Biopharma’s manufacturing agility wanes amid supply chain resilience: survey

The state of biopharma resilience has slid into a decline, according to data from Cytiva’s third Global Biopharma Index. The report found the average industry score fell to 5.96, down from 6.08 in 2023 and 6.60 in 2021, a decline that underscores growing strain across the industry.

The biennial survey, which gathered responses from 1,250 biopharma executives across 22 countries, benchmarks the performance and resilience of global biopharma ecosystems across six pillars — supply chain resilience, talent pool, R&D ecosystem, manufacturing agility, government policy and regulation, and sustainability — using a scale of 0 to 10.

The results show that addressing persistent skill shortages, regulatory fragmentation, and short-term priorities will be key to restoring long-term resilience. However, there are signs of growth. The dip in resilience in 2025 masks pockets of progress in areas such as supply chain resilience, R&D, and digital transformation, even as challenges persist in manufacturing and on the regulatory front.

Manufacturing agility 

Manufacturing agility was one of the second lowest scoring pillars on Cytiva’s Global Biopharma Index. Despite expanding capacity, many companies reported lacking the ability to scale production quickly, with about a third of executives saying their organizations would be slow or very slow to ramp hormone-based products, mRNA vaccines, and cell and gene therapies. A lack of standardization across new modalities adds to the difficulty.

Additionally, industry focus is shifting from cost efficiency to quality and resilience: 40% of respondents say cost-cutting compromises product quality, and 36% report process changes are driven more by cost than quality.

To close the gaps, companies are turning to contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs): 57% increased use in the past year, with high satisfaction on quality (72%), speed (70%), and availability (66%). High-ranked markets for agility (e.g., Switzerland, South Korea, Ireland) pair strong CDMO ecosystems with supportive regulation and fast tech transfer, and automation and digital analytics are gaining ground to improve consistency, release timelines, and throughput.

Government policy and regulation  

Government policy and regulation, the lowest ranked pillar on the 2025 Global Biopharma Index, observed that inconsistency and unpredictability in policy is emerging as a core headwind, and emphasized how significant effective policy and regulation are to biopharma performance. 

More than 50% of executives say government policy is inconsistent (up from 45% in 2023), 50% say raising capital is harder (up from 42%), and one quarter view current pathways as not fit for purpose for cell and gene therapies.  

Post-2024 election cycles have produced a patchwork of policies ― some encouraging, others contradictory, according to the survey. For example, some governments promote domestic R&D but impose restrictive price controls, and other regions offer intellectual property (IP) protection but delay regulatory harmonization. Additionally, several countries are investing in sustainability but failing to align this focus with manufacturing or trade policies. 

The latest data reveals a link between the rise in tariffs and business uncertainty. Executives who believe tariffs are likely to increase (56%) in their country over the next 12 months are more likely to say that government policy in their country is inconsistent. 

However, bright spots in this space are the regulatory reform efforts aimed at streamlining clinical trial approval, accelerating access to therapeutics, and enabling better use of real-world evidence. This includes, In the U.S., recent updates to Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) and the FDA’s Type D meetings aim to improve early-stage developer guidance. 

Sustainability 

Added in 2025 as the sixth pillar, sustainability is a priority with uneven execution. Nearly half of executives say their companies are missing sustainability targets, and nearly two-thirds admit sustainability is often deprioritized amid short-term financial pressures. Yet the data suggest a payoff for firms that stay the course: companies ahead on sustainability targets are more likely to exceed revenue (40% versus 6%) and time-to-market (43% versus 6%) goals.

Digital tools are helping close the gap — 56% of leading firms use analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), or automation to track energy use, optimize supply chains, and cut waste.

Experts point to a cultural shift that could accelerate progress: a new generation of leaders and investors now view sustainability as a driver of long-term value, not just compliance.

Supply chain resilience 

Supply chain resilience received the highest score among the six pillars and continues to strengthen. More than 55% of executives believe their country’s biopharma supply chains are more robust than a year ago. Much of this improvement stems from digital integration: 64% report using digital tools to enhance resilience, 59% to boost visibility, and another 59% to improve supply chain speed and security. 

However, more than a quarter of executives say their supply chain is not equipped for advanced modalities such as cell and gene therapies, while over 75% predict geopolitical volatility will significantly affect sourcing strategies. 

While trade uncertainty continues to influence global supply chains, 56% of executives agree that domestic manufacturing of biologics will increase significantly over the next three years, compared with 50% in 2023. Firms are already acting on these expectations: more than six in ten report plans to expand regional or domestic sourcing and increase onshoring efforts to strengthen supply chain resilience. 

R&D ecosystem

For the R&D ecosystem, strength in this sector is also being driven by digital integration. Among companies exceeding revenue and growth targets, 69% report effective integration of advanced digital tools to discover drug targets.

Looking at these technologies more granularly, firms are using advanced analytics and AI to automate tasks, identify targets, streamline trial design, and implement predictive modeling during process development. The deeper embrace of digital is enabling faster decision-making and shortened timelines. 

Driving growth for this pillar is notable investment on a global scale, with countries like Switzerland, the U.S., and South Korea leading due to robust investment, innovation capacity, and adaptability to scientific advances.

However, collaboration remains a sticking point: nearly half of executives surveyed say it’s still difficult to find quality partners across contract research organizations (CROs), CDMOs, academic research institutions, and government labs and think tanks. While the R&D pillar has improved since 2023, it remains below 2021 levels, signaling that better connectivity across the ecosystem is still needed.

Talent pool 

The talent pool pillar was another that saw improvement in Cytiva’s Global Biopharma Index, but this did not mean the pillar flourished. Skill shortages remain a persistent issue, particularly for burgeoning advanced modalities. According to 38% of executives surveyed, they report severe or critical shortages in workers for fast-growing therapeutic areas like novel drug modalities, including cell and gene therapies, mRNA, and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). Shortfalls in staffing also persist in sustainability (34%), manufacturing (27%), and digital/AI (29%). 

Another survey finding: the regulatory environment has become less supportive of workforce development. Only 33% of respondents indicated government policy gives them the flexibility to rapidly scale their workforce (down from 65% in 2023), and just one-third say it’s easy to recruit from overseas. At the same time, the survey noted that talent retention is just as important as recruitment and has become a strategic priority as specialized roles become more competitive, and organizations are turning to digital technologies to help nurture their retained talent. 

Biopharma respondents who reported the greatest financial success were more likely than their less successful competitors to say that they’re using digital technologies to train talent (68% versus 55%). These technologies may be enabling firms to upskill high-potential employees with industry-specific skills.