The PharmaBrands Podcast

In this episode of the PharmaBrands podcast, current host Jonathan Gwillim is  joined by former host Neil Follett. From surfing adventures to turning down a highly paid dream job, Jon and Neil cover it all. Neil offers his honest and open views on how to build better relationships with clients, why the AOR model often fails, and in his view, how it can always work. And of course, it wouldn't be a Pharma Brands podcast without discussing AI and the two also touch upon how PharmaBrands began over a coffee in Toronto just a few years ago. This episode of The PharmaBrands Podcast is hosted by Jonathan Gwillim and Produced by Chess Originals. 

If you've ever wondered how to make compliance colleagues a true partner, then this is the episode for you. In this conversation, Chrisola Nikidas, Head of Ethics and Compliance Policy Shaping at Takeda, explores her fascinating career journey from Quebec politics to global pharma compliance. Chris shares why so much of what she does is about the people, why trust, collaboration and relationships are essential to effective leadership, and how the compliance function is evolving from enforcing rules to enabling innovation; that's right, compliance enabling innovation, you heard it here first. We also explore the opportunities and challenges of AI, and with that the importance of flexible governance in this fast-changing topic. And last but not least, Chris shares practical career advice and insights on the great work that she and others are doing to grow the Canadian life science and ethics compliance community. This episode of The PharmaBrands Podcast is hosted by Jonathan Gwillim and Produced by Chess Originals. 

On this episode of The PharmaBrands podcast host Jonathan Gwllim is joined by Claudiu Fasie, Product Manager – Established Brands - Rare Diseases at Sanofi. From career progression to AI, toothpaste to his innovative work in rare diseases, and a revolution in Romania, to a coup in Venezuela, there isn't much Jon and Claudiu don't cover in this comprehensive and engaging conversation.This episode of The PharmaBrands Podcast is hosted by Jonathan Gwillim and Produced by Chess Originals. 

In this week’s episode, Jonathan Gwillim was joined by, Lisa Petermann, Chief Patient Experience Officer at Roche Canada.In this open and inspiring discussion, Lisa shares how patient engagement can move beyond a dedicated function and become part of how an entire organisation thinks and works.From her own journey into healthcare and the role of lived experience, to influencing teams to build meaningful patient partnerships, Lisa shares what it takes to embed the patient voice across pharma.Lisa also discusses the importance of courageous leadership, the growing role of AI in healthcare, and why the next step for industry is not simply listening to patients, but involving them as genuine partners in shaping what comes next.This episode of The PharmaBrands Podcast is hosted by Jonathan Gwillim and Produced by Chess Originals. 

In the Season 5 debut of the PharmaBrands Podcast, co-founder of PharmaBrands, Jonathan Gwillim grabs the hosting reigns for a captivating conversation with Tara Austraat-Churik.Tara's background is as unique as it is fascinating: from studying critical thinking and philosophy, to the Department of Justice, the FBI as an intelligence analyst, and later IBM Watson Health, Tara reflects on the wealth of experiences that brought her to Pharma as well as offering an optimistic look forward to the future of AI in Pharma. To keep up to date on upcoming PharmaBrands events including our free meet up on September 16th in Philadelphia, and our sales excellence event in Toronto, visit: pharmabrands.caThe PharmaBrands podcast is hosted by Jonathan Gwillim and Produced by Chess Originals.

We’ve had a number of entrepreneurs on the show over the years, but few have taken the kind of leap that Rola did when she stepped far outside her comfort zone and started a children’s clothing company. Back in Pharma and in leadership at Merck, Rola reflects on the lessons learned from both radical and lateral moves through her career. She shares her perspective on the power of curiosity, the impact of truly listening to the customer and the role of humility in her success.The PharmaBrands podcast is hosted by Neil Follett and Produced by Chess Originals.

It is striking that an industry with such impactful stories to tell so rarely tells those stories impactfully. In this episode award-winning filmmaker Calvin Hudson Hwang shares how he marries two career paths (seasoned pharma executive and acclaimed filmmaker) to create impactful long-form content focused on health, health access, and health equity. In our conversation we dive into Clavin's business SUPRE Films, the impact his movies are having, and the specific focus his business has on bringing health stories to a wider audience. The PharmaBrands podcast is hosted by Neil Follett and Produced by Chess Originals.

Our guest for this episode, Jenny Plant, has spent a large part of her career demystifying the role of the agency Account Manager, so it should come as no surprise that she articulately covers so many topics in one conversation. From ‘selling’ (not a word Jenny uses, by the way!), to partnering with Procurement, to the value of differentiated Account and Project roles, to the place for Account Leads in the age of AI Jenny shares her insight on the many dimensions of Account and Agency life.

With the ‘Age of AI’ being a cornerstone event for PharmaBrands, it makes sense that we’ve had lots of AI-focused conversations on the podcast. This episode picks that topic but with a twist. Our guest Sara Rodrigues shares her personal AI adoption journey, taking us from feeling left behind to becoming an AI Champion within Vertex. Placing that journey in the context of working in a large and dynamic pharma company will resonate as many of us struggle to adapt to the technology changes that surround us every day. Sara’s story is timely, helpful and relevant.The PharmaBrands podcast is hosted by Neil Follett and Produced by Chess Originals.For more information on our next Age of AI event please visit: www.pharmabrands.ca

Health tech — from wearables, to platforms to med devices — continue to transform condition management and care delivery. In this episode Jamie Harsevoort, CEO of LaunchIt Solutions, traces the arc of his entrepreneurial journey, highlights the incredible impact of a principled approach to partnership, and shares his criteria for success in market. This conversation comes at a time of great scale for LaunchIt, with a Shoppers Drug Mart partnership and an expansion to Brazil well under way.The PharmaBrands podcast is hosted by Neil Follett and Produced by Chess Originals.For more information on our next Age of AI event please visit: www.pharmabrands.ca