R&D Vision and Strategy

At SHIONOGI, we believe that to grow sustainably as a drug discovery-based pharmaceutical company contributing to a more vigorous society through improved healthcare is impossible without the constant pursuit of innovation contributing to the resolution of social issues. To that end, we seek to continue creating new drugs, by investing appropriate sums in R&D and maintaining small molecule drug discovery as a key strength and deepening collaboration with all manner of partners including the IT industry, in order to expand into new modalities and acquire entirely new technologies. If we are to meet the needs of both our customers and society as a whole and become a source of new value in the healthcare field, we think it essential that SHIONOGI remain committed to innovation, particularly as it applies to R&D.

“Creating the future of healthcare with new platforms” is what the SHIONOGI Group wants to achieve in 2030. In order to achieve this, we have set a vision for research and development that is to "Create innovations within and beyond the borders of medical/pharmaceutical fields, unbound from existing concepts, addressing the critical healthcare needs of society“. Until now, we have contributed to everyone by creating innovative pharmaceuticals based on our past experiences. In the midst of the human crisis of COVID-19, we have created a therapeutic drug by utilizing external collaboration while maintaining our commitment and pride in our own research capabilities. We will provide solutions that people crave by creating innovation that can only be done by us who have experienced such a rare experience.

In order to provide the healthcare solutions that everyone needs, decision-making that combines quality and speed, rapid resource deployment based on priorities, and seamless collaboration that transcends organizational and functional boundaries are essential. In order to achieve these goals, we have established a new research and development system, the R&D Supervisor. In addition, the Pharmaceutical Research Division, which was in charge of exploratory research, and the CMC Research Division, which was in charge of product design and process development, were integrated. Research Divisions are reorganized into the Research Headquarters, which is  in charge of small-molecule drug discovery, and Biopharmaceutical Research Division, which is in charge of the creation of biopharmaceuticals including vaccines. In charge of R&D, not only the research-related headquarters, but also the pharmaceutical development division, business development department, and investment strategy department are established, and contact with the outside, network construction, introduction of development products, joint research, etc. will be more active than ever. We have a system that allows us to do that.

SHIONOGI has a long history of small molecule drug discovery. For diseases that cannot be approached with small molecules, we will provide solutions using new modalities such as peptides and vaccines. Since these modalities alone are not enough to meet various unmet medical needs, we will continuously strengthen and utilize various capabilities such as antibodies, nucleic acids, new drug delivery technologies, and digital approaches by utilizing our internal and external networks.