A New Era for Diagnostics

April 2021

Beyond the pandemic, what will the next chapter of growth look like for the diagnostics industry? Thermo Fisher’s recent expansion into the CRO space is a strong bet to become a full-service solution provider. Others have a taken product-centric approach, with announced deals to augment portfolios totaling $4 billion in 2021. What opportunities will these investments create?

Compared to physical products, service and software-based businesses can be more likely to yield rich operational data sets, even when accounting for connected devices. Foundational HBR research notes that firms creating value through ‘bundled’ products and services experience higher growth than peers, and the margin contribution from services can exceed 60%.

How might this correlate to diagnostics? Proprietary insights on samples, workflow and equipment can help traditional manufacturers serve as consultants to hospitals, reference labs and researchers. With newfound agility and visibility, suppliers can confidently enter risk-sharing and performance-based agreements with customers. 

The growth of personalized therapeutics, companion diagnostics and on-going public health initiatives should ‘raise all boats’ for the industry. Focusing on services and software presents and opportunity to differentiate with both customers and investors. To accelerate growth, digital-first strategies should remain essential as companies look to scale programs and services globally.

With less than four months passed in 2021 we've seen multiple investment decisions that could serve as an inflection point for the industry. While many uncertainties remain, the role of diagnostics within the healthcare ecosystem will continue to grow.