Meet Pharma IQ’s advisory board: Luiz Barberini

Luiz Barberini is External Manufacturing Operations Manager at Bayer. Based in Brazil, he has over 25 years’ of experience in supply chain and logistics, a subject he also teaches. We found out a bit more about Barberini’s work and why he joined Pharma IQ’s advisory board.

Pharma Logistics IQ: What do you find most exciting about working at your organization?

Luiz Barberini: Our goal at Bayer is “Help for all, hunger for none.” We work with pharmaceuticals and crop sciences, researching and supplying products to enhance people's health and wellbeing. People need vitamins, sunscreen and aspirin; hopefully they don't need oncological products but we produce those too.

The founder of Merck, George Merck, once said “look for the people, and the profit will come.” This is what excites me the most, we work for people.

Pharma Logistics IQ: What characteristics should someone have to be a good leader?

LB: Empathy is critical. When you understand the situations that people are going through it really changes everything. For any kind of industry, any leader should know how to get the best from people.

You also need to know what you are dealing with. Imagine you hire a new manager for McDonalds who knows nothing about sandwiches or French fries. It is difficult to build up trust, which is the basis for empathy, if you do not know the business and you need to establish relationships based on that. A leader should be aware of the kind of market or business they are dealing with.

If someone comes into the pharmaceutical world right now, he or she should learn about good manufacturing practices, good distribution and good warehousing practices. They do not need to go to deeper than that, but they do need to learn that those things exist and then learn more about them along the way.

Pharma Logistics IQ: What do you think are the biggest challenges people in leadership roles in pharma are facing?

LB: I would say the constant and radical changes that we have been facing in a short period of time in recent months. We have had to learn from this and be prepared for the future. The world is changing very quickly and how to adapt to all these changes are the hardest tasks that we have to overcome.

We also need to understand what patients will need in the future. For instance, here in Brazil I can get a pack of 20 aspirins, but I do not need 20 pills for a headache, I will only take four. This is regulated by our health agency that says we must have this many, in this box,but what will happen in the future? The consumer will demand something different and pharmaceutical company are not prepared to make changes.

I had to implement a project to bring items that are produced in Mexico and start producing them in Argentina. It has taken five years to get this underway and this is very difficult to manage because in five years, the business case and consumer demand can change.

Pharma Logistics IQ: How would you describe Brazil’s healthcare system?

LB: It is very complex, in the sense that Brazil has many countries in one. In the north there are very few populated areas because there is forest. The south has the densely populated places. Sao Paulo has 70 million people, which is more than all of the UK population in one metro area. It is complicated to manage these regional differences.

The public health system is very good as if you have no health insurance and become ill you go to a public hospital and receive treatment at no cost, usually. On the other hand, the equipment is not so good. A lot of people rely on private healthcare in the south of Brazil, while the north of Brazil relies on the public health system.

Pharma IQ: Why did you join Pharma IQ’s advisory board and what you would like to achieve as a board member?

LB: Simply two things: I want to learn and share. I want to learn what happens in other countries that I can use as benchmarks to our specific situations in Brazil, Colombia, Argentina and so on. Likewise, I would like to share what we have here.

When someone is facing difficulties in their process distribution or so on, why not share what we have with them? In the past, withholding information was one way to keep your job, but we have learned that this does not help.

Pharma Logistics IQ: What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
LB: I have three sons aged 22, 25 and 27. We love to do things together as a family and spend time with our two dogs. I am also a shooting instructor and I like travelling and sightseeing. It used to be a very common pursuit to go out on the streets in this type of skateboard that has four wheels, that you sit in rather than stand on. When I was a child I used to do this a lot, and now that I am growing old I’m going back to some of my old pastimes.

Quick links

• Meet Pharma IQ’s advisory board: Anca Ciobanu
• Send us your nominations for Pharma IQ’s Power List 2022
• The latest regulatory changes for pharma supply chains

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