Agenda for Day 1 - Monday 2 November, 2026 - Europe/Lisbon
This exclusive summit is designed for senior corporate meeting management professionals within the life sciences industry. It’s the starting point to collaborate and interact in an agile learning format, share experiences, brainstorm solutions to common challenges and benchmark on key issues facing the industry. Eligible attendees must have at least 10 years of meeting management experience. Please submit any questions for consideration to lily.nagy@informa.com *Final eligibility approval is at the discretion of Informa.
Key discussion topics may include:
Strengthening global safety, compliance, and risk management
Optimizing operating models to balance insourcing, outsourcing, cost, and quality
Elevating planners into strategic business leaders across organizations of all sizes
Demonstrating value through clear meeting ROI mea
- Cassie White - Chapter Lead, Congress & Events Governance, Astellas
- Ute Bauer - Senior Manager Business Partnering & Innovation, Bayer
This summit is designed for senior meeting management professionals who are currently employed by a third-party/events management agency, or independently employed. Eligible attendees must have at least 10 years of meeting management experience. Please submit any questions for consideration to lily.nagy@informa.com *Final eligibility approval is at the discretion of Informa.
Key discussion topics may include:
Optimize internal and external resourcing models to drive efficiency without sacrificing effectiveness
Design meetings that are safe, compliant, and risk‑aware across global environments
Deliver high‑impact meetings within constrained budgets while maintaining quality and outcomes
Demonstrate strategic value across pharma organization sizes through measurable outcomes and ROI
- Liz Johnson Parris - Managing Director, IMPACCT
- Nicky Ratcliffe - Vice President, Business Development, Etherio
If this is your first Pharma Forum experience, you haven’t joined us in a few years, or you’re interested in some much-needed peer networking - this orientation is a must-attend! Gain tips on how to make the most out of your Pharma Forum experience, network and meet plenty of your peers across the industry!
Navigate the agenda: Selecting the right sessions for your goals
Overview of the appointment scheduling process
Exhibit hall overview and floor plan guide
Overview of onsite CSR initiatives and sustainability efforts
Walkthrough of the conference mobile app
- Claire Gott - GBS Meetings & Events Compliance Adherence & Travel Manager, AstraZeneca
- Louise Kjaertinge - Global Director, Congress Solutions Design, BCD Meetings
- Amy Quigley, MBA - Regional Vice President, Unbridled
- Lily Nagy - Conference Producer, Informa Connect
In this keynote, Harry Verbunt shares his personal journey following an oesophageal cancer diagnosis that shifted from curative to metastatic, and his experience navigating life as a patient within a clinical trial. Drawing on both his lived experience and his professional background as a former global healthcare leader, Harry offers a powerful dual perspective on the realities of patient engagement, treatment journeys, and unmet needs. His story brings the patient voice to life and challenges pharmaceutical organizations to rethink how collaboration, communication, and care delivery can be better organized around real patient experiences.
- Harry Verbunt - Chief Patient Officer, Netherlands Cancer Institute
Patient engagement continues to evolve as life science organizations place greater value on patient insights to inform engagement strategies. Focus areas include how patients perceive interactions with industry, their experiences at meetings and congresses, and the regulatory and practical boundaries that define appropriate involvement.
Recognize how patient insights influence engagement strategy and decision making
Examine how patients experience meetings, events, and congress participation
Clarify regulatory and practical limits governing patient involvement
- Harry Verbunt - Chief Patient Officer, Netherlands Cancer Institute
- Tom Griffiths - Head of PX+CX, Inizio
- Andrew Winterburn - Managing Director, Unbridled Health
- Ashley Williams, MBA, LSSBB - Senior Vice President, Global Life Sciences Center of Excellence, BCD Meetings & Events