Times are indeed challenging for the Indian pharma industry. As if increasing competition from global and domestic players as well as the pressure to enhance profitability-even as drug price controls continue to exist and costs escalate-were not enough, the impending onset of the product patent regime, under WTO regulations, has added to the burden. But the industry has risen to these challenges. IT has been a key enabler in translating this strategy into reality.

The cumulative IT spending by 12 of India's leading pharma companies, accounting for 46% of the industry sales, was Rs 121 crore in the year 2003-04. This, however, translated into IT spendings by most of these players at less than 1% of their total revenues. Most players spent somewhere in the vicinity of Rs 5 crore on IT during the year. The trend is that pharma companies in India view IT as a form of business technology comprising business skills more than technical. The focus for IT implementation is more on strategic imperatives and outsource operation.

Most players spent somewhere in the vicinity of Rs 5 crore on IT during the year

There are certain patterns in IT adoption by pharma companies. These patterns range from functional (stage 1), integrated (stage 2), optimized enterprise (stage 3) to extended enterprise (stage 4). Stage I companies are characterized by the presence of various function or department-specific applications in the overall application portfolio. Data consolidation or communication between applications may happen as a batch process at regular intervals of time. Stage II companies are those that have taken an integrated view to addressing their IT needs through the implementation of an ERP. In addition to having a well-integrated enterprise application, Stage III companies have also implemented a comprehensive application to optimize the company's operations. These applications take an organization-wide view and incorporate rigorous data analysis techniques-such as predictive modeling, linear programming and regression analysis, to facilitate informed decision-making. The Stage IV companies have an IT setup that automates the organization, connects trading parties, enables them to conduct transactions and conducts rigorous analysis of captured data to facilitate decision-making across the extended enterprise.

There are various IT solutions available to enable companies to accelerate the process of drug discovery and drug design. Some MNC pharmas are using electronic Case Report Forms (CRFs) for clinical trials being conducted in India. However, these were primarily targeted towards supporting clinical trial studies originating from their global R&D centers. Domestic pharmaceutical companies have also started taking tentative steps towards experimenting with IT solutions in this area. Some leaders have invested or are planning to invest in electronic data capture (eDC) applications, electronic filing, and ensuring compliance with 21 CFR 11.

Field force productivity is constantly under the lens. And technology can be one of the levers. A TCS report indicates that close to 60% of companies had implemented Sales Force Automation (SFA) applications, while others were either in the process of implementing or were actively considering alternatives available in the market. All pharmaceutical companies in India acknowledge the potential presented by eLearning. Training of medical representatives is clearly the focus area for eLearning solutions.

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