In our Expert Insights series, Kristi Lecher, Executive Director, Digital Platforms, Data & AI at PCI Pharma Services, shares her perspective on digital transformation, AI, and the changing relationship between CDMOs and their clients.
Kristi joined PCI Pharma Services more than 15 years ago in project management. Since then, she has held leadership roles across client-facing teams, supply chain, operations, and business systems. Her move into digital leadership began when she was given the opportunity to lead pci | bridge™, PCI Pharma Services’ customer-facing digital platform.
Drawing on that experience, Kristi shares how her career has shaped the way she approaches technology, data, and AI today.
I did not start my career expecting to work in technology. When I was given the opportunity to lead pci | bridge™, I was honestly intimidated because I did not consider myself a traditional technology leader. What I quickly learned was that understanding the user and the business problem can be just as important as understanding the technology itself.
Looking back, my move into digital platforms, data, and AI feels less like a career change and more like a natural evolution. I am still focused on solving operational challenges and improving outcomes for clients, but now I have a broader set of tools to do it.
My role today brings together strategy, technology, and business priorities. No two days are exactly alike. I might be reviewing product roadmaps, discussing AI governance, supporting a client-facing digital initiative, or helping teams solve an operational challenge.
Across PCI Pharma Services, our current focus is advancing the digital ecosystem through customer-facing platforms, enterprise data capabilities, analytics, and responsible AI. A significant part of my role is ensuring those investments stay connected to business outcomes and create meaningful value for our employees, clients, and ultimately the patients they serve.
The wider CDMO and life sciences industry is also moving beyond digitizing individual processes. Digital transformation is increasingly about connected ecosystems where data, systems, and people work together more seamlessly.
The greatest opportunities are not necessarily in flashy technology.
Real value can come from improving visibility, collaboration, and decision-making across complex supply chains. Near-term opportunities include real-time supply chain visibility, digital document collaboration, system-to-system connectivity, smarter manufacturing and quality processes, and governed access to operational data.
CDMOs also have a unique view of where complexity repeatedly occurs because we work across a wide range of clients, products, sites, and technical requirements. Industry investment reflects the growing focus on digital, data, and AI. A survey of 127 multinational life sciences technology executives found that 93% expected their data, digital, and AI investment to increase in 2025.
Many organizations are still working to translate those investments into scalable, tangible outcomes. Disciplined execution, strong data foundations, and operational expertise become important differentiators.
For PCI Pharma Services, digital transformation is about becoming a more connected, transparent, and digitally enabled CDMO. Technology for its own sake is not the goal. We want to help employees work more effectively, give clients greater visibility into their products and supply chains, and create a stronger foundation for growth.
Significant progress has already been made across customer-facing platforms, manufacturing and quality digitization, and the technical foundations for enterprise data, analytics, and AI. Our next phase is focused on bringing those capabilities together into a connected ecosystem that supports faster decisions, stronger collaboration, and scalable operations.
The ambition is clear: a digitally enabled CDMO where data provides the foundation, AI helps accelerate progress, and people remain at the center of every decision. Modernizing systems alone is not enough. A more connected operating model can help teams move faster, collaborate more effectively, and deliver greater transparency to clients.
AI has a meaningful role to play, particularly in helping people navigate complexity.
CDMOs operate in highly regulated environments with enormous volumes of documentation, operational data, and specialized knowledge. AI can help employees find information faster, summarize complex content, identify patterns, and reduce time spent on repetitive administrative work.
I also see significant potential in technical writing, knowledge management, operational analytics, and decision support. Those may not be the most headline-grabbing applications, but they can create meaningful productivity gains and allow teams to spend more time solving problems, supporting clients, and applying their expertise to higher-value work. Technology alone, however, does not make transformation successful. People, processes, and culture are absolutely critical.
Successful transformation requires clear processes, strong communication, thoughtful change management, and a culture that encourages curiosity and continuous improvement. Employees across the organization understand where inefficiencies exist and often have the best ideas for improving them.
The strongest initiatives are built with users, not delivered to them.
Looking ahead over the next five years, I believe the relationship between CDMOs and their clients will become far more connected and collaborative. Clients will increasingly expect real-time visibility, self-service access to information, and seamless integration between their systems and those of their partners.
Periodic reports and status updates will continue to give way to continuous access and greater transparency.
For CDMOs, greater connectivity creates an opportunity to become an even more strategic partner. Earlier insight and stronger collaboration can help teams anticipate challenges, make decisions faster, and respond with greater agility.
Ultimately, the value is not the technology itself. It is the potential to reduce avoidable delays, strengthen supply chain resilience, and better support the delivery of therapies to patients.