In 2017, the international corporation “Yuria-Pharm” (https://www.uf.ua/en/) set an ambitious goal — to enter the top 100 largest pharmaceutical corporations in the world by 2030. Founded in 1998, at that time, it was one of the top 5 pharmaceutical companies in Ukraine and held the second position in hospital procurement volumes.
The first step towards the goal — increasing productivity, which means streamlining processes. This was the request the corporation made to “Project Management Bureau.”
“Solving a serious problem at ‘Project Management Bureau’ always begins with an audit. At this stage, we examine the problem field and provide recommendations for correcting mistakes,” explains Oleksii Gromyko, managing partner of “Project Management Bureau”.
To make the results visible as quickly as possible, we suggested that “Yuria-Pharm” focus on key processes: those that generate the most revenue and involve the main customer interactions.
The audit revealed that when a process involved several departments, it was fragmented: there was no single responsible person who would coordinate the tasks from start to finish. No one was accountable for the final result, so it was difficult to see the process as a whole and improve it globally. “Yuria-Pharm” needed end-to-end processes that bring together several departments to create value for the customer.
The ability to plan long-term is a key factor for the pharmaceutical industry. “Yuria-Pharm” supplies products to medical institutions worldwide and participates in international tenders, while the development of certain products can take anywhere from 3 to 5 years. The ability to deliver predictable results within set timelines is one of the key benefits of implementing end-to-end processes.
The second stage of the work was dedicated to crystallizing the key processes at “Yuria-Pharm.” “We proposed our vision for the boundaries of these processes and helped the company designate the leaders for each of them,” explained Oleksii Gromyko.
We described the steps that make up each process and their key details. Additionally, we defined the indicators that will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of each stage.
It is important for us that our clients do not depend on us. Therefore, we always support our clients in their efforts to establish an internal center of process expertise.
In 2018, such a center was created at “Yuria-Pharm.” It is called the “Center of Excellence,” reflecting the nature of the changes that originate within the department.
The Center of Excellence reports directly to the CEO. We helped form the department’s team and conducted training sessions for them.
Reformatting the product strategy. Products with the greatest potential were prioritized.
Personalization of responsibility. Each process was assigned an owner: for example, project managers are responsible for product promotion timelines, while product owners are responsible for its financial success.
The supply chain became more reliable. The number of orders completed on time increased by 10%.
Financial losses decreased. Identifying and eliminating the root causes of errors became easier, which also reduced costs by 8%.
Harmonization of demand and company capacity. The out-of-stock indicator decreased by half.
Improved efficiency and service level of the distribution model. Delivery times were reduced, and the list of out-of-stock products shrank. As a result, “Yuria-Pharm” became a more predictable supplier in the eyes of its customers.
