Pharma will grow through convergence with technology

What's your name?

Jean Delaney

What’s your company and describe your role?

PwC, Pharma & Life Sciences Leader

How long have you held the position?

More than five years leading the PwC Pharma & Life Sciences Practice

What are your day to day responsibilities?

Managing a team of over 80 people who advise our extensive pharmaceutical and life sciences client base in Ireland and globally. We help these companies develop strategy and adapt their business models in a world of change and uncertainty, navigate the pharma, tax and financial regulatory systems that surround them and expand their global footprint.

My role is to bring the best of PwC Ireland and our global network to our clients to make sure that they have the in depth perspectives both national and international that are critical to their businesses thriving.

What is your professional background?

Chartered Accountant and Member of the Irish Taxation Institute.

Tell me about yourself away from work?

Enjoy spending time with family and friends.

Tell us something very few people know about you?

I swim in the seas off Ireland all year round – I hold a Wexford childhood responsible for this madness.

You are speaking at iQuest’s 2017 Biopharma Summit?

I will cover:

- The opportunities and challenges presented by an ageing population and an increased focus on rare diseases

- Maintaining focus on the longer term challenges of pricing and using technological innovation to drive down the cost of healthcare

- Planning for Brexit at both strategic and operational level

- My optimism that US tax reform will have limited impact on the Irish industry in the medium to long term.

What challenges do you see for the biopharma industry?

- The challenges of operating in a changing regulatory environment post Brexit

- Supply chain disruption

- Slowdown in rate of discovery/innovation in research and development

- The implications of resistance on pricing

- The growing interest of the technology sector in healthcare

- The skills challenge

Where do you see the industry in 10 years time?

We see a sector that will grow through innovation through a convergence of pharma with technology and making better use of medicines in the community.

Skills will continue to be a challenge, with skills such as problem solving, leadership and creativity being important. Recognising the importance of these skills will not make it any easier to secure the right people.

Jean Delaney, PwC, Pharma & Life Sciences Leader will be speaking at the Biopharma Outlook Summit on May 9 at the AVIVA Stadium in Dublin. For more information on the summit visitBiopharmasummit.ie