The paradox for service-based businesses is clear: when revenue is tied directly to the effort put into delivering services, efforts to optimize and automate can feel like they’re competing with the very foundation of the business model.
This challenge is especially true for CROs, HUB providers, healthcare marketing agencies, and other life science service businesses. Yet, in an industry where scalability, speed, and margin optimization are crucial to staying competitive, finding ways to balance these priorities has never been more critical.
Ironically, the IT outsourcing industry—which has thrived by helping companies automate and scale—has largely failed to apply these principles to its own operations. Let’s take a closer look at why this is the case and explore the alternative options available.
The IT Outsourcing Trap
For more than two decades, IT outsourcing has been the go-to solution for life sciences companies seeking custom digital tools—whether for clinical, commercial, or internal operational needs. While some companies have in-house IT development teams, these teams are often stretched thin, making it logical to turn to outsourcing for support.
However, outsourcing comes with its own set of challenges:
High costs
Lengthy timelines
Missed expectations, leading to costly rework
These issues compound into larger problems: deliverables that don’t meet the original requirements, repeated rework and refactoring that add expense without adding value, and, most critically, a knowledge source dependency that’s nearly impossible to escape.
In an industry where precision, speed, and compliance are non-negotiable, using generic IT developers with no life science industry experience or an engineering mindset just doesn’t cut it anymore. The stakes are simply too high. Lives depend on these solutions, and a failure to meet regulatory standards can result in severe penalties. For these reasons, life sciences companies must prioritize vendors with deep industry domain expertise.
The Custom Code Problem
Here’s a little-known truth:
IT developers—whether in-house or outsourced—love to write code. Picture the classic scene: a developer, coffee or caffeinated drink in hand, immersed in their screens, pounding out line after line of code. Writers write, painters paint, developers code. But this enthusiasm often leads to resistance toward automation or reusing existing solutions.
The result?
Teams default to building custom software from scratch.
The focus shifts to code and technology rather than the actual ask, leading to rework and even more code.
This fuels a growing need for additional developers, perpetuating a costly cycle of inefficiency.
For life sciences companies, where patients depend on the outcomes of every process, the pressure to deliver faster, better, and more effective digital solutions makes this model not only unsustainable but a liability.
Emergence of an Alternative: Automation Bespoke Software Solutions
The good news is that a new approach is emerging in life sciences—one that offers custom digital solutions without the need for traditional custom software development.
While this concept is new to life sciences, it’s inspired by successes in other industries, such as eCommerce with Shopify or sales automation with Salesforce. These industries have pioneered platforms that eliminate the need for custom-built solutions, offering streamlined, scalable alternatives.
Take Shopify, for example: it completely eliminated the need for developers to create custom eCommerce websites. Whether you’re selling clothing or digital products, you no longer need a developer to build your online store—you simply use the platform.
Now, the same principle is being applied to life sciences. Industry-specific platforms are emerging that enable compliant, tailored solutions without the inefficiencies and headaches of traditional IT development.
This approach not only avoids the pitfalls of custom software development and outsourcing but also introduces a level of predictability. Companies can count on getting exactly what they need, delivered quickly, on time, and within budget—all while meeting rigorous compliance requirements.
The Versatility Spans Life Science Needs
This approach shouldn’t be confused with configurable cloud solutions, which are typically limited in scope—designed for a single life science purpose and offering only minimal customization.
Leading providers of no-code platforms for life sciences, however, are far more versatile. These platforms can address a wide range of needs across clinical, commercial, and business operations, making them a powerful tool for the industry.
From custom portals and workflow automation to process automation, omnichannel communication journeys, registration sites, and seamless system integrations, these platforms deliver robust functionality without the need for extensive technical expertise.
What’s more, they support diverse end-user types, including patients, HCPs, investigators, sponsors, and more. Despite their impressive level of customization, these solutions don’t require technical teams to build, deploy, or maintain bespoke capabilities.
Intuitive point-and-click interfaces provide the ability to incrementally preview changes, ensuring the solution matches their needs. If adjustments are necessary, they can be made in minutes, ready for final review or MLR submission.
Even the MLR review process is streamlined by some platforms, with automation tools that simplify generation, submission, and expedited implementation of requested changes.
Conclusion: A Bright Future with Significant Benefits
Embracing change is never easy, especially in life sciences. But when weighing the benefits, the cost of staying the same far outweighs the pain of change.
Adopting a no-code, automated approach to building custom digital solutions offers transformative advantages:
Lightning-fast delivery of custom digital solutions
True agility with constant visibility into what’s being created
Predictability in deliverables, costs, and timelines
Built-in compliance without additional expenses
Evolving functionality without escalating costs
Greater reuse, resulting in enhanced reliability and fewer bugs
Budget-friendly solutions, even within tighter constraints
Reduced burdens on teams, enabling them to focus on advancing drug development and patient care
And what about the risks? This approach has already proven itself in other industries but continues to face challenges in penetrating life sciences—much like innovations such as EDC, RBM, and DCT have experienced.
The ultimate impact on drug development and patient support is undeniable. Automated bespoke solutions aren’t just a better way—they’re the future.
Traditional IT outsourcing is no longer the answer. The future belongs to automated bespoke solutions that enable life sciences companies.
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