Life science firms looking to still exist in a decade must undergo major transformations, according to a survey by the Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu consulting company.
The online survey of 360 senior executives from life sciences companies with at least $15 billion in revenue indicates that price pressure, expiring patents, high R&D costs and, for some unlucky companies, plunging stock values are forcing life science players to reevaluate their business models.
More than 40 percent of respondents said the recession will require them to hone their sales pitches between now and 2010, in order to demonstrate better knowledge of the benefits of their products and the economic pressure on their potential customers.
Twenty-six percent cited the risks associated with research and development, saying they will rise sharply through the next decade. Even so, some executives do not anticipate changing their R&D approach, while others say they will spend more money to lessen the risk. Respondents believe outsourcing will be critical to early-stage research.
The survey, The Future of Life Sciences Industries: Transformation Amid Rising Risk, was a joint project with The Economist Intelligence Unit.
Nine percent of the executives polled hailed from the medical devices field.