Growth Strategies Case Study

Roche in China in 2006

OR

Abstract:

In 2006, F. Hoffmann-La Roche & Co. (Roche) was one of the world’s leading research-intensive healthcare groups and its core businesses were pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. Roche employed about 65,000 people in 150 countries. Roche entered China in 1926 and had established its subsidiary in Shanghai. But for almost six decades, it did not have significant operations and presence and returned to the Chinese market in 1988. Roche had largely made its presence felt in China through joint ventures and it is only recently that it has opened a research centre in China. In 2004, Roche opened its new R&D center in Shanghai, China, which was part of Roche’s global R&D operations and which worked in collaboration with its other global centers. This is indicative of the growing importance of China for Roche and the pharmaceutical industry of the world.

The case traces the entry, re-entry, growth and ambitions of Roche in China. The case analyses the pharmaceutical industry in China and attempts at identifying the potential and challenges the country presents for Roche. The long term aim of Roche in China is to discover and optimise new molecules which would address the unmet medical needs of China and the world. How Roche capitalised on the growing pharmaceutical industry of China and realised its ambitions remained to be seen.

Pedagogical Objectives:

• To analyse the pharmaceutical industry in China and its growing relevance in the global pharmaceutical industry
• To undertake the SWOT analysis of Roche with regard to its ambitions in China
• To discuss the growth strategies of Roche in China.

Keywords : Roche; China; Pharmaceuticals; Diagnostics; Research & Development Center;Iindustry structure; Patent laws; Intellectual Property; WTO, low cost Manufacturing; Traditional Medicine; Market potential; GMP; Demographics; Challenges; Growth Strategies Case Study; Counterfeited drugs; Guanxi; Joint Venture; Customer Relationship Management

Contents : 
Introduction
About Roche
The pharmaceutical industry in China
Recent developments
R&D partnerships involving MNCs in China
New Drug approvals in China
Demographic trends
The position of China’s pharmaceutical industry in the world
Top 10 pharmaceutical companies in China