MASTER Workshop: Agile in Drug Development

This presentation delves into the practical considerations for Agile practices in an industry traditionally rooted in predictive, stage-gated, and waterfall project management approaches. Drug development projects are uniquely characterized by their complexity, long timelines, significant costs, and high levels of uncertainty. Agile offers a transformative framework to navigate this rapidly-changing environment, enabling teams to adapt, and deliver incremental value.

Through real-world case studies and insights from experienced project management practitioners, this presentation will uncover actionable strategies for tailoring Agile to the specific challenges of drug development. Learn how Agile principles can enhance collaboration, accountability, and drive focused delivery—whether in hypothesis-driven early discovery or cross-functional execution during late-stage development. Join us to reimagine project management in pharma and unlock new possibilities for delivering impactful results.

Learning goals summary:

• Understand the unique adaptation required for Agile in the pharmaceutical industry:
• Learners will explore why Agile practices from IT and software development must be thoughtfully tailored to address the unique specificities of drug development.
• Recognize the suitability of Agile for early-stage drug development:
• Learners will understand how Agile principles align with the iterative nature of discovery and preclinical phases, where uncertainty is highest, and how this space is conducive to Agile approaches. 
• Apply Agile principles to later-stage drug development within traditional frameworks:
• Learners will examine how Agile pockets can enhance cross-functional collaboration, streamline delivery, and enable focused execution, while leveraging a more hybrid in later-stage development.

Biography

Kamil, Senior Director and PM Advisor at GSK. Previously, he held roles at UCB, Novo Nordisk Engineering (NNE), and his own consulting firm. A recognized PM leader, Kamil was honored by PMI as a Future 50 in 2020 and by IPMA as “Agile Leader of the Year” in 2022. In his free time, when he is not chasing after his three wonderful kids, he is pursuing a part-time PhD at HEC uLiège, exploring the impact of PM capabilities in pharma.

LinkedIn profile: Kamil Mroz