Pharmaceutical Strategic Alliances 2006: Forcing Externalization at Big Pharma

No one at the PSA conference disagreed with the meeting's basic premise: that externalization in nearly every aspect of the pharmaceutical business is increasing, both voluntarily and involuntarily as small companies gain increasing development and commercial rights to products they out-license. But there was considerable disagreement on just what needs to be externalized. The philosophical split was evident between companies and within them. The strategic imperative was obvious: drug companies need to assess what they're good at and what they're not. But few companies are honest about that, particularly given the amounts of infrastructure that might need to be cut.