Preliminary results of Gartner IT trends survey are in

Survey respondents indicated that the two issues which have had the biggest impact on the life sciences industry over the past 5 years are tighter regulations and increased pressure on speed to market

By Editor on Oct 12, 2005

Survey respondents indicated that the two issues which have had the biggest impact on the life sciences industry over the past 5 years are tighter regulations and increased pressure on speed to market. The two biggest business challenges the industry faces are reduced product pipelines and a tarnished image. The most significant personal challenges include constantly shifting business priorities and a lack of resources.

Respondents report that the most valuable sources of information required to do their job are the internet, industry publications on the internet and colleagues in the company.

More than half - 59% - of life sciences firms consider themselves to be mainstream IT adoptors. The top two technology priorities for 2005 are CRM and EDC. The expected technology priorities for 2008 are CRM and bioinformatics. These responses jive with the answers to the top two business priorities for 2005 which are making the sales force more effective and improving marketing operations. In 2008, they expect to be focused on increasing research productivity.

When asked what emerging technologies hold the most promise for life sciences firms in the future, the responses were quite disparate. However some technologies mentioned frequently include RFID, nanotechnology and bioinformatics.