Healthcare Technology

Background: Low cost and just in time inventory have been the manufacturing mantra for automobiles, iPhones, healthcare technology, and Christmas toys. COVID-19 brought the balance of cost and risk in the supply chain into sharp focus for the pharmaceutical, medical device, and medical technology sectors of the US economy.

Non-US manufactures and suppliers are an essential component of the current healthcare technology system serving US and European markets. About 80% of products and ingredients used in US pharmaceuticals come from China and other non-US manufacturers. Challenges and likely changes to these supply chains are the topic of this program.

Two forces dominating global markets for medical technology and pharmaceuticals will be growth of the domestic Chinese market and demands for lower risk supply sources in or closer to the US market.

Our panel includes CEOs of pharma and med tech companies both in the US and China. From their dialogue, we will learn how their companies are adapting to this changing and uncertain world trading environment. We will also get their perspectives on the opportunities and challenges in China and in the US.

Prof. Willy Shih from Harvard Business School will share his perspective on the outlook for supply chains serving US and global medical and pharma markets.

Moderator: Rick Williams, Managing Director, Williams Advisory Partners, LLC

Panelists: 

Bob Pelletier, Manager of New Business Development for MW Life Sciences

Chirag Patel, President and Co-Chief Executive Officer, Amneal Pharmaceuticals

Prof. Willy C. Shih, Robert and Jane Cizik Professor of Management Practice in Business Administration, HBS

Scott Wheelwright Ph.D. Founder & Chief Operating Officer, BioInno Bioscience

 

Bob Pelletier

Bob Pelletier is Manager of New Business Development for MW Life Sciences headquartered in Massachusetts. MW Industries has four global operating divisions in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. MW Industries offer life science product development and manufacturing focused primarily on product design & development and assembly & packaging of finished medical devices. The products are both sterile and non-sterile, precision products, and components for use in medical and surgical applications.

Bob was the founder and president of Bridgemedica. NN Life Sciences acquired Bridgemedica in 2018. Bob’s work with Bridgemedica and now with MW Life Sciences has included supply chain management for worldwide medical device production. He has been directly responsible for establishing global procurement strategies and distribution channels to minimize supply chain risks and lead times for customers.

Chirag Patel

Chirag Patel is President and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Amneal Pharmaceuticals (NYSE:AMRX), a $1.6B fully integrated specialty pharmaceutical company headquartered in Bridgewater, NJ., Chirag founded Amneal in 2002 and has since grown the company to be a leader in the U.S. generic pharmaceutical industry with a rapidly growing specialty division of marketed brand products in CNS and Endocrinology. In 2011, Ernst & Young recognized his endeavors with its National Entrepreneur of the Year Life Sciences Award®. Chirag received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from New Jersey City University in recognition of his efforts to serve others.

Professor Willy C. Shih

Willy Shih is the Robert and Jane Cizik Professor of Management Practice in Business Administration at the Harvard Business School. Willy’s expertise is in manufacturing, supply chains, and product development. He has written or co-authored numerous cases and teaching materials in a wide range of industries. His paper, “Restoring American Competitiveness,” co-authored with Gary Pisano, won the 2009 McKinsey Award. His Sloan Management Review Summer 2020 paper "Is it time to Rethink Global Supply Chains”.

Scott M. Wheelwright, Ph.D.

Scott M. Wheelwright, Ph.D., is founder and Chief Operating Officer of BioInno Bioscience, a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) in China that provides GMP production of antibodies, cell therapies and gene therapies. Dr. Wheelwright was founding COO of Innovent Biologics in China in 2010, a company with a current market value over $10 billion. Dr. Wheelwright has thirty years of experience in bringing novel products to market, including new drug applications (BLAs and NDAs) in the US and Japan, numerous investigational applications (INDs) and commercial product launches.

Rick Williams is Managing Director of Williams Advisory Partners, LLC. He has a breadth of experience as an executive and board director for technology companies including medical technology, software, and financial services. Rick is a nationally published thought leader. His soon to be published book entitled “Create the Future – for your company and yourself” is a is a “how to field guide” for leaders who want to think creatively about where to take their organization. Williams Advisory Partners provides CEO and board advisory services for middle market technology companies. Rick is past President of the Harvard Business School Association of Boston. He was a management consultant with the global consulting firm Arthur D. Little, Inc. He is a physics graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.