This was originally written for publication in Pharmafield Magazine (May 2010).
This has been a really interesting read, a book in which I have annotated almost every page with notes and ideas, it has motivated me to look at our business differently. Yet WWGD? is not about Pharma, most is not even about Google, its about how our world and business is changing (pharma has and still is changing from the old blockbuster model towards delivering healthy outcomes supported by the entry of non traditional players such as insurers, IT, electronic firms and social media).
This has been a really interesting read, a book in which I have annotated almost every page with notes and ideas, it has motivated me to look at our business differently. Yet WWGD? is not about Pharma, most is not even about Google, its about how our world and business is changing (pharma has and still is changing from the old blockbuster model towards delivering healthy outcomes supported by the entry of non traditional players such as insurers, IT, electronic firms and social media).
The book encourages thinking and problem solving by looking at the world differently - the way Google would do it. It encourages you to look at and understand some of the fundamental changes in the “Google age”, to ask questions, to grasp new opportunities, to rethink and reinvent. Is there a better way of doing something, and even is there someone who could do it better? It shares how Google works and approaches its business in the connected world we live in. It of course covers some of the new technologies and innovations, but much more importantly it focuses on how Google thinks and approaches business when looking for solutions.
WWGD? has two main sections. The first looks at the connected world of communication and how Google operates within this area and how it has become one of the most successful (and influential) companies in the World – The Google Rules.
The second part examines many different industries (e.g. “St Google’s Hospital”), and provides a view of what these industries could look like if they approached their business the Google way – If Google Ruled the World
The key to get the most out of the book is to have pharma in the back of your mind when reading, it really helps to consider the examples with an eye on pharma, to see what could we do differently if we thought like Google, either as individuals or organisations.
The book does not specifically cover the pharmaceutical industry, but there are plenty of examples existing with many companies beginning to utilise social media such as Twitter, Facebook & YouTube (e.g. Boehringer Ingelheim & Johnson & Johnson). There are also some interesting collaborative projects such as a pilot programme in Tanzania “SMS for Life” (Novartis, IBM & Vodafone), which utilised text to improve stock management and access of anti-malarial drugs. So Pharma is joining in! My advice to you, whatever you do in pharma, is to go and get Googley!
This book review was published in the May 2010 edition of Pharmafield Magazine
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