Company insight
Vendor management – more than relationship management?
In an ever-changing working landscape, communication is paramount. Heike Schoen, managing director at Lumis Life Science Consulting, discusses accelerating clinical development by assisting the cooperation between sponsors and vendors – carving the most cost-effective and efficient route towards a common goal.
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ncreasing complexity of clinical trials are a major challenge, especially for midsize and small enterprises (sponsors) in the biopharmaceutical and medical device industry. Studies are becoming more global in nature, at early stages and in combination with an array of established and new technologies. With often limited financial resources, midsize and small companies need to plan effective clinical trial programmes with appropriate vendor and oversight management. In parallel, new regulations and guidance requires clinical research stakeholders to continuously implement and adapt their processes. Small sponsor companies depend heavily on outsourcing their clinical trial activities due to limited resources, specific knowledge and/or missing infrastructure, to perform clinical trials on their own. Their success is directly related to their vendor management approach, and how they manage their vendors successfully to ensure the data quality and patient safety.
The main goals of successful vendor management are quality, cost and time optimisation to meet the company’s business objectives. A fourth dimension is the creation of a cooperative and respectful relationship between sponsors and vendors. Sponsors expect to gain increased value through their vendors throughout the existing contract life cycle. A well thought through vendor management system can only be successful if the relationship has a robust basis in its cooperative approach. For example, a vendor management plan and an effective risk mitigation strategy that best
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fits the sponsor organisation, and is openly discussed and agreed upon with the vendor – all of which should be implemented at the start of the outsourcing activities. Besides the legal terms, it is crucial that the contract defines the overall relationship and expectations. A governance plan – as part of the contract – details the working relationship between sponsor and vendor, including their expectations, values and common understanding.
A common goal
The project governance defines the types of meetings: goals, attendance and frequency at the project at both operational and executive management level. The project goals, resources, budget, performance measurements are jointly agreed upon. The implementation of a governance charter helps to create a common understanding of the different organisations, decision-making processes, and if not avoidable escalation procedures. Trust is the basic condition for each successful cooperation and the most sensitive part of the relationship. It can take a long time to be built and can, conversely, be destroyed at the drop of a hat. Sponsor and vendor need to understand each other, understand their different organisations, decision-making processes, values and philosophies. The better this understanding is reached, the faster trust can be built. Sponsors should share their ideas and priorities related to the project, while vendors should aim to add value to the relationship, not limiting itself to focus
solely on executing tasks under contract and develop proactive communication. Potential misunderstandings and challenges can be avoided through regular communication and proactively addressing any issues with suggestions. This cultivates a team spirit for both vendor and sponsor stakeholders.
Clear expectations
Sponsor companies have to be very clear about their expectations towards the cooperation with the CRO. This does not only apply to the three magical components: quality, timelines and budget. But also to the soft skills, the extent of the support and the level and type of communication – one of the key components to make these relationships prosper.
Establishing a long-term relationship that fosters open communication and trust-building with vendors can result in more effective relationship management, operational efficiencies and cost savings. The awareness for, and profound understanding of, each other’s values, needs and structures creates a robust basis for successful cooperation and develops a necessary understanding to reach a common goal. With that goal being to reach definitive, conclusive results that move the sponsor company to the next development stage. The level of trust and success of the relationship will influence future involvement of the vendor and, if positive, it can lead to a long-term relationship from which both parties can profit. ●
www.lumisinternational.com 41
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