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www.biopharminternational.com May 2022 eBook BioPharm International 7 Be f lexible. A good partner should be f lexible to help meet their custom- er's needs so that they are successful in achieving their milestones. Having the right capabilities, capacit y, and sca le to meet t he c l ient wherever they are in their molecule's journey, when and where it is needed, is criti- cal. It sounds pretty straightforward, but many CDMOs today don't have enough capacity or capabilities to meet their customers' timelines. Deorkar (Avantor): Listen to cus- tomers. Outsourcing companies need to spend more time listening to their customers rather than trying to make sales pitches. It's critical to under- sta nd c ustomer s' proce s s /produc t requirements and application needs to deliver the service that would exceed customers' expectations. Capabilities and limitations should be laid out early in the project discussion. This would help avoid any promises that cannot be delivered. Decide on a timeline. Companies shou ld work w ith customers on a project timeline that can be deliv- ered upon. Since outsourcing buffer management is a part of complex bio- pharma processes, it is essential that all outsourced services meet the cus- tomers' critical timeline. If the proj- ect timeline cannot be met, always communicate early to find alternative solutions or paths. Ze h e (S a r to r i u s): B e f l e x i bl e and customer focused. In addition to good technologies, service providers also require a high level of f lexibil- ity and customer focus to overcome t h e m a n i fol d c h a l l e n g e s r e l a t e d t o b i o l o g i c s d e v e l o p m e n t . T h i s inc ludes ta i lor-made development approaches, short lead and response t i me s , t he p o s sibi l it y to s top or change work packages (also on short notice), clear and eff icient commu- nication (ideally single point of con- tact), and f lexible business models. E s t a b l i s h a n d a p p l y p l a t f o r m te ch n o l o g i e s . We l l- d e v e lop e d a nd eff icient technologies are the basis to pr o v id e c o s t- e f fe c t i v e s e r v ic e s a nd f u l f i l lt he s t e a d i l y i nc r e a s i n g demands with respect to timelines, yields, scalability, and product qual- it y. Fu r t her more, good plat for ms ensure regulatory compliance and a high project success rate. Provide complete solutions. Single- vendor/one-stop-shop approaches com- prising the full spectrum of cell-line development, cell-culture media, cell banking, analytical, and biosafety test- ing services provide big advantages, such as higher success rates, shorter timelines, and simplified project man- agement and communication. Filosa (PerkinElmer): Know the client's needs. Understand exactly what your client's needs are so that you can meet them in the smartest ways. Find solutions for multiple critical need s . Once needs a re ident i f ied , create a solution that solves multiple critical needs (vs. only one or stove- piped issues). Creating an improved overall work f low will benef it both sides of the collaboration. Think long-term. Good outsourc- ing is about creating optimal solutions and long-term, trusted relationships. Part of this can mean saying no some- times and being flexible in creating new directions together. This really looks out for a client's best interests. The partner- ship becomes stronger when you cre- ate opportunities for acceleration and improvement of the workflow. BP Partnerships for Outsourcing Outsourcing BioPharm International's sister publication, Pharmaceutical Technology, presents the Drug Solutions Podcast, where the editors chat with industry experts from across the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical supply chain. In this episode of the Drug Solutions Podcast, Meg Rivers, senior editor, inter views Joy Aho, senior product manager at Be The Match BioTherapies, about sourcing autologous and allogeneic cell therapies, including discussions on: • Current sourcing options for biopharma companies in the cell therapy space • Key considerations when deciding what sourcing method is best for an individual therapy • Considerations for donor identification and cell collection • Potential collection network strategies for cell therapy, and how these strategies impact quality, agility, and scalability • Vendors for cell therapy and supply chain impacts. About the speaker Joy Aho, PhD, is the senior product manager at Be The Match BioTherapies, where she develops innovative prod- ucts and services for the cell and gene therapy industry. Click HERE to listen to the podcast. Drug Solutions Podcast: Sourcing Autologous and Allogeneic Cell Therapies