Cutting Edge Information’s Recent Study Finds That 47% of Market Research Teams Are Globally Centralized

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nearly half of surveyed pharmaceutical companies have global, centralized market research teams in place, according to a new study by Cutting Edge Information.

“It fosters communication between subgroups, thereby streamlining the process of conducting market research.”

The study, “Pharmaceutical Market Research Groups: Creating Knowledge for Better Brand Decisions,” found that 47% of drug manufacturers’ market research groups are responsible for overseeing all brands and markets around the world. Often, these global market research teams oversee sub-groups that can be broken out by region or therapeutic area.

Across the pharmaceutical industry, a company’s pipeline determines which functions and therapeutic areas are supported by market research teams. Because of the emphasis on upcoming products, drug companies position their market research teams to collaborate and communicate with functions – such as marketing and business development – involved in collecting and analyzing market research data.

“Centralizing market research groups that monitor markets worldwide establishes a system for multiple on-the-ground teams to coordinate their efforts and share their best practices,” said Elio Evangelista, director of operations at Cutting Edge Information. “It fosters communication between subgroups, thereby streamlining the process of conducting market research.”

Although centralized groups represent a significant portion of surveyed market research teams, the prevalence of centralization varies by company size. Centralized market research teams are found at 44% of small companies. Other small company market research teams were organized by brand or therapeutic area (11%) or into regional teams (22%). Meanwhile, 71% of large companies maintain a centralized market research team. The remaining 29% of large companies split their market research teams into regional teams.

“Pharmaceutical Market Research Groups: Creating Knowledge for Better Brand Decisions” (http://www.cuttingedgeinfo.com/research/market-intelligence/pharmaceutical-market-research/) explores the strategic role and alignment of market research teams within the pharmaceutical industry. This study is designed to help market research teams:

Integrate proactive market research groups with high-level strategic teams
Draw stakeholders’ attention to market research’s full value rather than just the bottom line
Leverage market research’s limited resources in creative ways to best impact critical brand decisions

For more information about market research teams and competitive intelligence benchmarking, contact Stephanie Swanson at 919-403-6583.