What the Pharma? – Details, episodes & analysis

Digital transformation is revolutionising the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, pushing the boundaries of how companies connect with patients, providers, and stakeholders.

As customer-centricity becomes a critical focus, the role of digital innovation in enhancing patient care, streamlining operations, and driving better outcomes has never been more vital.

Clement Gavrila, Head of Digital Transformation at Virgin Media O2, brings an abundance of experience and insight from his fascinating career at one of Britain’s leading mass media and telecom giants.

Known for keeping people and businesses connected, Virgin Media O2 is at the forefront of digital evolution. Clement joins us on part 2 of our debut episode of What the Pharma? to share insights into how digital transformation is reshaping commercial organisations and driving innovative, customer-focused change across the sector.

Digital transformation is revolutionising the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, pushing the boundaries of how companies connect with patients, providers, and stakeholders.

As customer-centricity becomes a critical focus, the role of digital innovation in enhancing patient care, streamlining operations, and driving better outcomes has never been more vital.

Davidek Herron, Global Head of Digital at Roche Pharmaceuticals, brings a wealth of expertise to this evolving landscape. With a deep understanding of digital integration in healthcare, Davidek is driving initiatives at Roche that leverage cutting-edge technologies to advance life sciences, improve diagnostics, and meet the needs of an increasingly connected world.

He joins us on the debut episode of What the Pharma? to share his insights and shed light on the challenges and opportunities facing the industry as it embraces digital transformation.

Pharmaceuticals is an industry bursting with passion, innovation, and some of the brightest minds around, all committed to making patients’ lives better. But if you’ve spent any time here, you know it can sometimes feel like slogging through the mud – buried in bureaucracy, battling for customers' attention, and constantly being asked to do more with less, despite all the investment and positive change happening around us.

So, here’s a question for you: What if it’s not just about more training or shiny new processes? What if the real obstacles are the quiet, unspoken rules and assumptions buried deep in our culture?

Introducing What the Pharma? - a podcast from the curious minds at Rubica designed to dig deep into those hidden barriers through fresh perspectives and bold conversations. Together with industry insiders and thought-provoking guests, we’ll uncover what might be really holding us back and maybe even find some unexpected solutions along the way... because it’s time to ask: What the pharma is really going on here?

Caroline and Harry dive into Sara’s challenge—a top-performing account manager who joins a new pharma company, only to be met with a rigid culture of scripted, “tell-sell” conversations. Despite mounting pressure to fit in, this approach feels increasingly out of step with today’s healthcare realities. The data backs this up: analysis of 2.5 million sales calls by Harvard Business Review and findings from a Cochrane Review reveal a 5–6% increase in prescribing when conversations are tailored to actual needs. The message is clear: curiosity drives results.

So why is Pharma often still clinging to outdated approaches? Caroline and Harry explore the organisational “cage” that keeps teams stuck — historical inertia, compliance fears, activity-based KPIs, the illusion of control and a reluctance to ask open questions. They share practical solutions: redesigning incentives, using the “90-second open question” technique and getting leaders to model the behaviour they want to see.

Caroline and Harry explore why customer engagement is still falling short despite major investments in platforms, CRM upgrades, digital capability training, and customer journey mapping.

They unpack research which shows a deep disconnect between HCPs, who remain underwhelmed by how Pharma engages with them, and Pharma executives, who remain convinced they’re doing brilliantly.

The real issue? Behaviour. Mindsets. Accountability. And a lack of consequences when organisations still behave in brand-centric (rather than customer-centric) ways.

Caroline and Harry explore what it'll take to move customer engagement from rhetoric to reality: from redefining incentives and measuring true customer value, to co-creating with HCPs and role-modelling customer-focused change from the top.

Research mentioned:

https://www.iqvia.com/-/media/iqvia/pdfs/mea/white-paper/hcp-engagement-model-2-in-post-covid-world.pdf

https://www.forrester.com/report/the-state-of-us-consumer-personalization-2024/RES181819

https://www.deloitte.com/us/en/Industries/life-sciences-health-care/articles/customer-engagement-strategies-pharmaceutical-industry.html

Caroline and Harry tackle Isaac’s dilemma — a caring, committed first-line manager in the Netherlands who’s exhausted from being the go-to problem solver for his ever-growing team. What once worked so well — drawing on his own experience to fix issues fast — is now breaking under the pressure of changing customer access, busier teams, and rising complexity. Isaac simply can’t hold all the answers anymore.

The evidence is clear: frequent, high-quality coaching correlates with 16.7% higher revenue growth, yet managers spend on average just 36 minutes per week developing each rep — far below what’s needed. The message is clear: build capability, not just answers.

So why is Pharma often still clinging to outdated approaches? Caroline and Harry explore the mindset and system shifts required to move from manager-as-expert to manager-as-coach — coaching not just to solve today’s challenge, but to build capability and confidence that compounds over time. They share practical ways to start small: diagnosing skills gap, recording and reviewing coaching sessions, and the importance of coaching the coach. This episode will help you turn problem-solvers into problem-solving teams.

You can find the book 'Turn the Ship Around’ as mentioned by Caroline here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Turn-Ship-Around-Building-Breaking/dp/1591846404