A Marriage of Large and Small: R & D for Healthcare Products
The most critical factor for success in the pharmaceutical industry is the discovery of novel drugs that treat major illnesses for which there had been, up to then, only inadequate kinds of treatment. Until a decade or so ago, most drugs were discovered through the in-house research of major pharmaceutical companies. But now these major companies are increasingly relying on small firms and academia for drug discovery, while concentrating on their core competences of drug development and marketing. A similar pattern is emerging in other parts of the healthcare industry. This article discusses the synergy between small and large firms in healthcare and suggests that this pattern may become a general one for all innovative industries.
Organizing for innovation: Compartments, competences and networks
Abstract This paper suggests that the mid-1990s will mark a turning point between the end of the old industrial paradigm and the emergence of a new one. It is therefore important to plan for a new paradigm, but since we do not know exactly what it will be, planning should aim at promoting innovation. The organization of innovation can best be done by encouraging the formation of networks of innovation and by developing and disseminating novel sets of concepts relevant to innovation. The paper introduces two such concept-sets. First, the distinction between firm-specific competences and profession-specific competences. And secondly, concepts centred on a compartment of a few hundred people, with the right kind of boundaries and the right internal communication.
Can we plan for new technology
Abstract This paper looks at the contribution of long-range planning to the emergence of the advanced biotechnology industry during the past 5 years and notes differences with planning for semiconductors 20 years ago. Two explanations for the differences are discussed: a steady progress thesis and a long wave thesis. Some conclusions are drawn about biotechnology on one hand and about the nature of planning on the other.