Most pharma giants look an awful like IBM of the late ’80s and early ’90s. If you remember IBM of that era, that’s not a pretty picture. Unfortunately, too many pharma are following the path of the railroad industry early in the 20th century missing out on a huge opportunity (i.e., mistaking which business they were in). True leadership will be apparent in the pharma leaders that channel Lou Gerstner and take action before its too late. In one of the great turnarounds in business history, IBM demonstrated how it’s possible for a large company to shift from a product-centric culture to a customer- and service-centered company. The handwriting is on the wall for pharma: They will succeed or fail based not on how many drugs they sell, but on how well their offerings improve health outcomes.
