Q&A: Vince Forlenza, President & COO, Becton, Dickinson & Co

'The growth in India is in high teens'

Becton, Dickinson & Co (BD), the $7.37-billion medical technology major, considers itself more truly global than many of its US-based peers. More than half its revenues are generated outside its home country, an important reason for the company to understand the needs of different geographies. In an exclusive interview, Vince Forlenza, President and Chief Operating Officer, tells Joe C Mathew about the company’s partnership model that helps it understand the local needs in an Indian context. Edited excerpts:

You have said China, India and Latin American nations will be the key to BD’s future growth. Given that your Indian revenues are just a fraction of your global business, is it a very long-term projection?
We had recently seen some projections where the number of people entering the modern healthcare system (for the first time) in the next four years could be three billion, and they are all in the developing world. This is where the focus (in these countries) becomes important. Yes, relatively, the revenues from Indian operations (over $ 100 million) are very low. But if you see the growth, it has been one of the fastest markets for BD worldwide. India is only behind South Korea and China in terms of our business growth in Asia. The growth here is in high teens.

 

So, stakeholder partnerships are essentially meant to understand these markets better?
As the healthcare systems grows, we see tremendous possibilities for new models developing, and these innovations will come from the developing world. It is, hence, very interesting place to be through partnerships. For example, through Project Hope, we are working in the area of diabetic care. By educating diabetic educators (doctors, nurses, etc), we help them work better with diabetic patients. Similarly, we do lot of programmes in the area of injection safety. The partnerships are not just on the medical side. We bring our organisational capability and clinical knowledge to help stakeholders find local solutions. These organisations (partners) in turn tell us how to get access to local geographies. So, putting that together and understanding country priorities result in tremendous results.

Are you looking at investments in these regions? What are your plans for India and China?
We are investing in technologies and manufacturing facilities in the developing world. The question is not China or India, it is China and India. We are in the process of doubling our manufacturing capacity in India. As we move forward, healthcare systems will be structured differently and we will have to continue to invest in products and very different models.

BD has three distinct business units — medical, diagnostics and biosciences. Which of this has the greatest growth potential in the country?
Diagnostics will be the key driver. A lot of innovations will happen, and it will come from the developing world.

Do you have research tie-ups with Indian institutions?
We have several tie-ups across the research spectrum, which includes CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) labs to universities to individual researchers. However, we cannot disclose the names of the institutions due to confidentiality clauses. Most of the research activities are taking place in the area of diagnostics.

Are you looking at having a research base here?
We have plans to set up a research and development centre in the developing region. India and China are the possible options at the moment.

Are there inorganic growth opportunities for BD in India?
We are focusing on organic growth.