CHEManager International asked R&D experts of chemical and pharmaceutical companies to elaborate on their research strategy and share their opinion with our readers. In detail, we interviewed professionals ranging from CEOs to heads of R&D and process development about:

The crucial success factors in chemical and pharmaceutical research.

Dr. Ralph O. Schoenleber: ŒFor a contract manufacturing organization in the competitive environment of the pharma and biotech industry, research and development is extremely important to further enhance customer satisfaction and service quality. Constantly increasing demands on performance combined with growing sustainability requirements, such as those relating to occupational safety as well as waste management, are chief concerns of our markets. There is a continuous trend toward the development of molecules with higher complexity, and at the same time, the patent landscape is more and more crowded. Furthermore, requirements from customers and authorities with regard to documentation in general and data integrity in particular are changing the way people work.

“Fostering a culture that encourages the sharing of information …
is a fundamental requirement.”

Challenges and changes affecting the work of R&D chemists in the future.

Dr. Ralph O. Schoenleber:Ž In order to meet the increasing demands of the markets, a company needs the right combination of creative, innovative, but at the same time structured and accurately working scientists on board, and to put a focus on the management of knowledge as a key factor to success. Efforts on knowledge management at Bachem focus on organizational objectives, such as continuous improvement, competitive advantage, innovation, and the sharing of lessons learned. Knowledge management includes expert systems, post-action reviews, cross-project learning, knowledge sharing, best-practice transfer, and collaborative software technologies — e.g., chemistry and technology forums including blogs. Fostering a culture that encourages the sharing of information, based on the concept that knowledge is not irrevocable and should be shared and updated to remain relevant, is a fundamental requirement for successful and future-oriented research and development.