LIFESCIENCELEADER.COM JULY 2014
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frequently asked questions posed to him
at conferences. "It is one of our biggest
challenges," he admits. "When dealing
with a lot of imponderables, taking the
approach that a project will only be under-
taken if it has a positive business case
doesn't work because you cannot draw a
line, make a linear expansion of the past,
and then foretell the future." If creating an
organization similar to CTI within your
company, Koester suggests setting fund-
ing aside so you can create projects with-
out having to "pluck a business plan out of
thin air." Further, allow innovation teams
the ability to run pilot projects so they
can gather data toward the creation of a
more thorough business case. "Avoiding
months of discussions and negotiations
before being able to start projects makes
it is easier for the broader organization to
see what you are doing, as well as to help
you get it done," he attests.
busy with during the months after the
design workshop," he says.
Though Koester is not able to disclose
the budget amount allocated to the cre-
ation and running of CTI on an annual
basis, he is able to share how it's struc-
tured. "We set up the group to be inde-
pendently funded," he says. "The budget
for every one of the pilot projects we are
running is contained and preallocated
specifically toward clinical trial innova-
tion." In addition, the CTI team is given
the freedom (within budget) to run proj-
ects that don't have full-blown business
cases. "This is a key element to success,"
he states. "Because we are venturing into
the unknown, you can't really create a
business case. If we knew it, then it would
not be innovation."
According to Koester, how to get people
on board without the ability to create a
complete business case is one of the most
Free up both bench space and budget
Focus on cells and titers rather than
bioreactor volume, brand or type
Simplify vessel selection with a wide array of vessel
adapters and easily integrated 3rd party peripherals
Optimize process control using TruBio
®
software,
networking multiple bioreactors in advanced
studies using intuitive data analysis tools
Maximize fexibility using
Finesse SmartParts
™
to
confgure or re-confgure
your controller to precisely
ft process requirements
Looking back, the
Investigator Databank
project, with all its
complexity and industry
coopera tion, was such
a moon shot.
A N D R E A S K O E S T E R , M . D . , P h . D
VP of Clinical Trial Innovation & External Alliances
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