Legacy systems slowing your breakthroughs?
You’re trying to accelerate drug discovery, but your outdated software and operational workflows are creating costly bottlenecks and compliance risks.
This leads to wasted investments in mismatched systems that can’t keep up with your company’s growth or complex global regulations.
You are not alone in this struggle. According to PwC, 53% of pharma finance leaders are turning to AI to fix these exact inefficiencies. Modern tools are essential.
The right software can resolve this by providing seamless compliance and scalability, helping you future-proof your operations without the guesswork.
While we’re discussing operational efficiency, you might also be interested in the best pharmaceutical manufacturing software to optimize your production processes.
In this guide, I’ll show you the best pharmaceutical industry software to scale your discoveries. We will evaluate tools that can streamline your entire workflow.
You’ll learn how to select a system that shortens development cycles, automates documentation, and delivers a clear return on investment.
Let’s get started.
Quick Summary:
| # | Software | Rating | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Veeva Systems → | Mid-sized pharma companies | |
| 2 | IQVIA → | Large R&D and commercial teams | |
| 3 | Körber Pharma → | Pharma manufacturing IT directors | |
| 4 | QbDVision → | Biopharma process developers | |
| 5 | Siemens Digital Industries Software → | Global pharma manufacturers |
1. Veeva Systems
Struggling with compliance and outdated pharma software systems?
Veeva Systems offers specialized cloud-based solutions designed to modernize your drug development, manufacturing, and commercial workflows. This means you can overcome the overwhelming complexity of evaluating new platforms.
Their comprehensive suite addresses core challenges like managing regulatory demands and ensuring data quality across global operations. You gain control over GxP documents and compliance.
Here’s how Veeva helps.
Veeva’s Clinical, Regulatory, Quality, and Safety solutions streamline processes, bringing teams, sites, and patients onto a unified platform. This helps you accelerate study timelines and respond faster to changing regulations.
For example, their Veeva LIMS optimizes QC labs for real-time batch release, while Veeva QMS helps you manage all quality processes in one central system. Additionally, Veeva’s AI capabilities, like AI Agents, empower your end users and deploy high-impact solutions quickly.
Plus, their CRM Suite offers seamless commercial engagement, integrating sales, marketing, and medical teams to improve execution and strengthen scientific relationships, all contributing to faster time to market.
Achieve greater efficiency and impact.
Key features:
- Clinical and Regulatory Solutions: Accelerate study timelines and manage global registrations, submissions, and archives, ensuring you stay inspection-ready and compliant with ease.
- Quality and Safety Management: Consolidate quality processes, gain control of GxP documents, and seamlessly manage adverse events to mitigate risk and boost confidence in batch release.
- Commercial and Data Insights: Enhance commercial execution with a unified CRM suite, deep KOL insights, and robust data management for comprehensive HCP and HCO profiles.
Veeva Systems features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: Veeva Systems stands out as a strong contender for the best pharmaceutical industry software, offering a robust, integrated cloud-based platform that tackles complex regulatory demands and workflow inefficiencies. With proven results like 50% faster clinical study builds and 85% of new drugs approved launched with Veeva, it helps ensure compliance, accelerate timelines, and optimize operations for mid-sized pharma companies.
2. IQVIA
Struggling with complex pharmaceutical software evaluations?
IQVIA helps you overcome these challenges by intelligently connecting data, technology, and analytics for accelerated results in clinical development. This means you can optimize trials, drive smarter decisions, and deliver therapies faster to improve patient outcomes. You’ll gain the ability to maximize your asset’s probability of success in a competitive environment.
You need a partner that can accelerate asset success.
Here’s how IQVIA addresses your needs, transforming clinical development by optimizing trials for faster decision-making and reduced risk. Their Real World Evidence solutions help you generate crucial clinical and regulatory evidence, fostering confidence in your decisions and meeting stakeholder needs. You can elevate commercial models with precision and speed using AI-driven analytics, which reveal hidden insights in your data.
Additionally, IQVIA offers integrated compliance solutions covering safety, regulatory, and quality, orchestrating your success across the complete compliance lifecycle. Their expertise is backed by over 64 petabytes of proprietary data and 1.2 billion non-identified patient records, allowing for faster clinical trial site identification, sometimes as much as 46% quicker.
Unlock your potential to drive healthcare forward.
Before diving deeper, you might find my analysis of best lab inventory management software helpful for managing your research assets.
Key features:
- Intelligent Connections: IQVIA Connected Intelligence™ integrates data, AI, analytics, and technology to address unique healthcare needs and uncover new possibilities for your success.
- AI-Driven Insights: Leverage IQVIA Healthcare-grade AI® and the AI Assistant for data-driven decision-making, providing trusted results faster for commercial and R&D operations.
- Comprehensive Compliance: Orchestrate your success across the full compliance lifecycle with best-in-class integrated services and solutions for safety, regulatory, quality, and medical information.
IQVIA features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: IQVIA stands out as the best pharmaceutical industry software, offering robust solutions across research & development, commercialization, and compliance. Its AI-driven analytics and vast healthcare data enable accelerated clinical trials and market insights, allowing your organization to achieve significant ROI through streamlined operations and enhanced regulatory adherence.
3. Körber Pharma
Struggling with complex pharma software evaluations?
Körber Pharma offers solutions like Werum PAS-X MES, designed to streamline your drug development and manufacturing. This means you can reduce complexity and respond flexibly to changes in the pharmaceutical industry.
It provides a unified ecosystem approach, ensuring all solutions work optimally together. This helps you overcome decision paralysis by integrating essential functions and maintaining regulatory compliance.
How about a connected solution?
Körber Pharma’s ecosystem approach integrates software for data analysis, Track & Trace, connected factories, and smart packaging. This allows you to achieve seamless compliance with automated documentation and accelerate approvals, ensuring you remain future-proof.
Their AI-powered inspection machines and specialized transport systems, like those for glass syringes, guarantee precision and safety, critical for minimizing recall risks. Additionally, their consulting services support everything from needs analysis to project implementation, helping you optimize your “Factory of Excellence” and leverage innovative digital solutions like Pharma 4.0 along the entire value chain.
Future-proof your operations with integrated solutions.
While focusing on production clarity in manufacturing, you might also find my guide on best CAM software helpful for ensuring quality.
Key features:
- Werum PAS-X MES: A leading Manufacturing Execution System, available on-site or in the cloud, offering comprehensive control and optimization of pharmaceutical production processes.
- Integrated End-to-End Supply Chains: Connects all aspects of production, from transport systems and inspection machines to packaging and digital solutions, ensuring seamless workflows.
- AI-Powered Inspection & Digital Solutions: Utilizes AI in high-performance inspection machines and provides innovative digital tools for data analysis and Pharma 4.0 readiness.
Körber Pharma features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: Körber Pharma stands out as a strong contender for the best pharmaceutical industry software by providing an integrated ecosystem of solutions, including the Werum PAS-X MES. Its focus on connected solutions and AI-powered inspections directly addresses challenges like compliance, scalability, and reducing drug development timelines, delivering measurable ROI for IT directors and procurement managers.
4. QbDVision
Struggling with fragmented data and compliance hurdles in pharma?
QbDVision offers a structured platform designed specifically for biopharma, accelerating new products to patients. This means you can overcome the overwhelming complexity of modernizing drug development, manufacturing, and compliance.
The platform provides centralized knowledge management, which allows your teams to collect all their data in one searchable, cloud-based hub, creating a single source of truth. This directly addresses the pain point of limited visibility and fragmented information.
Here’s how QbDVision transforms your operations.
The platform introduces streamlined process development, enabling you to create robust, agile processes that your teams can fully understand and control. You can then seamlessly pass them on to the next project, ensuring minimal workflow disruption. Additionally, powerful process intelligence lets you see what every action means for the entire product lifecycle, empowering smarter strategic decisions every time. This comprehensive approach helps you achieve seamless compliance with automated documentation and reduced drug development timelines. The result is a system that future-proofs your operations against emerging technologies.
While we’re discussing content management, improving your content quality and writing is also crucial for effective communication.
Key features:
- Centralized Knowledge Management: Collects all your team’s data and knowledge in one searchable, cloud-based hub, ensuring a single source of truth for every unit and function.
- Streamlined Process Development: Enables you to create robust, agile processes that your teams can fully understand and control, and seamlessly transfer them to subsequent projects.
- Powerful Process Intelligence: Provides insights into what every action means for the whole product life cycle, allowing you to make smarter strategic decisions consistently.
QbDVision features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: QbDVision stands out as the best pharmaceutical industry software because it’s a purebred biopharma solution, not a retrofit. It accelerates breakthroughs by centralizing knowledge, streamlining process development, and delivering powerful intelligence, helping you achieve measurable ROI through accelerated approvals and minimized recall risks.
5. Siemens Digital Industries Software
Struggling with complex pharmaceutical software evaluations?
Siemens Digital Industries Software offers solutions to modernize your drug development, manufacturing, and compliance workflows effectively. You can finally accelerate your product development.
This means you can produce high-quality products, address increased competitive pressure, and shorten development times while staying on budget. Empower sustainable business growth with a single, integrated platform.
Here’s how you get there.
Siemens Digital Industries Software helps you accelerate digital transformation as a sustainable Digital Enterprise, giving your company the agility and flexibility to turn ideas into innovation with greater efficiency. You can streamline recipe management to speed up the approval and introduction of new products and drugs, ensuring flexible, high-quality production across global facilities.
By using next-generation machine design tools, you can create a digital twin of machinery, containing mechanical, electrical, software, and automation information, which allows you to deliver projects on time. Additionally, integrated lifecycle management allows you to guide your product from concept to completion, enhancing collaboration with accurate data, lowering costs, and minimizing risks.
You can also boost your supply chain productivity, reliability, and capacity through advanced supply chain collaboration, managing information and driving early supplier involvement across all stages of the product lifecycle. This cohesive environment significantly enhances market strength and exceeds customer expectations.
The result? Accelerated approvals and minimized recall risks.
While we’re discussing critical software, understanding patient registration software is equally important for data security and efficient operations.
Key features:
- Accelerated product development: Produce high-quality products, address competitive pressure, and shorten development times while staying on budget with an integrated platform.
- Streamlined recipe management: Speed up approval and introduction of new products and drugs, ensuring flexible, high-quality production across global facilities.
- Integrated lifecycle management: Guide your product from concept to completion, enhancing collaboration, lowering costs, and minimizing risks for market strength.
Siemens Digital Industries Software features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: If you’re looking for the best pharmaceutical industry software that delivers measurable ROI, Siemens Digital Industries Software provides integrated solutions for accelerated product development, streamlined recipe management, and robust supply chain collaboration. It helps you manage complexity, ensure compliance, and future-proof operations against emerging technologies, leading to accelerated approvals and minimized recall risks.
6. Benchling
Struggling with complex R&D and compliance workflows?
Benchling digitizes your lab, automates tasks, and increases productivity with AI tools, allowing your team to plan, record, and share experiments in a collaborative, cloud-based notebook. This means you can significantly cut down on manual and repetitive work.
The platform is designed to help you build a data foundation tailored to your unique science, tracking everything from biomolecules to reagents. This allows you to unify data across experiments, powering computational science and streamlining your discovery process.
Here’s how Benchling offers an end-to-end solution.
Benchling helps your team perform more efficient research in a user-friendly interface built for complex science, reaching milestones faster. You can manage and analyze instrument data at scale, ensuring accuracy and consistency.
The platform lets you accelerate in vivo studies with modern data capture, collaboration, and insights. This open and flexible platform provides out-of-the-box integrations, letting you build custom apps and connect data from various instruments and software. Additionally, it scales securely, adapting to your specific scientific needs and existing ecosystem, minimizing disruption during migration.
The result is a comprehensive system that can help you reduce time spent on data capture by 63% and save four hours per scientist each week.
Key features:
- Unified data model: Design and track scientific data for biomolecules, small molecules, and more, powering computational science and centralizing critical R&D information.
- Automated workflows with AI: Digitize lab processes, automate repetitive tasks, and leverage AI tools to increase productivity and efficiency across discovery and process development.
- Open and flexible platform: Access out-of-the-box integrations, build custom applications, and connect data from instruments, scaling securely with your R&D efforts.
Benchling features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: Benchling stands out as a leading contender for best pharmaceutical industry software, offering essential features like robust data modeling, AI-powered automation, and a flexible platform. It demonstrably reduces data capture time by 63% and saves scientists four hours weekly, addressing core pain points in drug development and regulatory compliance for mid-sized pharma companies.
7. Smartsheet
Struggling with complex drug development workflows?
Smartsheet offers an AI-powered platform to manage projects and automate workflows at scale. This means you can gain visibility and efficiency, cutting down time spent on reporting and improving work quality.
This helps you address issues like balancing budget constraints against long-term scalability and overcoming the challenges of migrating from outdated systems.
Here’s how Smartsheet can help.
Smartsheet transforms work management into a personalized, predictive engine, helping your team move faster and lead every project with precision. You can accelerate new product development and fast-track product launches, improving both quality and client retention.
Its automation capabilities streamline repetitive tasks, reducing errors and saving time, which is critical for compliance and accelerating approvals. Additionally, its robust integration features ensure all your favorite apps stay connected, keeping your entire team in the loop and your data synchronized, enhancing collaboration and overall operational efficiency. Plus, enterprise-grade security provides peace of mind.
The result? Streamlined operations and minimized risks.
Key features:
- AI-powered platform: Leverages intelligent formulas and data insights to accelerate new product development and fast-track product launches.
- Workflow automation: Automates repetitive tasks, simplifies processes, reduces errors, and saves time for efficient pharmaceutical operations.
- Comprehensive integrations: Syncs with your existing tools, ensuring real-time collaboration and keeping teams connected across diverse workflows.
Smartsheet features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: Smartsheet is an excellent choice for the best pharmaceutical industry software, providing robust project and portfolio management with AI-powered features. It helps optimize healthcare operations for better patient experiences, streamlining workflows and enhancing visibility, as demonstrated by Roche IT managing 30% more projects.
Conclusion
Ready to scale your discoveries faster?
Choosing the right system is daunting. Legacy software, complex workflows, and strict global regulations make it even harder for your pharmaceutical company to keep pace.
The push for efficiency is industry-wide. As Appsilon reports, even giants like GSK aim for 50% code efficiency by 2025 by overhauling legacy tools. Modernizing your own software stack is essential for staying competitive in this market.
So what’s the best path forward?
From my comprehensive review, Veeva is the clear winner. Its specialized cloud suite tackles compliance and workflow complexity head-on, greatly simplifying your modernization efforts.
Their proven results, like 50% faster clinical study builds, show its immediate value. Implementing the best pharmaceutical industry software like Veeva future-proofs your operations.
For those also exploring essential design tools, my guide on best PCB design software can be helpful.
I recommend you contact Veeva Systems to learn how their unified platform can support your specific discovery and compliance goals.
Bring your innovations to market faster.
