Why 2007 Was a Critical Year for Pharma CRM Users
Quick: what critical technology was introduced in 2007 that would revolutionize the way pharma reps sell? First to mind for many may be the iPhone, though I’m actually referring to the introduction of cloud-based CRM. In fact, if you take a few minutes to browse through the CRM innovation timeline to see when some of the most important innovations were introduced, you might even find yourself thinking, “Did THAT really happen all the way back in 2011?”
Consider that by the mid-2000s, the life sciences industry was wading through turbulent waters. In an era of rapid technological change, biopharma companies found themselves behind the innovation curve, saddled with legacy technology, carrying with it a real risk to their bottom lines. General cross-industry cloud applications were also starting to become available. That’s when Veeva CEO Peter Gassner realized the potential of the cloud to address the needs of the life sciences industry, delivering rich, industry-specific CRM applications and supporting pharma with a unique model of continuous innovation. The old way of commercializing medicines was about to be turned on its head.
Since those early days, industry-specific cloud CRM has been widely adopted in life sciences and many commercial CIOs are now taking a ‘cloud first’ approach when evaluating new systems. This widespread usage has a lot to do with the fact that the cloud-based CRM model offers a continuous stream of innovation to help commercialize medicines. Even though the concept of a true, multitenant life sciences cloud had yet to prove itself in 2007, it offered pharma and biotech a compelling value proposition that could not be achieved with legacy technology. So, in retrospect, perhaps we should not be all that surprised by the rapid adoption rate.
Just how effective was the move to the CRM cloud for early customers? Examples abound, but one early success that stands out was AstraZeneca, which realized 29% ROI, along with 30% annual cost savings, directly from its use of Veeva CRM.
In hindsight, 2007 turned out to be a game-changing year for the life sciences industry and it wasn’t just because of the introduction of the iPhone. Once cloud CRM became available, pharma companies were no longer forced to rely on a cumbersome legacy or on-premise software.
I invite you to benchmark yourself against the innovation timeline. When did your organization make the move to the cloud and which key functionalities have been most critical for your reps?