Diverse and inclusive leadership driving innovation in pharma

“By having leaders who ask the right questions and include different perspectives in the conversation, we are better positioned to design studies and solutions that consider how disease symptoms, treatment responses, and access to care vary across different patient groups.” – Peggy Wu, Vice-President, AbbVie in Asia

In recent years, the biopharmaceutical industry has witnessed a wave of innovation unlike any before. We are making real progress in tackling some of the world’s most complex, hard-to-treat diseases, from aggressive cancers to chronic autoimmune conditions and rare genetic disorders. These scientific breakthroughs are driven by advancements in technology and data, as well as by something less talked about but equally powerful: the diversity of the people behind the work, the leaders, scientists, researchers, and teams who bring different perspectives, experiences, and ideas to the table.

At AbbVie, we are proud to have regional leadership teams composed of individuals from a wide range of backgrounds – in gender, nationality, expertise, and life experience. This is not accidental. It is a deliberate investment in building leadership that mirrors the diversity of the world we operate in. And in this way, innovation becomes more inclusive, relevant, and effective.

Why diversity matters in R&D

Developing treatments for hard-to-treat diseases requires an in-depth understanding of biology and the lived experiences of patients across different geographies, ethnicities, and healthcare systems. That is why it is important to actively build diverse teams at every level, especially in leadership, where decisions about research direction, clinical trial design, and patient engagement are made.

Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia (CLL) further highlights the importance of diversity in medical research. Its incidence is markedly higher in Caucasian populations compared to Asia, reflecting how geographic and ethic factors can shape disease patterns and burden. Immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) often vary in prevalence and severity across different racial and ethnic groups. For example, hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) presents differently in South-East and East Asian populations with distinct clinical characteristics influenced by environmental, physiological, and likely genetic factors compared to those in Western populations.

By having leaders who ask the right questions and include different perspectives in the conversation, we are better positioned to design studies and solutions that consider how disease symptoms, treatment responses, and access to care vary across different patient groups.

Diverse perspectives fostering innovation

In Asia, our healthcare challenges are broad and diverse – including rising chronic disease burdens and a rising demand for quality healthcare. Team members and leaders with diverse local perspectives, who understand cultural nuances, language barriers, and gaps in access, can help inform more inclusive strategies and support the adoption of solutions that are scalable and sustainable in our context.

As the region continues to evolve, ensuring that diverse voices are not just heard but actively shaping policy, research, and innovation will be key to closing health equity gaps.

The Why: Patients at the centre

We always start with the patient. Our leadership teams include individuals with wide-ranging professional and cultural backgrounds, enabling us to ask better questions and better understand unmet needs in every community.

In Asia, for example, patient journeys are shaped by various factors, including cultural beliefs and perceptions, medical practices and guidelines, resources and solution availability, access challenges, and other diverse health systems and infrastructure. By bringing in employees who understand these local realities, like the pressing unmet needs, gaps, and opportunities, we are better equipped to focus our efforts where the burden of disease is highest. This approach leads to decisions that prioritise the study and development of transformative therapies, not just at a global level but in ways that are meaningful for local populations.

Embedding the patient experience is central to this. We strive to better understand the experience of people living with a disease or condition throughout our clinical development process, thereby meeting their specialised health needs. Through patient-focused drug development, we empower patient voices to be heard and help guide our decision-making process to advance cutting-edge science. We partner with patients, patient organisations, caregivers and clinicians to ensure individual experiences, perspectives, needs, and priorities are part of the clinical development process.

It also influences how we build patient and caregiver support programmes. Team members with firsthand understanding of community and caregiver dynamics across Asia are helping us raise the bar in how we provide support beyond treatment, from education to emotional care.

The What: Driving a purposeful pipeline

AbbVie’s ambition is to transform the standard of care, and we believe inclusion is lived. Our teams bring a range of scientific, clinical, and operational expertise, enabling us to think differently about our R&D priorities and how we design our clinical programmes.

Diverse perspectives lead to more thoughtful trial designs, ensuring broader representation of patient populations and helping us better understand how our therapies perform across ethnicities, genetic profiles, and stages of disease. Our partnerships with research institutions and local medical communities across Asia are also stronger because we have teams who understand both science and the setting.

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With a portfolio mindset, our teams are focused on both individual breakthroughs as well as the long-term impact of our pipeline. This means we are not only working to bring life-changing therapies to market but to do so in a way that considers equity, access, and relevance across the full spectrum of patient populations.

The Who: One team, global reach

Perhaps the most important driver of innovation at AbbVie is our people and the way we work.

Whether it is an immunology expert in South Korea, a clinical strategist in Singapore, or a market lead in Taiwan, each plays a role in shaping a shared vision. This diversity fuels the creativity and executional excellence needed to deliver real change in how diseases are treated.

We also place strong emphasis on collaboration with the broader scientific community, and that is where having inclusive, respected leaders opens doors. It enables us to build meaningful partnerships and co-create with researchers, clinicians, and regulators who trust that we understand their context. By pushing boundaries, we drive breakthroughs and fuel a dynamic and diverse pipeline that continues to raise the standard of care and deliver new solutions for patients.

The future of healthcare is human

As we look ahead, the future of healthcare innovation will depend on our ability to foster diverse and inclusive teams and workplaces and stay connected to the people we serve. That means listening to patients, partnering with communities, and ensuring our teams are as diverse as our world.

At the same time, we remain united by a common purpose – to improve the health and wellbeing of patients – and continue to invest in the discovery and delivery of life-changing medicines across core therapeutic areas, particularly in areas of high disease burden and unmet needs.

About the Author: Peggy Wu is Vice-President, AbbVie in Asia.