Viatris is the 70,000-employee entity that was formed from combining the global generic and Pfizer legacy drug giants Mylan and Upjohn.
With art ACD Sherman Yee and a small team of network web and design partners, I led the effort for developing a new voice and identity—from a global campaign and website to many, many other aspects breathing life into this emerging healthcare force.
It’s not often you get to see your work up in Times Square. This was the synchronized, multi-screen showcase for Viatris opening day on the NASDAQ exchange.
The VIA campaign was developed to attract talent externally, and motivate a diverse and sizable workforce across the globe.
More than 30 versions of the VIA print campaign were shown, and the client bought virtually every one of them.
One of a host of video assets we created for Viatris; this one was directed by Chris Groban. Check out the drone shots.
This campaign turned out to be better than the drug. The vision was to show a restored connection in the brain of schizophrenic patients—but unfortunately bitopertin failed to do that in multiple trials.
This booth design, from the vertical orientation of the plug element to the vinyl “cord” railing, was my idea (although calling it a “bum bar” was someone else’s stroke of genius).
Let it not escape anyone that the central plug table is a charging station.
We became US and global AOR for the Pfizer vaccine early in the pandemic. During that hectic period, we mainly provided training, dosing, storing, and shipping materials supporting the various Emergency Use efforts around the world—but we were never short of launch ideas, a few of which are shown here.
The Globe concept received the highest (and most consistent) ratings of any global market research (US/EU/Asia) in my career.
We remain Pfizer’s marketing partner as we enter a more competitive space for both healthcare providers and consumer/patients.
Ovarian cancer is horrible—a lethal disease often discovered too late to make much of a difference. This new class of oral drug offered hope to patients who had specific kind of mutation (BRCA+).
I came up with this idea to give women a way to express their frustration—by swallowing pills that had been printed, much like M&Ms, with a custom message to their cancer.
A site would allow women to have their pills custom-printed. Friends and family could also contribute their own “hate mail” to the tumor, and messages could be posted, shared, and liked on social media.
Syngineering was a concept pitched to a franchise that would soon be launching a bi-specific antibody therapeutic for blood cancers.
I devised the concept, visual system, and components of the larger campaign.
We are now working with this client.
Video overview of Syngineering, making a complex technology seem approachable—and more importantly, useful to clinicians.
Proposed as an interactive site where clinicians and researchers could play with the principles of Syngineering—mixing and matching known therapeutic strategies to elicit a better anti-cancer effect than either alone.
Designs could be shared, saved, and/or submitted for review by peers—a cost-effective way for the company to crowdsource novel therapeutic approaches.
I work with Steve, who is both an inspiration and has cystic fibrosis, in that order.
With a handful of coworkers at then Havas Life Metro, I founded an organization to raise awareness of CF by following, if not celebrating, Steve’s example of succeeding in spite of setbacks.
Our motivation, our call-to-action, and our logo. Design by Jay Sylvester.
Jay Sylvester and I developed this to generate interest in Great Strides, CF Foundation’s largest and longest-running annual event.
Video documenting our participation in the 2018 Boomer Run in NYC, an event started by NFL great Boomer Esiason, whose son has CF. All told, #BLS has raised more than $4,000 for CF organizations since March 2018.
I wrote and created the #BLS site on SquareSpace, complete with functionality for making contributions. The site lists all Steve’s marathon and half-marathon times—a testament to this remarkable person.
Our nuttiness knows no bounds. Again design credit to Jay Sylvester.
Pitch work for Pfizer immuno-oncology (IO), with a fun video and site design that made the IO pipeline something even a layperson would understand and want to explore.
The voice and simplicity we envisioned literally animating cutting-edge science within a diverse, sophisticated portfolio.
Who says pharma sites can’t be fun? The colorful interactivity we dreamt up would’ve made this site an easy-to-navigate hub of information.
Gazyva had a problem. Launched as an improved anti-CD20 by the same company as the market leader Rituxan, lackluster NRx’s revealed there was more loyalty for “Vitamin R” than anyone had banked on.
We leveraged this emotional attachment in a campaign refresh that put the decision in terms the doctor could understand: when it’s a loyal car, a favorite pair of jeans, or trusty suitcase, it’s understandable to stick with the familiar.
But this is cancer therapy. This is different.
The “car” version as presented to the client—unblemished by fair balance, ISI, and the usual clutter.
Though not part of the “This Is Different” campaign, this ASH convention booth draw for GAZYVA served the same purpose: to elevate this important cancer therapeutic in the minds of oncologists whose instinct was to fall back on familiar ways.
As the video shows, it succeeded beyond our (and the client’s) wildest expectations.
This is a later iteration of “This is Different” submitted to OPDP (Read: more conservative language, and the expected pharma ad clutter.)
I’ve gotten comfortable with oncology over the years. Why? Because life is a gift, extended by the medical marvels of today’s cancer treatment.
And some of the best work I’ve done celebrates that realization, even if the ideas themselves never saw the light of day.
Beautifully art directed by Charles Orr, my art partner for 8 years.
The client loved the approach, but back-pocketed for a possible patient campaign down the road. With thanks to Sherman Yee, my brilliant art partner on this work, as well as Pfizer COVID vaccine and Viatris.
For a so-called ‘high science’ creative, I’ve done my share of animal health—and dogs and cats are only the beginning. Here’s a gallery of some of my favorites (mostly spec) for Bayer and Merial, small and large animal, from two different agencies.
My first year in pharma, I was lucky enough to work on an ophthalmic surgical instrument called Infiniti (yes, like the car).
We positioned this exorbitantly expensive and sophisticated piece of tech as a luxury product—which had a special appeal to the status-conscious surgeons we were targeting.
The distinction between machine and instrument proved fruitful—the company could not manufacture them fast enough keep up with the orders. Photo credits: Mark Laita.
When you have a surgical instrument with a luxury car name, nothing but a glossy, expensive-feeling brochure will do.
An assortment of video work I wrote, produced, and/or had a larger behind-the-scenes role in.
2013 agency promo video for AgencyRx (a CDM agency within the Omnicom network).
The un-sales call for Biogen’s portfolio of MS therapeutics.
Accurately depicts a constellation of symptoms that remain unaddressed by today’s schizophrenia therapies.
Part of a documentary-style series we did featuring the pioneers of fertility research.
This “faceted” style was pretty mod back in 2014. The VO is a bit dry (thanks, regulatory) but at least she has a British accent!
Everyone has bad jeans. How can this ever be a good thing? Watch and find out.
A pharma company founded on the principle of providing medicines to people, regardless of who or where they are. Imagine that.
