The pharmaceutical industry offers a “poster child” model for the use of supply chain management tools.
Many unique conditions in the pharmaceutical industry are driven by the need for process optimization. The development, testing and clinical trials for new drug products is inherently time-consuming, risky and costly. Manufacturing processes must be monitored to preserve the safety and efficacy of drugs. The distribution of drugs is regulated, requiring extensive paperwork and monitoring.
In addition, more generic sourcing strategies are needed to handle consumer relations and doctors and dispensers. Drug companies need all the customary services of big global business, so they may adopt BPO strategies for non-pharmaceutical functions such as finance, accounting, human resources administration, investor relations and the like.