeholders (directly impacted users and external/influential groups).
2. Simplify to amplify Harmonised processes for scalable impact
Consider how you can better use the innovation and advanced features of the new technological solutions (e.g., agentic AI) to enhance your processes and ways of working, fully capitalising on this change.
Standardise your key business processes and refine workflows for each role (sales reps, marketers, global franchises, etc.). Conduct a change impact assessment upfront and translate findings into targeted communication, training, and adoption plans per role.
Aim for a “core and common” approach to achieve greater end-to-end benefits: leveraging economies of scale and speed when transitioning to the new system, ensuring data interoperability and maximising its value, breaking down silos and ensuring more consistent and unified customer experiences.
Start early to adapt your as-is operations and processes (incident management, release planning, demand management) so they are ready to support users as they transition to the new system, without a drop in support quality.
3. Bold starts, big impact Create momentum and realise value early
Even if it seems more challenging, prioritise your most critical markets early in the deployment to gain traction and demonstrate value from the start to all stakeholders.
Beyond deploying the new solution, identify fast-fix use cases through your business process harmonisation work to implement noticeable changes and solve current problems, driving strategic impact and establishing positive momentum in all markets.
Agree on a business continuity strategy and plan to maintain adoption of the current solution while building and deploying the new one. Align on where to invest when some countries are live, and others aren’t, to reduce transformation risks and start delivering value.
Use the VRO (value realisation office) to monitor benefits against the business case, continuously refining the transformation journey and expected ROI.
To unlock business value from commercial technology investments, pharma companies must seize the moment to address past challenges and orchestrate a model that serves diverse customers, portfolios, geographies, business functions, and technology teams.
Pharma companies that treat this as an opportunity for strategic advantage, rather than just a technology change, will be the ones who have maximised their benefits and value in the next 12-24 months.
