Case Study

How UST prepared a global life sciences company for an enterprise-wide medical affairs IT transformation

UST partnered with a multinational life sciences organization to harmonize fragmented medical affairs processes ahead of a global IT initiative. After mapping 15 processes, defining 34 system requirements, and recommending optimizations, UST delivered a phased implementation roadmap and helped draft the vendor selection RFP.

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OUR CLIENT

This multinational life sciences organization operates across pharmaceuticals and medical technologies, supporting regulated medical and clinical functions worldwide. With more than 120,000 employees, $80+ billion in annual revenue, and operations in more than 50 countries, the company relies on extensive R&D, manufacturing, and commercialization capabilities to deliver therapies and medical technologies at scale.

THE CHALLENGE

Harmonizing medical affairs workflows to enable a single global IT platform

Over time, medical affairs processes and supporting IT systems evolved independently across regions and functions. Leadership wanted to move to a single global medical affairs platform to improve efficiency and reduce costs. However, as a first step, the company needed clarity on current-state operations and future requirements to ensure it selects the best solution that could scale globally and meet its needs. The company needed help to:

Harmonize regional variations into consistent, role-based workflows
Define global system requirements aligned to business priorities and compliance needs
Document processes, including ownership, dependencies, and enabling data/systems

THE TRANSFORMATION

Delivering a comprehensive roadmap for a global IT implementation

Building on a long-standing partnership, the company engaged UST to provide business process management (BPM) consulting to prepare for the enterprise-wide medical affairs transformation. Working closely with global and regional stakeholders, UST:

Facilitated global process discovery workshops across regions and functions
Mapped 15 end-to-end medical affairs processes covering roles, systems, and data flows
Identified and recommended critical process optimizations to reduce complexity and rework
Defined 34 prioritized system capabilities tied to business outcomes and operational needs
Developed a phased implementation roadmap with milestones, dependencies, and rollout sequencing
Led development of the RFP package to support an informed vendor selection process

As a result, the organization gained a clear, actionable plan to move forward with confidence.

THE IMPACT

Readiness for global deployment with a harmonized operating model

UST’s engagement established the foundation for a successful global medical affairs transformation that included:

Standardized medical affairs workflows across eight regions to improve consistency and scalability
Clear visibility into process ownership, system requirements, and phased rollout planning
A faster, more structured vendor evaluation for a complex initiative on a tight timeline
Improved alignment among global and regional stakeholders

When the initial vendor engagement introduced delivery risk, the company re-engaged UST to strengthen governance and help keep the global deployment on track.

Learn how UST helps life sciences organizations prepare for complex, global digital transformations through expert business process planning.

Resources

https://www.ust.com/en/industries/life-sciences

https://www.ust.com/en/insights/what-is-rpa-and-why-should-every-business-care

https://www.ust.com/en/insights/what-does-it-mean-to-be-an-agile-business