Case Biovian
From Excel sheets
to meeting comprehensive needs
The challenge
The challenge facing Biovian was evident: integrating its entire data infrastructure to align with ambitious business objectives and support global growth. Achieving this necessitated not only developing the infrastructure and processes but also recognizing the highly data-sensitive and regulated nature of the pharmaceutical industry, which heavily relies on data traceability.
The solution
A complete transformation journey with project management and leadership was signed, sealed – and well on its way to being delivered. Navigating through business sprints and multiple mutual sparring sessions to understand the essence of the business environment, Sofigate and Biovian outlined a scope and introduced an integrated system in the highly data-sensitive and regulated pharmaceutical environment, where data integrity is crucial.
The outcome
With a transformation route still in the books, Biovian has successfully involved their leadership in understanding the core of the transformation journey. Together with Sofigate, the company has cultivated a business environment that streamlines processes and accelerates operations. In doing so, it empowers leadership to efficiently address bottlenecks, engage in leadership sparring, and guide processes towards their highest productivity.
Due to data management systems meeting regulatory requirements, customer satisfaction rises, consequently impacting Biovian’s overall existence, growth, and profitability. This overarching achievement strengthens Biovian’s position as a globally operating Bio-CDMO.
Growth company with expanding needs
Biovian was founded in 2003, offering services to biotech companies that develop innovative gene therapies or biopharmaceuticals. With a steadily growing customer base and expanding business resources, the demand for structured data grew. According to Biovian’s COO, Pirkko Kortteinen, this transition was inevitable.
“We have a gone a long way, taking a leap from managing everything in Excel to overseeing our entire data infrastructure with integrated data architecture. The transformation has been vital for us,” remarks Kortteinen.
Indeed, Biovian relied on manual reporting practices, Excel for warehouse and project management, and administration tasks. This reliance posed a clear challenge: achieving comprehensive data management while integrating multiple systems, all while meeting the stringent requirements of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) regulations for data integrity.
The objective of the project was to achieve comprehensiveness while adhering to a demanding schedule. It became imperative to ensure seamless operation, with all systems required to function flawlessly in the background.
Leadership engagement brings vision to reality
After determining that a transformation was necessary, the starting point became clear. For Biovian and Sofigate, this involved organising a series of business sprints to define the scope, requirements, and goals of the upcoming journey.
“From the outset, we aimed to be actively involved, ensuring the success of every step of the journey,” says Antti Nieminen, the CEO of Biovian. The significant advantage of having leadership deeply engaged in the change process is achieving a smoother transformation. This requires Biovian to invest significant effort in understanding information gaps, challenges, and collaborating closely with the team to navigate the business landscape.
“Through collaborative efforts with Sofigate, we understood the importance of engagement – transparent discussions and feedback were essential. Management commitment translates into supporting decisions and empowering project teams,” adds Nieminen.
In addition to providing Biovian with the necessary resources for the transformation journey, including budgeting, management guidance, and overall support, Sofigate developed internal communication guidelines to aid the transition and ensure all staff remained informed and engaged.
“We received substantial support from Sofigate during the transition process, along with valuable advice on keeping our staff informed and engaged. Surveys were conducted, and feedback was promptly addressed to ensure a seamless transition,” notes Kortteinen.
Commitment that keeps on giving
The collaboration since three years is not finished but well on its way to calmer waters through more efficient workflows. Currently, efforts are underway to implement a comprehensive laboratory information management system. This system not only consolidates the organisation’s data repository into a logically organised entity but also serves as the laboratory’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. Its application enables the management of the entire work process lifecycle, from sample logging to reporting and invoicing.
A winning aspect for Biovian has been transparency throughout, with open discussions and feedback mechanisms in place to address any identified issues promptly. This highlights the crucial link between management dedication and team empowerment, fostering trust and assurance within the team.
“Management commitment reflects upon project teams by offering support for decisions, granting freedom to act and share ideas, as well as the freedom to seek solutions that best support the targets,” reflects Kortteinen.
When management’s dedication is evident, it inspires personnel at all levels to align their efforts with the project’s objectives. What is even more apparent in successful transformation stories, such as Biovian’s, is that committed teams are also granted more time to focus on what is important for a growing company – expanding the business.
“The overall guidance, coupled with project management and continuous communication, are aspects in which Sofigate excels, and we couldn’t have managed without their expertise. All parties demonstrated a strong desire to understand not only the logic of the business, but also to establish new ways of working in the highly regulated environment. Simply put, the commitment to doing things well was what convinced us.”
Antti Nieminen
CEO, Biovian
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