News Room

One defining aspect of the pharmaceutical industry is its high exposure to negative shocks—product recalls, tornados that shut down production lines, Phase III failures, you name it. As my thinking about some of these shocks has grown over time, I’ve come to realize some shocks may hit twice—the second time being the moment a sub-par decision is made in an attempt to recover from the original hit. With stakes being so high, it seems particularly important for leaders in this industry to remain aware that they are not immune to the perils of reactive decision making.

When an at-home Covid-19 test finally arrives at your doorstep, you may need to unlock the results on your smartphone. As diagnostic companies move to bring Covid-19 tests into people’s homes, some developers are planning to pair the tests with digital tools and smartphone apps. The tools will be able to walk the user through the testing process or in some cases report results directly to health authorities, among other features.

Lessons from the fall will help guide the spring semester. COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, hit college campuses last spring, forcing schools into pandemic intervention mode. The pandemic prompted many colleges to empty dorms, send students home and shift to online classes. As the spring 2021 semester nears, colleges have more clarity about how to balance student expectations and COVID-19 precautions.

The initial rollout of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine has begun, and vaccines are shipping across the U.S. Demand for COVID-19 vaccines will outpace supply for the foreseeable future. Yet experts have warned that a substantial proportion of these highly perishable vaccines could go to waste if they are not being used before they expire.

The world has been surrounded by optimism since pharmaceutical companies, such as Pfizer, announced great news of their positive vaccine results — which seem more reliable as we learn more about it. Finally, some shiver of light in what has been a historically difficult year for so many of us. Countries such as Canada, the United States, U.K., Brazil, and Turkey have already laid out or even started their inoculation process, purchasing millions of doses, while other countries are not that far off.