Enhancing pharmaceutical innovation through the use of knowledge management

Pharmaceuticailn novation is a complex task that is reliant upon the availability of relevant information and knowledge. To date, the aspects of how, when and where this information and knowledge is applied throughout the drug development processes, has been lightly researched. Furthermore, the science of Knowledge Management can potentially aid the drug development processes and allow an organisation to reduce the time and costs associated with innovative drug development. This thesis examines these issues in greater depth through a series of case studies conducted within the innovative pharmaceutical organisation AstraZeneca. The end result of this research is a Knowledge Management tool set which is capable of driving pharmaceutical innovation. The thesis firstly explores the literature associated with innovation, pharmaceutical innovation, Knowledge Management and Intellectual Capital. The second aspect of the research used the literature review to develop a novel research framework with which to examine pharmaceutical innovation in greater detail. The third stage of the research utilised the results of the previous stages to develop a novel Innovation and Knowledge Management focused model. The fourth stage of this research utilised the research findings to develop a Knowledge Management tool set that can be used to drive innovation. This tool set is comprised of three distinct levels of functionality, namely: the social and collaborative level, the information assimilation and dissemination level and a level that encourages the capture of knowledge. The final stage of the research concludes with a discussion on evaluating Knowledge Management and its use in driving pharmaceutical innovation.