Failing fast: the importance of objective portfolio management and pivoting quickly to fuel success

29 January 2025

In this Expert View column, Abbas Kazimi, chief business officer of Nimbus Therapeutics, discusses the advantages of a “failing fast” business strategy and the infrastructures and protocols that must be in place to support rapid, objective decision-making and portfolio management.

Drug development is inherently a high-risk endeavor where success depends on the precise alignment of multiple factors – from target selection and trial design to regulatory strategy and sufficient capitalization. If a company faces challenges in any of these areas that cannot be rapidly addressed, development programs often fail. With approximately 90% of drugs never reaching approval 1, biotech companies must master the art of objective portfolio management to thrive in this challenging landscape.

The concept of “failing fast” – while counterintuitive to many – has emerged as a crucial strategy for sustainable success in biotech. This approach encourages companies to test ideas early (the ‘killer experiment’) and often while fostering a culture that learns from failure rather than fears it. The goal is to identify problems quickly and pivot decisively, preserving valuable time and capital for more promising opportunities.

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