Drug Development Is a Team Sport — And Procurement Has to Play.

In this episode of Tenzing's Executive Edge, host Greg Anderson sits down with Dave Stowe — founder and managing partner of Adventus and a veteran of PwC, Oliver Wyman, Horizon Therapeutics, and Purdue Pharma — to explore one of the most complex and consequential procurement environments in the world: life sciences. Dave argues that procurement in biotech and pharma isn't just operationally different from other industries — it carries unique stakes, where mismanaged supplier relationships, runaway costs, or poor contract structures can derail a clinical trial or sink an early-stage company entirely. Greg and Dave walk through the full arc of drug development, from early discovery and animal testing through the three phases of clinical trials, unpacking how procurement teams can better support their scientific colleagues at each stage, structure relationships with Contract Research Organizations, and build the financial discipline that gives promising therapies a fighting chance.

Summary of Key Sections from this Episode (Timestamp = "Minutes:Seconds")

00:02:05 Procurement’s Role in R&D – The Big Picture00:05:20 Drug Development Stages: Discovery to Clinical Trials00:07:08 Engaging Suppliers and CROs00:11:27 Clinical Stages, Cost & Risk Management00:19:57 Partnering Procurement with Internal R&D Teams00:39:00 AI, Data & Process Improvements in Drug Development