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11-10-25 | BY FAST COMPANY CUSTOM STUDIO
During the pandemic, the U.S. health system faced critical shortages of essential medicines. Many patients failed to get the care they needed, leading to worse health outcomes or even death. That stark reality underscored the need for a more reliable, transparent, and resilient system designed to withstand disruptions.
It’s exactly that challenge that Phlow, a pharmaceutical company based in Richmond, Virginia, aims to tackle. The five-year-old company manufactures medicines, but its bigger goal is to build resiliency into every step of pharmaceutical production, from early-stage process development to commercial-scale manufacturing and strategic reserve storage. “Resiliency is core to our mission because lives depend on it,” says Juan Piacquadio, Phlow’s chief information officer. “Patients, hospitals, and health systems must be confident that essential medicines will be available when they are needed.”
— Juan Piacquadio chief information officer, Phlow
“Resiliency ensures that we can adapt quickly and continue meeting patient needs despite external pressures.”
The problems with the pharmaceutical ecosystem didn’t arrive suddenly with the pandemic. Over decades, the supply chain became increasingly global and complex, with critical components often sourced from multiple overseas locations. That left the system vulnerable to unexpected supply chain failures, leading to uncertainty among patients and providers about the availability of essential medicines.
It didn’t take long after Phlow’s founding in 2020 for its leaders to realize that data fragmentation was exacerbating the problem. When the company partnered with SAP, the goal was to establish an integrated digital foundation that positioned the company to innovate and expand in a volatile global market. “With SAP’s unified platform, we gain real-time analytics, scalable infrastructure, and the flexibility to adapt to disruption, which enables us to strengthen domestic manufacturing and turn uncertainty into a competitive advantage,” Piacquadio says.
Just as importantly, Phlow wanted to make its data more easily traceable—and accessible in real time. Transparency is crucial for the company not only because it allows for quick decision-making but also because it builds trust with regulators and stakeholders. “By embedding real-time, end-to-end visibilities through SAP, we ensure that data integrity, regulatory compliance, and patient safety are taken care of while reinforcing the reliability of our entire supply chain,” Piacquadio says.
BRINGING CLARITY TO A FRAGMENTED SYSTEM
AN AI-READY INFRASTRUCTURE
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Jan Gilg’s resiliency playbook
SAP’s co-chief revenue officer, Americas, and member of SAP’s extended board, offers insights on building resiliency in the face of uncertainty
01.
Make resiliency a board-level priority.
“True transformation can’t happen without a top-down mandate.”
02.
Harness technology for clear objectives.
“Just adopting new technology doesn’t necessarily lead to superior business outcomes. Anchor digital initiatives to specific goals and clearly lay those out to people across your organization.”
03.
Invest in a platform that integrates data without adding complexity.
“A lot of software-as-a-service solutions in the last 20 years provided flexibility but also added a lot of complexity, which can suffocate companies.”
The partnership with SAP also positioned Phlow for AI-driven innovation now and in the future. Already, AI tools are helping the company predict supply chain risks and automate quality control to prevent errors in manufacturing and accelerate time to market. “Looking ahead, AI will further strengthen resiliency through advanced scenario planning, accelerated drug development via data-driven insights, and robust cybersecurity, keeping Phlow agile and competitive in a dynamic global market,” Piacquadio says.
This kind of resiliency, of course, is a much-sought-after quality for companies across all sectors, not just in the pharmaceutical industry. In this way, Phlow’s digital transformation serves as an example of how companies can use technology to provide a solid base that allows them to thrive in an uncertain environment.
“Whether it’s economic shifts, geopolitical challenges, or rapid changes in technology, uncertainty is the new normal,” Piacquadio says. “Resiliency ensures that we can adapt quickly and continue meeting patient needs despite external pressures.”
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Brenda Strafford building
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04.
Solve for the biggest pain point first.
“For some companies, the tariff situation is creating a huge risk that needs to be addressed before other challenges.”
05.
Use AI strategically.
“If you use AI to optimize across operations rather than to address a single small problem, it will provide much more attractive outcomes.”
Phlow’s leaders recognized that systemwide resiliency started with its own systems. They needed to design and implement a digital infrastructure that would integrate data from many different sources, allowing them to recognize and react to critical shifts in the industry and the economy more broadly. Moreover, the solution had to be scalable and compliant with strict industry regulations. To that end, Phlow partnered with SAP to establish a unified, cloud-based digital platform that enables efficient and flexible manufacturing and logistics, while also bringing the transparency needed for regulatory compliance.
“This foundation not only ensures operational resiliency and scalability but also strengthens the U.S. pharmaceutical ecosystem by safeguarding the reliable supply of lifesaving drugs in an unpredictable global environment,” Piacquadio says.
“A lot of software-as-a-service solutions in the last 20 years provided flexibility but also added a lot of complexity, which can suffocate companies.”
Invest in a platform that integrates data without adding complexity.
03.
“A lot of software-as-a-service solutions in the last 20 years provided flexibility but also added a lot of complexity, which can suffocate companies.”
Invest in a platform that integrates data without adding complexity.
03.
The partnership with SAP also positioned Phlow for AI-driven innovation now and in the future. Already, AI tools are helping the company predict supply chain risks and automate quality control to prevent errors in manufacturing and accelerate time to market. “Looking ahead, AI will further strengthen resiliency through advanced scenario planning, accelerated drug development via data-driven insights, and robust cybersecurity, keeping Phlow agile and competitive in a dynamic global market,” Piacquadio says.
This kind of resiliency, of course, is a much-sought-after quality for companies across all sectors, not just in the pharmaceutical industry. In this way, Phlow’s digital transformation serves as an example of how companies can use technology to provide a solid base that allows them to thrive in an uncertain environment.
“Whether it’s economic shifts, geopolitical challenges, or rapid changes in technology, uncertainty is the new normal,” Piacquadio says. “Resiliency ensures that we can adapt quickly and continue meeting patient needs despite external pressures.”