Industry Essays

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The Corner Office

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Most-Favored-Nation Impact Study

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Looking for something else? Send me a message!
life sciences industry strategist

Make the impossible inevitable.

I'm Julien Willard, a strategy and operations advisor. I bring my economics, strategy, and intelligence background to help you forecast the next bet that blindside your competitors.

Meet Julien

How I Can Help

Passion for results and bold thinking come together for extraordinary impact. I work with clients who do not hide from the challenges.

Business plans

I will create a business plan covering key areas: defining your audience, setting your product apart, determining costs, planning delivery methods, and building marketing tactics. I will partner with your staff to make sure this plan matches your company goals and identity.

Technology recommendations

Following rapid audit, I'll build a technology plan that covers software and hardware choices, data management, system integrations. We'll collaborate with your staff to make certain this plan fits your company goals and spending limits.

Digital and AI strategy

When you have a project in these areas that needs extra skills or help, I can team up with you and your staff to reach your targets. This might involve creating digital/AI strategy development, running marketing efforts, or product launches.

Early-stage fractional COO/CTO

When you are early in your digital health or biotech business, you don't need a bloated leadership team. At the same time, you need the second-in-charge to help you run the business, interact with investors and payers. You also need someone to be aware of the macroeonomic and policy trends. I can be that for you.

CEO advisory

Once I analyze your data, I'll help study market and industry trends to spot possible chances and threats. We'll also examine competitors and rules to help us build practical financial predictions. Read about my detailed offering.

Diligence and deal structures

I have lived through over a dozen transactions and know how to prepare for an M&A from operational and technology perspective. My team also helps structure royalty financing deals and find investors.

Global expansion

Together, we will create an international growth plan covering key areas: selecting target countries, setting your product apart, determining costs, planning delivery methods, and building marketing tactics. We'll partner with your staff to make certain this plan matches your company goals and brand.

Partner and channel modeling

During strategy planning, we'll assess possible partners and pathways to find ones that fit your products and audience. We'll also study competitors and market patterns to make sure your partner and distribution approach stays strong.

AI transformation program recovery

AI pilots became a distraction—my approach is different

Delivering business value from any transformation program requires significant focus, an appropriate strategy, and understanding of where your saboteurs reside.

CEO-owned ambition and guardrails

I help define the value hypothesis, unit economics, and decision rights. Incentives and reviews align to adoption and business results.

Focus on big bets, not the number of pilots

Together, we will select three to five domains that matter for profit, speed, or risk. Write domain charters with target metrics, scale unit, and dependencies. Kill the rest.

Zero-based process design

I will help map the "point of departure" and "point of arrival" for each domain. Redesign work with AI at the core, not as a layer. Produce new workflows, controls, and handoffs that can scale. You wouldn't remodel your bathroom while the plumbing is crap, would you?

Two-speed operating model

I'll help stand up a small transformation team that enables business-owned solution teams. Run the business and change the business in parallel.

Lorenzo Matteucci
Julien is an exceptional economist, diplomat, and strategist. We worked together on a $450 million public health lending operation. He's a strong leader and subject matter expert in healthcare strategy and international healthcare/pharmaceutical financing. Julien possesses two critical traits: non-intuitive thinking and skill in high-pressure negotiations. He is a very confident and ruthless operator.
Ellen Bien
Ministry of Defense, The Netherlands
Julien is a forward-thinking perfectionist. His work as a business and technology advisor was critical to our company's innovation success. He delivered strategic analytics for the CFO and designed product operating models for the IT organization. If you're looking for a yes-man, Julien is NOT that person. He will challenge you and disagree, backed by heaps of data and research. He helped connect our technology pursuits with the CEO's overall strategy.
Carissa Rollins
Illumina
Julien brought a unique skill combination: expertise in therapeutic areas (oncology, pediatrics), technical understanding of pharmaceutical data science applications, and strong business strategy acumen. He led a year-long strategic program for Pfizer, applying these skills daily to deliver clinical development innovations and new computational techniques.
Jonathan Crowther, PhD
Pfizer
biotech turnaround and restructuring

Biotech turnaround services

Many U.S. biotech firms are indeed in need of a turnaround in 2025, driven by cash shortages, market instability, and regulatory uncertainty. Yet the sector is still innovating and growing in select areas. Firms prepared to refocus on fundamentals and efficiency are well-positioned to rebound when industry conditions improve.

Managerial: Minimize distress

I partner with former industry operators to quickly install clear decision rights, an interim control tower, and board-ready reporting. Use a CRO-caliber playbook to steady leadership focus and restore stakeholder confidence

Operational: Stabilize and recover performance

I provide hands-on leadership support to control costs through working capital optimization, capital expenditure management, workforce rebalancing, triage vendors, optimize physical structures and their operations.

Financial: Runway and liquidity defense

Together we will build a 13-week cash forecast, manage daily liquidity, and renegotiate terms with creditors and suppliers. Pair it with a restructuring-ready plan and a tight communications cadence.

biotech turnaround and restructuring

Biotech turnaround services

Many U.S. biotech firms are indeed in need of a turnaround in 2025, driven by cash shortages, market instability, and regulatory uncertainty. Yet the sector is still innovating and growing in select areas. Firms prepared to refocus on fundamentals and efficiency are well-positioned to rebound when industry conditions improve.

Managerial: Minimize distress

I partner with former industry operators to quickly install clear decision rights, an interim control tower, and board-ready reporting. Use a CRO-caliber playbook to steady leadership focus and restore stakeholder confidence

Operational: Stabilize and recover performance

I provide hands-on leadership support to control costs through working capital optimization, capital expenditure management, workforce rebalancing, triage vendors, optimize physical structures and their operations.

Financial: Runway and liquidity defense

Together we will build a 13-week cash forecast, manage daily liquidity, and renegotiate terms with creditors and suppliers. Pair it with a restructuring-ready plan and a tight communications cadence.

Executive diligence

Assessing executive team behavior prior to capital deployment

Empirical research demonstrates that CEO and executive team composition significantly impacts firm performance. Developing a comprehensive behavioral profile of the executive team prior to PE/VC investment helps ensure your capital is backed by leadership equipped for success. This engagement requires a multi-hour in-person activity.

Cognitive ability

  • Assess reasoning and decision speed under pressure
  • Identify ability to adapt judgment when faced with incomplete data
  • Gauge how executives integrate complex information into strategy

Personal leadership

  • Map track record of leading diverse teams and initiatives
  • Evaluate range of roles across industries, markets, or functions
  • Test resilience and willingness to challenge entrenched views

Productivity traits

  • Measure consistency of execution across high-stakes contexts
  • Detect patterns of focus, prioritization, and follow-through
  • Benchmark energy and output against comparable leadership roles

Personality patterns

  • Stress tolerance and emotional stability under pressure
  • Openness to new ideas, learning, and adaptive thinking
  • Reliability, discipline, and follow-through on commitments

Unlock Your Potential with Expert Strategic Consulting Tailored for the Pharma Industry

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Benefit from Proven Industry Expertise and Customized Strategic Solutions

Julien's deep understanding of the pharmaceutical landscape ensures impactful strategies.

Achieve Results with Tailored Solutions Designed for Your Specific Needs

Julien crafts bespoke strategies that align perfectly with your business objectives.

Gain Strategic Insight that Propels Your Business Forward in the Pharma Sector

Leverage Julien's insights to navigate challenges and seize opportunities in the market.

PODCAST

Business Value from AI Transformation

Neglecting behavioral factors—such as attitudes, mindsets, resistance to change, and leadership role-modeling—can result in transformation failure, regardless of how well-designed the new processes or structures are. I am trained to profile your people to identify risks and prepare a mitigation plan.