Once they were back-office support. Today they’re strategic powerhouses that fuel enterprise growth.
Global capability centers (GCCs) are now helping pharma companies reimagine how they scale, operate and compete, especially in commercial functions where speed, precision and adaptability matter most. Novartis was one of the first in the industry to launch a GCC, and today its GCCs help the company achieve operational excellence and growth in more than 60 countries.
In this Q&A, ZS’s Ankur Gupta speaks with Saijyoti Pattanaik, group head of field effectiveness at Novartis, about how the company’s GCC strategy has evolved over the years. Sai shares key learnings about launching GCCs, leveraging technology, measuring success and more.
Ankur Gupta: Novartis was one of the earliest pharmaceutical companies to establish a GCC. What prompted the decision and how has the role of Novartis’s GCC in Hyderabad evolved over the years?
Saijyoti Pattanaik: From the start, Novartis saw its GCCs as a long-term commitment, and a few key factors influenced the decision to set up our first center in Hyderabad. The first was the opportunity to scale our effectiveness by building large, capable teams that could deliver enterprisewide solutions. We also saw the potential for our GCC to differentiate us from the competition by not just driving efficiency, but by leading high-impact program execution and innovating in areas like digital, automation and AI. The financial incentives were certainly a consideration, but not our sole reason for launching a GCC.
A strong talent ecosystem and the support from government policies have all fueled the evolution of our Hyderabad capability center. Over time, it has grown well beyond its initial scope to take on a more strategic role and help power enterprise transformation across commercial operations and beyond. In addition to Hyderabad, Novartis has set up capability centers—which we call Novartis Corporate Centers (NOCCs)—in Dublin, Prague, Mexico, Kuala Lumpur and Slovenia, which are closer to our key markets and help bridge the geographical and time zone differences.
AG: How does Novartis determine the strategic focus of each NOCC?
SP: Our NOCCs are designed to align local strategy with our global business needs. Each center is intentionally placed based on skill availability, language capabilities and proximity to key markets. For example, our center in Mexico is well positioned to support the U.S. market. Kuala Lumpur plays a critical role in supporting Japan and China, while our center in Slovenia is focused more heavily on tech ops and manufacturing capabilities. Dublin offers access to a strong talent pool in the medical and clinical space. By matching each location’s strengths with the needs of our business, we’re able to build capabilities that are both scalable and locally relevant.
AG: How have NOCCs enabled Novartis to enhance its operational efficiency and impact globally?
SP: NOCCs have helped Novartis streamline operations by centralizing expertise, building shared solutions and scaling them rapidly across markets. This structure reduces duplication, accelerates innovation and ensures consistency while still allowing for local adaptation. As a result, we’ve improved decision-making speed, strengthened field productivity and elevated commercial operations from a support role to a true driver of enterprise growth and impact globally.
AG: With NOCCs supporting more than 60 countries, what advice would you give to companies looking to scale their GCCs?
SP: One of my most valuable lessons comes from reflecting on how our NOCC evolved from a voluntary, opt-in model to a more structured and scaled approach. In the early days, especially in the commercial operations space, GCCs offered opt-in services and often had to promote their capabilities internally, build awareness and compete with external providers. This created healthy pressure for the NOCCs to excel and show real value. As momentum grew and success stories spread, the organization was ready to scale more boldly.
A turning point came when Novartis formally endorsed the NOCC model through executive sponsorship. This top-down support helped accelerate expansion, as we grew from supporting a handful of countries—often with commercial operations and incentive compensation programs—to over 60 in a couple of years. That kind of scale would not have been possible without collaboration and engagement with the countries, regions and business units.
Looking back, one key learning is how to evolve the business case. It’s no longer enough to focus solely on efficiency, governance or cost. One needs to ask: Does the GCC drive better customer engagement? Does it make life easier and more productive for our field colleagues? Does it free up time for deeper HCP interactions? And how does it simplify work for headquarters and country teams?
Customer impact, field enablement and HQ support are essential pillars for any pharma company looking to build or expand a GCC. Novartis’s journey shows what’s possible with the right structure, sponsorship and purpose.
AG: And what advice would you offer to companies who are launching GCCs?
SP: A cautious, pilot-first approach made sense when launching GCCs in the last decade. Today, many pharma companies recognize this as a proven model but see opportunities to go bigger and bolder, starting with a clear enterprise-scale vision and value proposition. That vision should guide the selection and prioritization of GCC capabilities from day one.
Executive buy-in is a critical success factor. Additionally, experienced leaders who can champion the GCC journey and help overcome organizational complexities are of immense value as well.
Talent is non-negotiable. A bold vision requires subject matter experts and thought leaders who can translate strategy into tangible action and results.
Setting up a GCC is one thing, but the right culture and environment is essential to deliver sustained performance over years, to attract and retain talent, and to push the boundaries of excellence. An enabling, empowering and performance-driven culture is paramount, especially in global matrix organizations.
AG: Speaking of talent, with more pharma companies setting up GCCs in Hyderabad, how is Novartis approaching talent strategy and retention?
SP: Competition for talent has certainly intensified, but our focus has always been on creating that empowering culture, providing meaningful work and ensuring associates have clear development paths.
We also automate repetitive tasks so that teams can spend more time on higher-value work, whether that’s analytics, modeling or innovation. That approach not only keeps attrition at healthy levels but also ensures our people are constantly growing and contributing at a higher level.
Ultimately, when you have strong fundamentals and a performance-driven culture, associates choose to stay even when opportunities arise elsewhere.
AG: You and I have talked about how a centralized commercial platform is vital to GCC success. What capabilities did Novartis look for when evaluating a commercial operations platform?
SP: It’s a long list. But I will focus on three key capabilities. The first is the adaptability of the platform’s technology. We’re not just building for today. We want platforms that will stay relevant as technology evolves, and that means looking for systems that allow for regular upgrades without requiring a complete overhaul every few years.
Another necessary capability is integration. While we aim for end-to-end sales performance management capabilities, we also need platforms that can flex around realities on the ground. In some markets, bespoke solutions are deeply embedded and can’t be easily replaced. A good platform must offer modular flexibility and allow us to plug in, skip or adapt components while integrating with upstream and downstream systems.
Scalability is also critical. While launching a GCC may take time, it must also be built to scale quickly. Once the early templates are in place, the effort to deploy in new markets should drop significantly, while speed and efficiency increase. We want to spend less time and fewer resources with each wave of the rollout.
As I mentioned, there are a number of factors to consider, but these three capabilities are foundational for building a GCC that delivers sustainable, enterprisewide impact.
AG: How has Novartis benefited from using a commercial operations platform?
SP: A commercial operations platform is more than a system—it serves as the backbone for running and scaling performance globally. ZS’s suite of applications has served us well over the last decade and provided consistency, speed and confidence in execution across markets.
One of the most significant benefits has been the creation of standardized templates for processes such as incentive compensation, quota setting and performance reporting. This consistency allows field teams to spend less time navigating systems and more time engaging with healthcare professionals.
We recently began our journey with ZAIDYN®, implementing some of its important modules for our key markets. We are confident ZAIDYN will enable us to embed automation and advanced analytics from the ground up and help us shift from retrospective reporting to predictive insights. We are also hoping it will help us improve frontline coaching and ensure field colleagues have the right guidance at the right time.
Ultimately, ZAIDYN is poised to position commercial operations as a growth driver, not just a support function. It will help free up capacity, strengthen decision-making and drive greater impact in customer engagement and patient outcomes.
AG: What advice would you offer to companies working to implement a commercial operations platform?
SP: Here’s a big one: Engage IT as early as possible, even during business case development. IT typically treats any platform as a product, whether it’s internal or externally licensed, and brings its own framework for defining features and deployment. Early involvement ensures alignment.
Equally important is balancing product ownership with market activation. While product teams manage development, subject matter experts must stay closely connected to the field, working with markets and field reps to understand real-world needs. Aligning these two functions early makes the rollout easier.
AG: How does Novartis measure GCC success?
SP: We look at success through multiple dimensions that reflect both enterprise impact and operational maturity. One key metric focuses on how our centers help power innovation across the business. We also focus on operational excellence, including the efficiencies and scale we’re able to deliver. Another critical area is our talent pipeline, because our Novartis Capability Centers are hubs for attracting, developing and retaining leadership-ready talent.
NOCCs represent a significant portion of our office-based workforce, so they play a significant role in shaping our culture and employee experience. We see that influence as both a responsibility and an opportunity.
It can be overlooked, but GCCs also contribute meaningfully to business resilience, especially in areas like enterprise risk management and mitigation. We measure that as well.
When it comes to commercial operations specifically, we track success through metrics like speed, accuracy, consistency, efficiency and automation levels. These indicators help us ensure that the work we do not only scales effectively but also delivers outcomes.
AG: What excites you most about the future of Novartis’s GCC?
SP: A lot. The lines between GCC teams and global business teams are blurring in a positive way—not just in terms of shared goals, but through tangible operational and functional integration. Reporting structures are shifting, and our GCCs have more ownership than ever. Constraints tied to location, role or internal affiliations are fast becoming irrelevant.
I’m also excited GCCs across the industry are leading the way in AI, data science and technology adoption. They are in a position to master complex ecosystems of data to get ahead. For me, the opportunity is clear: Channel this digital momentum into commercial operations and excellence, while modernizing how we deliver value and productivity at scale. The next phase of growth is all about integration, accountability and enterprise impact.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Novartis or any of its affiliates or officers.
Add insights to your inbox
We’ll send you content you’ll want to read – and put to use.
