The Challenge
The healthcare and life sciences industries are experiencing unprecedented change on all fronts, ranging from the widespread repercussions of the patent cliff to the growing reconceptualization of the patient as consumer.
Our client, a global strategy firm known for its innovative and challenging approach, had built a strong foothold in the North American healthcare ecosystem but was underrepresented in Europe. The firm wanted to capitalise on the changing landscape and build capability in key strategic countries aligned to the buying market in Europe. The challenge was that of brand and legacy. Our client’s heritage was strongest within financial services and as such it was unknown to many of the major European headquartered and affiliate health and life sciences organisations and equally unknown to competitors in the sector. This was the major challenge: attracting leading strategists into a relatively unknown brand and mitigating the risks associated with such a move. This required a strong statement of intent.
The Solution
We initially consulted the leadership through a series of workshops to define the identity of the practice, the story of its origins and development, and the message of what they wanted to be famous for.
The next phase of the assignment was the completion of a comprehensive analysis of the European consulting market within health and life sciences. This centred on Partners and leaders who were capable of building a business, who had access to the market and who could drive a new, innovative way of delivering value for clients. This in turn enabled our client to make informed strategic decisions on geographical and individual targets. We were able to engage and intrigue some of the leading strategists from the likes of McKinsey, Monitor and BCG and we acted as an ambassador and representative of our client, working in collaboration to promote their way of thinking and story in the market. In addition, we spent time interviewing a number of client organisations to further advocate our client’s brand and gain valuable feedback on the wider consulting market.
The Outcome
The results exceeded expectations. Not only did we elevate our client’s brand within the European health and life sciences market, we were also able to move a number of Partners and subsequent teams to build out the capability. This has enabled our client to go to market with more scale, to hunt in teams and to focus on the key clients and geographies across Europe, addressing some of the most critical issues in the health and life sciences sectors.
Ultimately, we elevated our client’s brand through the acquisition of strategic capability which enabled the firm to compete in a market within which it was previously anonymous.