Michael Burkhard and Amr Eltablawi, Hexagon Asset Lifecycle Intelligence, delve into the top trends shaping pharmaceutical and life sciences operations in 2025.
raker Shutterstock
For industrial organisations, 2025 will be a challenging year to predict and navigate—and the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry is no exception.
Beyond international tensions and new compliance requirements, the sector is grappling with profound shifts in the market. Companies must produce increasingly complex and personalised therapies, integrate advanced technologies like AI into manufacturing and logistics, and adapt to a workforce in flux.
Trend #1: International tensions will shape supply chains and operational risk
Geopolitical risk could be the defining force of 2025. The COVID-19 pandemic revived Cold War-style dynamics, with blocks vying to develop their own vaccines while fretting over global supply chain vulnerabilities.
In 2025 just like in 2024, international tensions between economic blocs seem bound to persist and flare up frequently, prompting governments to prioritise secure, resilient supply chains through regulations such as the U.S. Drug Supply Security Act or the EU’s 2024/1860 regulation. To adapt to this context, agility will be the watchword. Navigating trade barriers, tariffs, and legislation like the U.S. BIOSECURE Act, which bans suppliers linked to “foreign adversaries” (Read: China), will require constant recalibration.
Unlike other industries, pharmaceuticals are unlikely to de-globalise or shift heavily toward regional production. Instead, companies are embracing incremental growth strategies, such as mergers, acquisitions, and asset swaps. With global CAPEX growth stabilising (Europe CAGR 5.4%, U.S. 15.4%), the focus is shifting from building new facilities to optimising and expanding existing ones.
Collaboration is another cornerstone of resilience. Cross-industry partnerships allow for shared resources and efficiencies, but they also present compliance challenges when extending across broader ecosystems. Centralised supply chain towers, which provide visibility and control, are becoming indispensable for managing these complexities and mitigating risks.
Trend #2: Multi-company cyberattacks will make the headlines
Greater interconnectivity may boost efficiency, but it also heightens exposure to cyberattacks. In 2025, cybersecurity will remain a top concern for the pharmaceutical sector. The adoption of digital tools like remote monitoring and big data analytics has increased vulnerabilities, particularly when combined with outdated systems. Moreover, the interconnected nature of supply chains means the ripple effects of a breach can be felt across the value chain.
The 2024 cyberattack on Cencora, which disrupted operations at 11 major companies, underscored this risk. In response, regulators are tightening compliance standards. The EU’s NIS2 directive, effective since late 2024, subjects healthcare and pharmaceutical manufacturers to strict cybersecurity mandates.
Still, gaps persist. In the EU, for instance, 10% of companies in the sector lack a vulnerability management plan, and nearly a quarter focus only on IT assets, neglecting operational technology (OT). Bridging these gaps will require an industry-wide shift to strengthen OT cybersecurity and improve inventory and vulnerability management.
Trend #3: Technology adoption will be geared toward efficiency rather than growth
In 2025, manufacturers will also vie to seize the opportunities offered by new modalities. As demand for RNA/DNA-based drugs, cell and gene therapies, and antibody-drug conjugates grows, manufacturers are grappling with new challenges: smaller batch sizes, more complex processes, and rising costs.
But this shift could coincide with mounting financial pressures. High interest rates, fluctuating government funding and fiscal tightening in Europe are leading companies to prioritise efficiency over expansion.
One area ripe for improvement is information management. Documentation activities consume up to 30% of staff time, a situation due in part to the large volume of manual entries, while manufacturers struggle to digitise and integrate key data sources like maintenance records and IoT inputs.
Manufacturers like Bayer are increasingly adopting digital twins to serve as the cornerstone of their information management and “single source of truth” with several benefits: streamlining decision-making, improving data management and eliminating data silos between operations, to name a few. In 2025, we expect a growing number of organisations to also use these twins to measure their emissions and track their progress toward their net zero targets.
Industry players are also placing great hopes in AI and machine learning to realise value from their previous investments in cloud and digital transformation. Machine learning holds promise for a wide range of applications, from inventory optimisation to quality management. Predictive maintenance, in particular, is gaining traction as a tool for ensuring preemptive control over manufacturing systems. Programs like the U.S. FDA’s Quality Management Maturity initiative reflect the industry’s push for process improvements and a broader cultural shift toward quality-first operations.
Trend #4: The ageing of the workforce will pose growing challenges
While an ageing global population may drive demand for pharmaceuticals, it also mirrors an internal problem: the sector’s workforce is aging too. In the U.S., over one-third of pharmaceutical manufacturing employees are over 50, and the share of workers over 60 has tripled in eight years. Attrition compounds the issue, with 40% of workers globally considering leaving their roles since 2021.
Digital expertise is another pain point. The industry faces a 14% gap between job openings and qualified candidates. To address these challenges, companies are ramping up investments in upskilling programs, flexible work models and knowledge transfer initiatives. Many are also turning to digital tools, such as natural-language interfaces and procedure management platforms, to capture institutional knowledge and flatten learning curves for new hires. These tools are critical to ensuring that expertise isn’t lost as veteran employees retire.
In a nutshell, the pharmaceutical industry heads into 2025 with the need to rejuvenate its operating model, manufacturing processes and workforce. If only there were a pill for that.