At this year’s LogiPharma 2024 event, we caught up with some of the pharmaceutical supply chain sector’s leading executives to learn more about them, their analysis of the trends shaping the industry, and how their organisations are responding to the challenges ahead.
LogiPharma is the premier event for pharmaceutical supply chain professionals. Every year, the event brings together over 500 professionals from the sector’s top manufacturers, as well as their partners, government agencies, academic institutions, and industry media to network, benchmark and learn how to improve supply chain operations.
With this year’s LogiPharma 2024 event in our rear view mirror, we sat down with Ryan Portela, Program Director for LogiPharma USA, for a post-event debrief, and to get his take on the opportunities, pain points, and strategies defining success in the pharmaceutical supply chain sector.
1. Ryan, can you quickly outline your role in the LogiPharma event? Why should people attend?
I’m Ryan Portela, and I am the Program Director for LogiPharma USA. My job is to research current trends and needs for the pharmaceutical supply chain industry, create an agenda that addresses main hurdles and opportunities in the pharma supply chain sector and recruit speakers to speak to the issues that are top of mind for the industry.
I believe people should attend because LogiPharma is the one and only event that is created in conjunction with industry leaders. It’s a program for pharmaceutical supply chain professionals, by pharmaceutical supply chain professionals.
2. With the event running since 2002, how much change and transformation has taken place since then? This event and the pharma supply chain space generally must look completely different to the first one, right?
Well, I wasn’t here for the event in 2002, but we are lucky enough to have some supporters and contributors that have been here since the beginning. When I ask them this question, they all agree that the program has grown immensely since its inception.
My job is to ensure that the needs of the pharma supply chain are being addressed in the sessions that we are discussing at LogiPharma. With that, as you can imagine, things have changed in conjunction with the needs of the industry.
While things like supply chain visibility, risk management, supply chain planning and security are a constant need, the ways to improve these functions surely have changed and will continue to change as technology and the landscape evolves. That’s where LogiPharma comes in. We stay in tune with that evolution so the industry can trust us to keep them on target with how things are changing.
3. What is the planning like for making an event like this so successful? Is it an all-year round process?
It’s a lot of planning and coordinating not only with our internal team, but also with our external partners that make the event possible. We have a dedicated team that works on the experience, another that works on building the audience, and another team that focuses on bringing on our sponsors.
Our teams work year-round to ensure that the quality at all levels of the program remains in step with the expectations of our audience and the industry. We know the responsibility that we have to provide the supply chain with quality connections and education, and that’s not something we take lightly. Therefore, we work tirelessly to ensure that the event is spot on and runs as smoothly as possible.
4. What makes LogiPharma different and such an important event in the supply chain calendar?
As mentioned before, we work closely with our industry partners to gain insights into the current hurdles and opportunities that the supply chain faces.
I believe that, just like the supply chain, the trust in our partnerships and the effective collaboration between our speakers and our production team ensures that this event is addressing the right issues at the right time.
At LogiPharma, you are hearing directly from the industry where things are, where things are going, and where they need to be.
5. How do you make the experience different every year for attendees?
The best thing about working in this industry is working with people who love what they do.
When you have motivated individuals who want to create leading content and experiences, magic happens.
At WBR, the company who produces LogiPharma, we have what I believe are the best event professionals in the industry. The team we have focuses on how to improve every year and takes our wins, losses and draws and goes back to the drawing board to fine and refine the program.
6. What were the biggest takeaways from this year’s LogiPharma 2024 for you?
There are quite a few! Some of the biggest takeaways for me centre around sustainability, supply chain security & risk management and E2E visibility.
Sustainability is here to stay. As more pharmaceutical manufacturers begin to tackle their SCOPE 1,2 and 3 emissions, key questions around data collection and standardisation are emerging. The European landscape is ahead in many regards, but US partners are quickly realising the importance of being able to talk sustainability with pharma manufacturers. What we are seeing is forwarders, data providers and other key supply chain partners learning what they can about their own capabilities and working to support manufacturers in their sustainability initiatives.
Topics around supply chain risk and security are also emerging. As we know, being able to support our hospitals and patients with safe and sound medication, in a timely manner, is at the heart of what these professionals do. The threats to the digital and physical supply chain are many and, as the supply chain itself, evolving.
7. What topics were people particularly focused on this year?
The conversations had at LogiPharma this year were centred around improving communication with your downstream partners, enhancing digital supply chain security capabilities and learning about the resources available to both manufacturers and their partners to be able to continue their mission of securing the supply chain. As we look at an increasingly volatile world, the security of medications is paramount not only to the industry, but to societies all over the world. We are proud to be able to provide a platform where these issues can be not only discussed, but where progress can be made.
E2E visibility is the dream for most everyone in the supply chain. Being able to track across the source, make and deliver landscapes effectively is a goal that many are focusing on. And some are close! However, just like any digital system(s) there are many improvements to be made. Understanding what E2E means is key for the industry. Figuring out how to best enable this capability in a safe, transparent and efficient manner is what organisations need to explore. Each individual organisation across the value chain is unique in its capabilities and in its scope.
Therefore, if E2E is to be achieved, everyone who is involved needs to know not only what they must do, but what they can do and be able to communicate those capabilities to their partners up and down stream. Overall, I feel the future of E2E will hinge on trust and at LogiPharma, we do all we can to put folks in front of each other so that trust can begin to take hold.
8. How does the average Chief Supply Chain Officer juggle all the important items on their agenda today? With digital transformation, sustainability and diversity (among others!) all key areas in their own right, what tools can help CSCOs meet all their objectives and succeed?
I think we are learning just how interconnected our supply chains are. Juggling isn’t easy for anyone but improving the way supply chain teams communicate across organisations both internally and externally seems to be one of the major focus areas for supply chain leaders. We constantly hear about the need to break down silos – across the data, planning, and the delivery landscapes (to name just a few).
Of course, digital tools that improve planning and visibility will greatly aid in achieving some of these goals. Where would we be if we didn’t throw AI into the mix as well?
But I think that at the heart of what we are learning is that, beyond tools, understanding your own capabilities and, again, building trust with your partnerships is what will hold the key to success.
Being able to trust your data, trust your partnerships, trust your systems, and most importantly your teams! When you know that you have the right tools to do the job, and the right people in place to execute on strategies, I think CSCOs will find juggling their responsibilities a bit easier as the supply chain evolves.
9. What does the future of LogiPharma look like?
The future for LogiPharma is one that I hope the whole industry helps to decide. What I mean by that is that we have worked hard to ensure that the supply chain leaders that share with us feel heard and feel like LogiPharma is the event they can feel confident that they can come together to not only find solutions and ideas, but also grow their community and build those networks that are so important to keeping things moving – both professionally and personally.
LogiPharma’s mission of being a resource for the pharma supply chain across all the nodes it touches is one that our event team realises and doesn’t take lightly. We will continue to work with supply chain leaders, our partners, government agencies, academia and media institutions to bring the pharmaceutical supply chain cutting edge innovation, timely learnings and a community of supply chain professionals that will continue to move the supply chain forward together.
10. Is there anything else you wish to share?
I hope that if you are interested in sharing with us that you reach out and learn more about the event.
Whether you want to speak, promote your organisation, find business solutions or simply grow your network – LogiPharma wants to continue to be the premier event for all things pharmaceutical supply chain related. Hope to see you all in Boston for LogiPharma USA 2025!
- Collaboration & Optimization
- Sourcing & Procurement
