Building Competitive Advantage in Biotech Through Strategic Outsourcing

Register online! https://www.collaborativedrug.com/distributed-chemistry-operations-building-competitive-advantage-through-strategic-outsourcing

Small companies face inherent scale and resource constraints. By contrast, global CROs offer access to large teams, specialized instrumentation, and around-the-clock workflows. This webinar will examine what discovery work to perform in-house versus externally, and how to structure outsourcing as a durable strategic advantage.

Panelists will share practical experiences ranging from fully outsourced models to hybrid approaches within large pharma. Topics include make-vs-buy decision frameworks, maintaining chemical intuition, safeguarding IP and data, and adapting strategies to tariff and geopolitical uncertainty.

Key Discussion Areas

• Make vs. Buy Decisions: Evaluating when internal execution creates value versus when CRO capacity is more effective.
• Portfolio Diversification: Using outsourcing to broaden targets and reduce dependency on single programs.
• Quality and Oversight: Controls for assay transfer, formulation reproducibility, and compartmentalization of sensitive work.
• CRO Selection: Beyond cost — assessing boutique expertise, equipment, and track record.
• Geopolitics and Risk: Tariffs, IP jurisdiction, and diversification of supply chains.

Provocative Questions to Explore

• Is the traditional in-house medicinal chemistry department obsolete for early-stage biotechs?
• If most discovery work is outsourced, how can organizations preserve chemical intuition and know-how?
• Do rising geopolitical risks signal a shift back toward reshoring, or is global diversification unavoidable?