Agile Business Management in the Pharmaceutical Industry

This mini-review examines the pharmaceutical industry’s shift from rigid, linear operating models toward agile business management. Drivers include personalised medicine, global health crises (e.g., pandemics), and increasing supply-chain complexity. We summarise how agile principles are applied across the value chain, particularly in supply chain, manufacturing, and project management and how enabling technologies (e.g., IoT) support these applications. We also highlight barriers specific to highly regulated environments, including GMP-driven documentation and traceability, cultural inertia, and capability gaps. Finally, we discuss pragmatic adoption strategies, emphasising hybrid models (e.g., Agile–Stage-Gate) and selective implementation of agile practices. Pure agile adoption is often constrained in regulated settings; however, hybridisation and targeted practices can improve responsiveness, resilience, and long-term performance.