Overview

MassBio’s State of Possible 2025 Report is a five-year strategic plan to define the future direction of the Massachusetts life sciences ecosystem and highlight the many systemic challenges that require attention for the cluster to stay ahead of the curve on scientific innovation. This report also serves as a call to action to drive cross-industry collaboration in order to overcome shared challenges, capitalize on Massachusetts’ greatest assets, and develop strategic economic development, policy, public, and industry dialogues from which solutions will be developed and implemented.

Opportunities

Through interviews and consultations with government, academic, and industry leaders, this report, prepared by Deloitte, found that within the next five years the Massachusetts life sciences community is positioned to achieve balanced growth across multiple areas through four key opportunities. Success in these areas will reinforce the long-term sustainability and resilience of the ecosystem. These include:

Challenges & Key Disruptions

The State of Possible 2025 Report calls attention to some of the critical gaps and improvements needed for the cluster to thrive and to grow sustainably, mainly:  

  • The lack of affordable space and efficient transportation system
  • Sourcing essential talent to meet the future demands of the industry
  • Availability of funding options to support entrepreneurs
  • The ongoing national debate over healthcare costs and drug pricing

Along with key disruptions in the industry:

In the next 10+ years, the pharma R&D of the future will be able to leverage real-world data to do predictive modeling, in silico testing, and conduct virtual trials. The COVID-19 outbreak appears to be accelerating trends around the digitization and virtualization of R&D. Emerging technologies that support and facilitate accelerated screening or discovery of drugs against key targets, and the virtualization of clinical trials will likely have significant impact during COVID-19 and have a disproportionate influence on how R&D is conducted in the long-term.

MassBio’s Role

MassBio, as a key advocate for the industry, its employees, and patients, will implement a bold strategic plan to affect change and ensure future success of the cluster. We’ll need the commitment and support of all of our members, stakeholders, and community at large, and together, we will succeed in making our cluster stronger than ever.

Download the Report

Download the full report here.

Special Thanks to Our Collaborators

MassBio would like to thank the Board of Directors, the life sciences stakeholders who provided their input, and everyone who contributed to the planning process, along with Deloitte and the MassBio staff for preparing a thorough and thoughtful strategy.

Special thanks to the Board of Directors Executive Committee:

  • David Lucchino, Chairman, MassBio Board, and Co-founder, President and Chief Executive Officer, Frequency Therapeutics
  • Charles Wilson, Vice Chair, MassBio Board, and President and Chief Executive Officer, Unum Therapeutics
  • Pam Randhawa, Clerk, MassBio Board, and Founder & CEO, Empiriko
  • Michael O’Hara, Treasurer, MassBio Board, and Partner, Deloitte
  • Abbie Celniker, PH.D., Immediate Past Chair, MassBio Board, and Partner, Third Rock Ventures
  • Larry Wittenberg, Counsel, MassBio Board, and Senior Partner, Technology Companies & Life Sciences Group, Goodwin

And MassBio’s Senior Staff:

  • Robert K. Coughlin, President & CEO, MassBio
  • Kendalle Burlin O’Connell, Esq., Chief Operating Officer, MassBio
  • John Hallinan, Chief Business Officer, Innovation Services, MassBio
  • Kristine Kelly, Vice President, Finance & Administration, MassBio
  • Zach Stanley, Vice President of Public Affairs, MassBio
  • Elizabeth Steele, Vice President of Programs & Global Affairs, MassBio