Our Services
"I tremendously enjoyed working with Catenion. They are fully at home in pharmaceutical Discovery and bring a highly unusual combination of a rigorous analytical mind–set with a pragmatic understanding of R&D strategy and organisational mechanics."
Dr. Gianni Gromo
Global Head Metabolic & Vascular Disease Area
F. Hoffmann–La Roche AG
If you are interested in receiving updates on our speaking engagements and copies of our publications, please let us know.
Our Insights
Catenion is passionate about providing whole new perspectives and approaches on how pharmaceutical and medical products executives can dramatically improve their returns on R&D. We are frequently asked to share these insights at major conferences. In addition, we publish our ideas in the form of Commentaries and Executive Briefings.
To see where we will be speaking and to read our publications, click on the links below.
Strategic M&A Support for Pharmaceutical and Biotech Companies – minimizing the risk of "Winner's Curse"
Numerous reports indicate that M&A tends to destroys more value than it creates. In this Executive Briefing we discuss some of the specific challenges in Pharma and Biotech M&A. We show how we help our clients determine a suitable price range that takes into account the often significant uncertainties inherent in pipeline potential and market environments. In addition we give examples of how we accompany clients during the critical post–merger portfolio consolidation period. Drawing on principles dating back to the famed value investor Billy Graham we believe that Biotech and Pharma M&A is not a "quick fix" but it can be a powerful strategic lever for value creation.
Enhancing the Performance of Pharmaceutical Research
Pharmaceutical research is increasingly in the firing line. Over the past ten years or so, multiple attempts have been made by companies large and small to fix the machine; of late, "deconstruction" of the value chain has become the flavour of the day. Big and large pharma should focus on what they do best and leave major innovation to biotech and academe. Hasn't most breakthrough innovation originated outside of large industrialised structures anyway? – so the argument goes.
Rigorous Portfolio Management –
A Key to Successful Innovation
in the Medical Device Industry
The medical device industry has consistently outpaced all other industries including the pharmaceutical industry in the S & P 500 in terms of Total Shareholder Return over the last five years. While less affected by the current economic crisis than most other industries, overall growth of the sector is expected to slow down mainly due to increasing cost pressure in healthcare systems across the world.
Risk Profiles of Corporate Portfolio Strategies
The current meltdown of some segments of the global banking system can be seen as a direct result of three systemic weaknesses in the way that many financial services companies operated in a largely deregulated financial system during the last three decades. In this commentary we discuss how a thorough understanding of portfolio risk profiles can help companies design more sustainable strategies. We will explore a new valuation methodology and discuss a number of examples and case studies.
The Challenge for Japan’s Pharmaceutical Top Twenty
Simply copying the business models of the West will not do for Japanese companies to fulfill the Ministry’s vision, except through sheer luck. To many observers, the country’s industrial genius lies in imitating and improving on Western models, as exemplified by the success stories of the Japanese electronics, ship–building, machine tool and car industries. We show in this Commentary that establishing sustainable positions of competitiveness in the global pharmaceutical industry will require more than incremental innovation.
Zero Base Pharmaceutical R&D — A Thought Experiment to Address the Pharmaceutical Research Crisis
What we mean by "Zero Base R&D". The concept of zero based budgeting was originally introduced to help managers of private and public organisations systematically question the utility of each and every activity they plan to spend money on in the next fiscal period.
Recombinant Portfolio Management — Recognising and Enabling Innovation
Portfolio management has become standard practice in pharmaceutical R&D over the last decade. Most companies have implemented processes and systems with varying degrees of sophistication and rigour across the entire R&D value chain from early discovery to late development, both for internal opportunities and as part of due diligence and licensing activities for external opportunities.
Recombinant Innovation Management (RIM) — How to Stimulate Breakthrough Innovation within Large R&D Organisations
Pharmaceutical R&D is in a state of crisis: productivity is declining both in terms of output per spending as well as total output, while patent expirations threaten many successful product franchises within the next years. The main issue is that impressive advances in process productivity have not translated into more novel products addressing unmet needs.
Elements of a Winning R&D Strategy
R&D strategies come in different shapes and sizes. Some companies focus their efforts on therapeutic areas or indications, some on drug formats, some rely on scientific excellence and breakthrough innovation while others are obsessed with productivity and efficiency. What are the winning elements of R&D strategies?
Upcoming Speaking Engagements
Global Pharmaceutical Project & Portfolio Management
Forum, Vienna
September 8–9, 2010
Matthias Krings, Partner, will be the chairman.
Markus Thunecke, Senior Partner, will also be in attendance.
For more information about this conference, visit the website.
6th Annual Project & Portfolio Management in the Pharmaceutical Industry, Milan
September 28–29, 2010
Markus Thunecke, Senior Partner, will be Chairman
Matthias Krings, Partner, will also be in attendance
For more information about this conference, visit the website.
Past Speaking Engagements
Seminar on Pharmaceutical Innovation, Tokyo
February 15, 2010
Christian Elze, Senior Partner, gave a presentation to 25 journalists about the Future Perspectives for the Japanese Pharmaceutical Industry in the Context of the Country's Biomedical Innovation System.
For more information about this seminar, see a short description or the presentation English / Japanese.
Innovations in Medical Devices Conference, Berlin
February 4–5, 2010
Florian Jehle, Manager, served as chairman.
Arno Heuermann, Partner, was also in attendance.
9th Annual Project and Portfolio Management for
Pharma, Barcelona
January 28–29, 2010
Markus Thunecke, Senior Partner, served as Chairman.
Matthias Krings, Partner, was a presenter.
R&D Leaders' Forum 2009, Boston
November 9–11, 2009
Dr. Markus Thunecke, Senior Partner, was a presenter.
Christian Elze, Senior Partner, was also in attendance.
8th Annual Portfolio Evaluation and Strategic Decision Making Summit, Philadelphia
September 22–23, 2009
Dr. Matthias Krings, Partner, served as the chair of this conference and presented "Utilize Portfolio Risk Profiles to Design Sustainable Corporate Strategies"
Florian Jehle, Manager, was also in attendance.
5th Annual Project & Portfolio Management in the Pharmaceutical Industry Conference, Vienna
September 17–18, 2009
Dr. Markus Thunecke, Senior Partner, was the chair of this conference.
Dr. Matthias Krings, Partner, was a presenter.
4th Annual Pharmaceutical Portfolio & Product Life–Cycle Management Conference, London
June 29–30, 2009
Dr. Matthias Krings, Partner, presented "Two Decades of Portfolio Management — Where Do We Stand?"
Florian Jehle, Manager, was also in attendance.
8th Annual Project and Portfolio Management for Pharma Conference, Barcelona
January 29–30, 2009
Dr. Markus Thunecke, Senior Partner, presented "Two Decades of Portfolio Management — Where Do We Stand?"
Dr. Matthias Krings, Partner, was the chair of this conference.
Project & Portfolio Management in the Pharmaceutical Industry, Barcelona
September 16–17, 2008
Christian Elze, Senior Partner, was the chair of this conference.
United States Drug Information Association Annual Meeting, Boston
June 22–26, 2008
Christian Elze, Senior Partner, presented "Option Space Mapping" in a session titled "Advanced Portfolio Management Methodologies".
Portfolio Management in Pharma Conference, Madrid
February 5, 2008
Dr. Markus Thunecke, Senior Partner, presented "Decision Analysis Revisited — The Unmet Needs of Portfolio Management in 2008 and How to Address Them".
Dr. Matthias Krings, Partner, was also in attendance.
7th Annual Project and Portfolio Conference Management for Pharma, Amsterdam
November 26–27, 2007
Dr. Markus Thunecke, Senior Partner, chaired the conference and gave a presentation titled "Portfolio Management for Discovery / Early Development and Full Development".
Catenion's Commentaries and Executive Briefings are available in PDF format above.
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