Pharma Launch Excellence Summit Conference Day 2: Thursday October 1
Pharma Launch Excellence Summit Main Conference Day 2: Thursday October 1
7:30 am - 8:15 am
Registration & Breakfast
8:15 am - 8:30 am
Chair's Opening Remarks - Day 2 - Driving Execution, Adoption & Performance
Sabrina McGuigan -
Director, Franchise Operations, Global Rare Diseases,
Sanofi
Driving Execution, Adoption & Performance
8:30 am - 9:00 am
Opening Panel Discussion: Launching in Oncology - Differentiation, Evidence and Engagement in the Most Saturated Market
Geula Jaffe -
Chief Commercial Officer & US Country Head,
Orion Pharma
Dicla Veliz Salce - Global Brand Lead for Women's Cancers, AstraZeneca
Michelle Estonilo - Senior Biopharma Account Manager, Lundbeck
9:00 am - 9:30 am
Morning Presentation / Case Study: From Search to Start: How AI-Informed Patients Are Reshaping Launch
Julie Cosgrove -
Head of Strategy & Operations US Market Access,
Sanofi
Patients are no longer only arriving at treatment conversations informed by websites, adverts or advocacy groups. Increasingly, they are using AI search, symptom tools, social content and digital health platforms to understand conditions, compare treatments and shape the questions they bring to HCPs. For launch teams, this changes the dynamics of demand generation, education, access and adherence, especially in high-cost, specialty and consumer-visible categories.
Drawing on Julie's experience across US Market Access, specialty pharma, sales, marketing, advocacy and enterprise strategy, this session will explore how AI-influenced patient behavior is reshaping launch planning, and why access, medical, commercial and patient engagement teams need to respond together.
• Understanding how AI is changing patient awareness, expectations and decision-making
• Connecting patient demand, HCP engagement and access strategy earlier
• Managing affordability and reimbursement friction as patient interest grows
• Building launch plans that account for consumer empowerment and misinformation risk
9:30 am - 10:00 am
Morning Presentation / Case Study: The Myth of Rational Adoption: Decoding the Human Algorithm Behind Oncology Launch Success
Dicla Veliz Salce -
Global Brand Lead for Women's Cancers,
AstraZeneca
In oncology launches, the assumption that strong clinical data will naturally drive uptake remains one of the most persistent myths. While evidence is essential, adoption is often shaped by beliefs, risk perception, cognitive shortcuts, social norms, and the realities of clinical practice rather than rational evaluation alone.
In this session, Dicla Veliz introduces the concept of the Human Algorithm, a practical framework for understanding how oncologists, patients, and internal teams process evidence and make decisions in real world settings. Using a breast cancer case study, she demonstrates what changed when a prominent launch shifted from prioritizing more data to focusing on how evidence supports decision making, reduces uncertainty, and fits into existing clinical workflows.
The session explores how communication becomes a strategic launch lever when it is designed to guide decision pathways, build confidence, and align stakeholders rather than simply raise awareness.
In this session, attendees will learn how to:
• Translate complex clinical data into communication that supports real prescribing decisions
• Apply behavioral insight to identify and address barriers to adoption across the oncology ecosystem
• Align cross functional teams around a shared launch story and decision framework
• Design launch strategies that enable uptake, access, and meaningful patient impact
10:00 am - 10:30 am
Morning Networking Break
10:30 am - 11:00 am
Building the Launch Culture Behind a Blockbuster: Lessons from GLP-1 Market Creation
Lynn Sullivan -
Chief Business Officer,
Rose Pharma
Aneil Batra - Former VP, Obesity & IM Commercial Strategy & Innovation, Pfizer
11:00 am - 11:30 am
Presentation/Case Study: Starting at the Finish Line”: When FDA Approval Is the Starting Point
Rich Verde -
Director, Launch Excellence, Uro-Oncology,
Ferring Pharmaceuticals
11:30 am - 12:00 pm
Presentation / Case Study: When You're No Longer the Gold Standard: Rebuilding Relevance in a Shifting Market
Sabrina McGuigan -
Director, Franchise Operations, Global Rare Diseases,
Sanofi
Being first, best-known or historically dominant in a category does not guarantee continued leadership. As competitors enter, standards evolve and new evidence reshapes HCP expectations, launch teams must work harder to protect equity, maintain visibility and keep the patient at the center of the story.
Drawing on experience in diabetes & COPD launch strategy, this session will explore how teams can respond when a legacy brand or established standard begins to lose its automatic leadership position, and how to build a new relevance strategy that connects product value, patient need, HCP confidence and field execution.
• Protecting brand equity when the category benchmark begins to shift
• Maintaining HCP visibility as competitor narratives gain momentum
• Reconnecting the product story to patient need and treatment value
• Aligning Medical, Commercial and Field around renewed category relevance
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Lunch
1:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Presentation/Case Study: Building the Market Before Building the Brand: Launching Xenpozyme® as a First-and-Only Rare Disease Therapy
Vinícius Dantas Alves -
Associate Vice President & Global Brand Lead ASMD,
Sanofi
Launching a first-and-only therapy in ultra-rare disease requires more than a strong product profile. Drawing on Vinicius' experience working on Sanofi's global launch of Xenpozyme® (olipudase alfa) for ASMD, Sanofi's best-performing launch since 2015 and the fastest-growing product among analogues, this session will explore how to build ecosystem readiness, own the disease space, and accelerate patient access globally. Attend to delve into:
1:30 pm - 2:00 pm
Roundtable Discussion: Cell & Gene Therapy Launch: When Every Move Matters
Rich Verde -
Director, Launch Excellence, Uro-Oncology,
Ferring Pharmaceuticals
Advanced therapies introduce new challenges across supply, delivery and access, requiring highly coordinated and specialised launch models. In this session, the speaker will delve into:
• Managing manufacturing, logistics and treatment delivery constraints
• Coordinating specialised centres and treatment pathways
• Aligning pricing, access and long-term value
2:00 pm - 2:30 pm
Afternoon Networking Break
2:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Presentation / Case Study - Why Forecasts Miss: Cognitive Bias, Assumptions and Better Launch Decisions
Joseph Sterk -
Expert,
.
- Identifying cognitive biases that distort launch forecasts
- Balancing data, judgement and uncertainty in forecast assumptions
- Pressure-testing scenarios before decisions become locked in
- Building forecasts that adapt as market signals change
3:00 pm - 3:30 pm
Presentation / Case Study: From Data to Story: Why Great Science Doesn't Always Win
Elyse Muñoz -
Associate Director, Market Intelligence,
CSL Behring
3:30 pm - 4:00 pm
Presentation: From Launch Plan to Field Impact: Fixing the Last Mile of Launch by Equipping Customer-Facing Teams to Execute
Michelle Estonilo -
Senior Biopharma Account Manager,
Lundbeck
Even the strongest strategies fail without effective execution at the field level. This session will delve into how a range of pharma companies are redefining launch planning and execution through:
• Aligning strategy with field execution
• Building training and enablement models
• Creating feedback loops from field to leadership
