Biotechnology Industry, Structure and Strategy

Catalog description

Biotechnology started as a science referring to the use of living cells as factories to produce protein through manipulation of genes Yet today biotechnology refers to an industry with the top companies in the sector exceeding some of the major pharmaceutical companies in market capitalization No longer are biotechnology companies constrained to using recombinant DNA technology alone as the moniker is assigned today to any small company engaged in any life sciencesrelated research directed toward developing a commercial product using any scientific means Belonging to the sector usually also implies a culture 8211 small nimble visionary but practical cash constrained but willing to risk it all While some of the above characteristics are more idealized than real it is certainly the case that while the key factors for success in a development stage company include the very same scientific analytic andor managerial talents that reside in 8220big pharma8221 the context is different requiring the organization to incorporate some additional skills to ensure survival and nontraditional systems to support success The foundation of this course will be the core curriculum that you have all mastered during your first year at Stern You will be at an advantage in that regard relative to some of your future colleagues who work in the industry today The long product development cycles inherent to the industry may minimize the rigor behind decisionmaking since there is a long time lag between the action taken and its ultimate impact Moreover paradoxically there is a 8220comfort8221 to operating at a significant loss for many years spending hundreds of millions of dollars of investors8217 money relieving the incentive to generate incremental revenue or savings that seem insignificant relative to the scale of the investment and the size of the opportunity Finally the need to constantly…