Eyes On the Evolving Pharma Landscape - Part 1

Global Pharma Strategy Under Pressure

We've created a four-part series of blog posts that looks at how today’s pharma landscape is being reshaped — from the inside out.

We start with strategy, as companies rethink cost structures, manufacturing footprints, and portfolio focus. We then examine how policy and regulation are redefining pricing, access, and market stability. From there, we highlight where late-stage clinical execution is still cutting through uncertainty. Finally, we explore the limits of even the strongest platforms, as blockbuster expansion meets biological and real-world constraints.

Together, these posts trace an arc: Strategy → Policy → Clinical Execution → Platform Limits — and what it means for the next phase of biopharma decision-making. Included are links to more detailed articles for a deeper-dive.

In Part 1 of our Series on how the pharma landscape is being reshaped - from the inside out, we have Eyes On how cost discipline, manufacturing shifts, and portfolio resets are reshaping large pharma.

Executive Highlights

• Cost-containment programs are evolving into long-term operating resets rather than temporary efficiency measures.

• Manufacturing and talent footprints are becoming more fluid as companies balance tariffs, automation, and supply security.

• Strategic exits from complex modalities signal rising selectivity in capital deployment.

• The next phase of pharma competition may be defined less by scale and more by operational flexibility.

Re-engineering Pharma Strategy

Over the past year, global pharmaceutical companies have focused Pharma Strategy beyond incremental efficiency initiatives toward more comprehensive structural change. Workforce reductions, manufacturing realignments, and portfolio reassessments are increasingly interconnected, driven by sustained pricing pressure, geopolitical uncertainty, and heightened expectations for capital discipline.

Recent actions by Pfizer, Novartis, and Galapagos illustrate how these pressures are translating into concrete strategic decisions. While each company faces a distinct set of circumstances, their responses point to a common recalibration: reassessing where to operate, which assets to prioritize, and how to maintain long-term competitiveness in a more constrained and volatile environment.

Pfizer’s ongoing restructuring highlights how cost control has shifted from a near-term response to a multi-year operating strategy. The company has continued to expand the scope of its global cost-savings initiative while implementing workforce reductions across several geographies, including Switzerland. These actions are framed as organizational simplification—reducing complexity, aligning resources more tightly to strategic priorities, and creating a leaner operating model capable of supporting future launches.

Novartis’ recent moves in Switzerland and the United States offer a complementary view of how large pharma is rethinking its manufacturing footprint. In Switzerland, the company is investing in automation at its Stein facility while exiting tablet and capsule production, alongside additional investment in siRNA capacity at Schweizerhalle. In parallel, Novartis has announced substantial manufacturing expansion in the U.S., positioning supply resilience and geographic optionality as strategic priorities.

Galapagos provides an example of reassessment at the portfolio level. After years of investment in cell therapy, the company has elected to exit the modality following a strategic review that weighed scientific promise against execution complexity. With a substantial cash position, Galapagos has redirected its focus toward clinical-stage assets through business development, reflecting rising selectivity in capital allocation across the industry.

Taken together, these developments suggest cost control is increasingly structural, geographic diversification is becoming a risk-management tool, and portfolio focus is tilting toward scalability and execution certainty. Operational simplicity—once a back-office concern—is now emerging as a competitive advantage.

As pricing pressure, regulatory uncertainty, and capital constraints persist, companies are making deliberate choices about cost structures, manufacturing strategies, and portfolio focus. While outcomes will vary by organization, the direction of travel is clear: flexibility, discipline, and execution capacity are becoming defining differentiators.

Further Reading

PharmaTell Studio — Pfizer restructuring and global cost-savings update

PharmaTell Studio — Novartis Investor Day

PharmaTell Studio — Galapagos exits cell therapy and pivots strategy

Reuters — Pfizer job cuts in Switzerland

Fierce Pharma — Pfizer cost-cutting reaches Switzerland

Reuters — Novartis plans to cut up to 550 jobs at Swiss facility

Fierce Pharma — Novartis plan to cut 550 jobs in Stein

Fierce Biotech — Galapagos winds down cell therapy unit

Next-up in Part 2 of our on how the pharma landscape is being reshaped - from the inside out, we have Eyes On how policy and regulation are redefining pricing, access, and market stability.