A pioneering force in the pharmaceutical industry, Barbara Maglione is renowned for leveraging her strong background in molecular biology and a Master’s degree from the University of Milan to drive innovation at Farmaceutici Damor S.p.A. As the Head of Research and Development, she leads the company’s R&D efforts, expanding its portfolio of medicines, medical devices, food supplements, and cosmetics through remarkable achievements and dynamic leadership. Her leadership has been playing an instrumental role in shaping the company’s R&D strategy, accelerating growth, and establishing it as a trusted provider of top-notch pharmaceutical products.
Barbara’s Passionate Journey: A Foundation in Pharmaceutical R&D
Barbara’s passionate journey into pharmaceutical research and development began with a strong foundation in science, specifically earned through her Master of Science from the esteemed University of Milan. From the outset, she was drawn to the practical application of scientific knowledge to improve health and well-being. Her early career involved exploring various aspects of product development with a focus on rigorous scientific evaluation. This foundation ultimately led Barbara to Farmaceutici Damor, where she has had the privilege to lead the company’s R&D efforts. It’s been a fascinating path, constantly learning and adapting to the evolving landscape of pharmaceutical science.
The Key Career Moments and Decisions
Barbara’s professional journey has been shaped by several key moments and decisions, including her choice to specialize in the areas of topical preparations and medical devices. This allowed her to focus on product categories where she could see a direct impact on patient quality of life. Another crucial decision was embracing a holistic approach to R&D – recognizing the importance of regulatory compliance, manufacturing feasibility, and market needs. In the early days of her career, the opportunities Barbara got to contribute to projects from initial concept to market launch were incredibly valuable, as they provided a comprehensive understanding of the entire product lifecycle.
Fostering Innovation while Honouring Heritage
Farmaceutici Damor maintains agility and innovation while honoring its long-standing heritage by staying true to its commitment to quality and patient care. The company honors this by maintaining its focus on science-driven solutions that truly address unmet needs. Agility and innovation come from the size and the culture. The company’s mid-sized structure enables streamlined decision-making and close departmental connections, fostering a culture of continuous learning, investment in new technologies, and collaboration with external partners, including universities and research institutions. This approach allows Farmaceutici Damor to drive innovation while ensuring that its products are effective as well as safe, guided by a strong ethical compass rooted in its heritage.
Strategies for Fostering Cross-Functional Collaboration
Barbara believes effective collaboration is paramount. She has implemented several key strategies to foster effective collaboration between R&D, compliance, and marketing at Farmaceutici Damor. These include early and continuous involvement, and the company brings compliance and marketing teams into the R&D process from the beginning. This ensures that regulatory requirements are built into the product design and market insights inform the development strategies.
She aligns the company’s objectives so that everyone is working towards the same successful product launch with shared goals and metrics. Regular cross-functional meetings, workshops, and informal interactions are encouraged to foster understanding and address potential challenges proactively. Barbara motivates team members to learn about the roles and challenges of other departments, building empathy and more effective teamwork.
Upholding Core Values in Growth and Innovation
Barbara ensures that Farmaceutici Damor’s core values of quality, integrity, and patient well-being remain aligned with its growth and scientific objectives by embedding these values into every aspect of the company’s R&D processes. From the initial research phase to clinical trials and product launches, every project is evaluated based on its scientific merit and commercial potential, ethical implications, and contribution to patient health. Leadership consistently reinforces these values through consistent messaging and reflection in training programs and internal communications. Growth is pursued responsibly, always prioritizing the well-being of the patients and the integrity of the scientific work.
The Latest Trends in Pharmaceutical R&D
Barbara is excited about the advancements in genomic medicine and personalized therapies, which hold immense promise for more effective and safer medicines. Additionally, she is enthusiastic about the rapid progress in biologics and advanced therapeutic medicinal products (ATMPs).
However, she is also concerned about the increasing complexity of regulatory pathways for novel therapies and the need to ensure equitable access to these potentially life saving treatments. Additionally, the vast volume of data generated in R&D poses challenges in terms of data management and analysis, which require significant investment in AI and machine learning capabilities.
Precision Medicine: New Opportunities and Responsibilities
Precision medicine will undoubtedly reshape the responsibilities of companies. For mid-sized companies like Farmaceutici Damor, which require enhancements in companion diagnostics and closer collaboration with diagnostic companies. This shift will lead to more R&D, demanding a deeper understanding of disease mechanisms and patient stratification, while also presenting an opportunity for agility in bringing targeted therapies to market compared to larger corporations.
Adapting Remote and Hybrid Workflows
Barbara has successfully adapted Farmaceutici Damor’s R&D workflows to remote and hybrid team models by embracing digital tools for collaboration, such as advanced video conferencing, shared document platforms, and project management software. However, she emphasizes the importance of physical presence in fostering team cohesion and innovation, striving to make a balance between individual productivity and team synergy to optimize effectiveness.
Pearls of Wisdom: For Women in Pharmaceutical R&D
Barbara advises women pursuing leadership roles in pharmaceutical R&D to build a Strong Scientific Foundation: develop a Holistic Understanding of the industry, and cultivate strong communication skills. She also recommends seeking Mentors and Sponsors, embracing challenges and learning from failures, and being confident in one’s abilities to assertively pursue opportunities and contribute to the field.
Defining Career Decisions, Nurturing Growth
Barbara’s early career was propelled forward by two defining decisions: seeking out projects that challenged her and pushed her beyond her comfort zone. Taking on responsibilities that required learning new techniques or understanding different therapeutic areas was crucial for broadening her skill set. Secondly, a conscious effort to build a strong network, both internally within the company and externally with academic researchers and industry peers. These connections provided invaluable insights and opened doors to new opportunities and collaborations.
The Evolving Role of R&D Heads
According to Barbara, the role of R&D heads is becoming more strategic and interdisciplinary, requiring expertise not only in science but also in technology scouting, data science, and artificial intelligence. They will also need to foster a culture of open innovation and collaboration with external partners. The R&D head will act as a bridge between cutting-edge science and commercial viability, navigating increasingly complex scientific and regulatory landscapes.
Damor’s Vision: Success in the Next Decade
Success for Damor in the next decade means becoming a trusted provider of high-quality, innovative pharmaceutical products that improve patient outcomes. R&D will be central to this vision, driving innovation, identifying new opportunities, and efficiently bringing cutting-edge products from concept to market with success directly tied to the company’s ability to innovate responsibly.
Streamlining Global Regulatory Approval Processes
Barbara would redesign the regulatory approval processes globally to be more streamlined and harmonized, reducing fragmentation and duplication. This would accelerate the delivery of medicines to patients across the world, enabling R&D efforts to be more focused on scientific excellence rather than navigating bureaucratic hurdles, while maintaining rigorous safety and efficacy standards.
The Future Plans
Barbara’s plans at Farmaceutici Damor involve driving R&D efforts forward by exploring new therapeutic areas, integrating advanced technologies such as AI-driven drug discovery, and strengthening collaborative networks. These initiatives focus on keeping the company at the forefront of scientific innovation and ensuring the continued delivery of valuable products that improve health.