The last five years have been particularly turbulent for the pharma industry, as the effects of the widely-predicted ‘patent cliff’ began to strike at the same time as economic recession hit the Western world. The resulting turmoil has led to some fundamental changes across the pharma industry, which are impacting significantly on the outsourcing market in diverse and, sometimes, unexpected ways. Ian Shott, AMRI President for Europe and previously founder of Excelsyn, shares his observations on key changes across the outsourcing industry and discusses the potential outlook as pharma companies struggle to regain stability.

How would you describe the current state of the pharma industry, in one sentence?
The industry is undergoing a structural transformation and it requires a paradigm change.

Why do you believe that?
Many people think the pharmaceutical industry has fallen off a cliff in the last five to ten years, but it has actually suffered a continuous and systemic decline over the last several decades (Figure 1). The paradox is that, particularly over the last two decades, there has been sustained exponenti ...