How big pharma and startups can learn from each other

Francesca Wuttke’s varied career has taken her from research roles to private equity and now to the role of chief digital officer at Almirall. She spoke with Paul Tunnah about her plans to embed a digital mindset across the company, and how Almirall hopes to encourage true collaboration with startups through its new ‘Digital Garden’ project.

You’ve been involved with both the science and the investment side of the industry – what has that taught you and how has it shaped your focus now?

My driving force has always been to accelerate drug development and drug discovery. When I was working on my thesis on HIV drug discovery, I realised it would likely be 20 years before something would come to market. I tend not to be the most patient person!

I went into private equity because I felt that when you can fund valuable products, you can often get them to patients sooner.

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