Frank Thielmann

OPEX Platform Leader Manufacturing Novartis

Dr Thielmann has a PhD in Physical Chemistry/ Material Science from the University of Duesseldorf, Germany. Frank joined Novartis Pharmaceutical Development (Basel, Switzerland) in July 2007 as Formulation Lab Head. From August 2009 until February 2011 he managed the pharmaceutical development group in the UK. Upon his return to Basel he took on the responsibility for the local formulation technology platform until February 2012. Subsequently he joined Novartis Technical Operations where he was managing the setup of a new solid dosage form manufacturing facility and the transfer of the corresponding portfolio before moving to the Biotechnology department as global Leader for PMO & Operational Excellence in November 2016, In this role Frank had an additional responsibility as Operational Excellence Head of the new Novartis manufacturing facility for Cell & Gene Therapeutics in Switzerland. In November 2019, Dr Thielmann moved to a new responsibility at Takeda Manufacturing & Supply as Operational Excellence Director, where he is responsible for the implementation of process improvement in the manufacturing of a wide portfolio ranging from small molecules to ATMPswith special focus on digitalization & automation. Dr Thielmann is member of the Steering Committee of the Material Science and Biotherapeutics Focus Group in the British Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

MAIN CONFERENCE DAY 2 - 2 November

9:50 AM WHAT IS SUCCESS? DEFINING, MEASURING, AND ENSURING ROI WITH YOUR TRANSFORMATION AND OPTIMISATION INITIATIVES TO DRIVE BUY-IN AND ADOPTION

Transformational delivery and implementation can be swarmed with hurdles to overcome, but regardless of the challenge, having stakeholder buy-in can majorly drive adoption and success. Before even beginning a project, understanding what success means to you, your team, and your wider business is critical in order to design an effective roadmap. Given inflationary pressures and uncertain marketing conditions, the ability to clearly define and communicate ROI is increasingly the key lever to stakeholder engagement and securing further investment.


  • Success means different things to different people – how do you align goals company-wide?
  • Which metrics really matter? Moving beyond FTE and immediate financial gain by examining both the qualitative and quantitative factors
  • Ensure stakeholder buy-in and further investment by effectively communicating the true business value of your initiatives
  • Gain an end-to-end view of your transformation projects’ impact with next-level data visibility
  • Secure stakeholder buy-in and further investment by effectively communicating the tangible and realistic benefits of transformation and how it links with your company’s targets
  • Getting realistic before getting started: Understanding the metrics and predicted ROI doesn’t inherently translate to success – What are your barriers to success? How will they impact your ROI?

11:30 AM A MANUFACTURING PROCESS MINING EXPEDITION: NAVIGATING THE WILDS OF WORKFLOWS

Join this industry Lean leader as they explore the highs and lows of their experience undertaking a ‘process mining expedition’ for one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical company.


They will discuss:

 

  • Getting your priorities right: Before we get started, what do we hope to achieve?
  • Laying a foundation for success by identifying suitable business processes for process mining
  • Generating stakeholder buy-in by understanding the business case for process mining – and know how to communicate this
  • Technical challenges: What are they and how did Takeda address them?
  • The human side of process mining: Managing related change

Check out the incredible speaker line-up to see who will be joining Frank.

Download The Latest Agenda