When Implema was tasked with helping Novavax’s Swedish subsidiary implement SAP S/4HANA Cloud, the conditions were anything but simple. Right in the middle of the pandemic, the company had to transition from a clinical research company to a fully commercial enterprise while demand for vaccines exploded and the organization grew rapidly. “We wouldn’t have made it without Implema,” summarizes Magnus Sävenhed, CEO of Novavax AB.
Novavax, Inc. is a global biotechnology company specializing in the development of innovative vaccines targeting serious infectious diseases such as SARS, influenza, RSV, Ebola, and COVID-19. The Swedish subsidiary, based in Uppsala, is responsible for the research, development, and production of the company’s saponin-based adjuvants.
From Research to Commercial Operations
When the pandemic hit, Novavax’s Swedish subsidiary faced a dual challenge: dramatically increasing production pace while transitioning from a research-focused company to a fully commercial enterprise. In parallel, the parent company was driving a global rollout of SAP S/4HANA Cloud. To bridge time zones and ensure local expertise, Implema was brought in as a local partner to lead the implementation in Sweden.
The Role of Business Systems in Life Science
For Life Science companies, the business system is crucial for meeting the industry’s strict compliance requirements. The system must handle everything from batch-level traceability and authorization management to audit trails and electronic signatures in critical process steps. At the same time, the industry is changing rapidly, with new business models and platform ecosystems that place even higher demands on stable and flexible system support. time zones and calendars in the work, which, however, with a bit of puzzling, went surprisingly well.
A Project with Unique Challenges
The project started right in the middle of the pandemic and it became clear early on that Novavax was a company in transformation. The transition to commercial operations meant both new processes and a need for increased collaboration between departments and companies. The growth in operations, the high pressure on production and distribution, and the requirements to comply with American SOX regulations (Sarbanes-Oxley Act) made the assignment even more complex. At the same time, the project needed to be carried out in close collaboration with an American implementation partner with all that entails in terms of different time zones and work cultures.
– Novavax previously lacked a comprehensive business system. We had to help them identify processes and create alignment between units to make everything work in SAP, explains Katarina Sutrowitz, then Sales Director SAP at Implema.
Success Factors
Despite the many challenges, the project was a success. Go-live was completed without drama, something project manager Rolf Lundquist, Implema largely attributes to strong collaboration:
– There was an open atmosphere and a great willingness to collaborate from the start. Everyone understood the need to stick to standard functionality and have a quality mindset in every step. That alignment was a real key to success.
Implema contributed with project management, process definition, solution modeling, acceptance testing, and troubleshooting. They trained key users, developed roles and training programs, and ensured quality in migration data and governance models.
“We Couldn’t Have Done it without Implema.”
For Novavax, the result was crucial for the transformation.
– In the situation we were in, with strong growth and intense pressure on operations, it was especially important to have a local partner who is both an SAP expert and has extensive Life Science experience. I’m convinced that the SAP implementation is absolutely crucial for us now being the commercial company we are, for both veterinary and human vaccines, says Magnus Sävenhed, CEO of Novavax AB.
– We are extremely satisfied and wouldn’t have made it without Implema.
