Rx: Converge for Security Effectiveness

Jun 1, 2007 12:00 PM, David Kent

Security is always less effective when approached from a “silo” perspective, as illustrated clearly by security challenges related to the biotechnology industry.

The industry faces significant risk in its quest to address unmet medical needs. It typically takes 10 years and $1 billion for a product to make the journey from “mind to market.”

When products are successfully introduced, they enter a global pharmaceutical supply chain challenged by a constellation of risk.

One risk is the use of fraudulent Internet pharmacies. These are principal vectors for diverted and counterfeit products, and they portray themselves as safe alternatives to traditional brick-and-mortar retailers. They are a dangerous portal into a complex gray market where a legitimate prescription is unnecessary and counterfeits mix with genuine products that have been stolen and/or handled carelessly.

Silo-ed approaches to the problem are ineffective.

Analyzing and addressing the risk requires various security disciplines to unite. In progressive companies, this practice is routine, as traditionally separate functions such as IT, physical and supply chain security are centrally managed as one group.

Backed by strategic vendors and private/public service providers that are equipped with a unified perspective, the security department participates as an equal partner in a team that includes legal, manufacturing, operations, sales and product management. Product security teams report directly to division presidents and also drive end-to-end reactive and proactive business-oriented solutions to ensure that the product the patient receives is genuine.

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David Kent is a member of the Security Executive Council (csoexecutivecouncil.com) and vice president of Genzyme Security.

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