The healthcare and life sciences (HLS) sector is embracing a wave of transformation. While the industry has historically focused on cost control and compliance, it is now pivoting toward patient-centered care, enhanced operational efficiency, and cutting-edge technological innovations. This positive shift offers both opportunities and challenges for stakeholders, as they adapt to digital advancements while navigating rising costs and workforce limitations.
The health-sciences industry is currently facing significant challenges, including escalating medical and pharmaceutical costs, intricate regulatory frameworks, and the necessity for seamless technology integration. In response, healthcare providers are increasingly adopting innovative solutions such as AI, the IoT, and data-driven platforms to improve patient experiences and drive value-based care. Moreover, there is a heightened emphasis on workforce development, diverse clinical trials, and scalable compliance strategies, which are driving substantial advancements across the sector. Organizations like Cognizant are leading the charge by offering impactful solutions that enable healthcare and life sciences stakeholders to effectively address these challenges and foster a more promising future for all involved. Collectively, these efforts aim to create a more efficient and equitable healthcare system for everyone.
During our visit to the Cognizant Health Sciences Innovation Center for its Analyst and Advisor Day in November 2024, the Head of Global Delivery – Cognizant Americas, Singaravelu Ekambaram, highlighted Cognizant’s impressive revenue of $5 billion in Q3 2024, driven by strong growth in its Health Sciences segment. He also highlighted the company’s strategic partnerships with industry leaders, such as AWS, Google, Microsoft, NVIDIA and Palo Alto, and the expansion of AI innovation studios globally. Raghuraman Rajaraman, CTO, Americas, led the walkthrough of the Cognizant Health Sciences Innovation Center, a collaborative hub for co-innovation that brings together clients, industry leaders, and academia. Showcasing over 50 industry-leading use cases in healthcare and life sciences, the center is dedicated to developing advanced health-sciences solutions.
Cognizant Vice President Ganapathy Vaidyanathan, Payer BU Delivery Head, Shriganesh Balakrishnan, Provider BU Delivery Head, and Tarini Prasad, Life Sciences Delivery SBU Head took us through Cognizant’s innovative solutions designed to empower the healthcare and life sciences industry. They showcased how AI and digital platforms, such as its Neuro® AI and Neuro® Cybersecurity platforms, enhance decision-making and protect enterprise systems. Its WorkNEXT™ platform delivers advanced digital workplace solutions to enhance productivity, collaboration, and employee experiences. Leveraging AI, automation, and analytics, it provides secure, adaptive tools like device management, intelligent service desks, and unified communication for seamless workforce transformation. Cognizant also showcased its AI capabilities in drug discovery, demonstrating platforms that can identify protein pockets, design drug molecules, and simulate reaction pathways. These advancements promise to significantly accelerate research timelines and reduce costs. The Life Sciences Digital Services 2024 RadarView™ underscores this trend, highlighting that approximately 70% of service providers are actively developing AI-driven solutions to empower life sciences enterprises. These innovations enable organizations to streamline operations and focus on their core strengths. To succeed, service providers must go beyond delivering quality services, leveraging advanced technologies to drive efficiency and enhance the industry’s ability to prioritize its primary competencies.
Cognizant is transforming remote healthcare delivery through hospital-at-home models, predictive maintenance tools, and integrating diagnostic devices, such as dermatoscopes and otoscopes, enabling real-time, accurate care. These advancements improve access for underserved regions, reduce unnecessary hospital visits, and ensure patients receive seamless, personalized treatment. Its innovation hubs further drive progress in drug discovery and diagnostics, delivering cutting-edge solutions faster. The Healthcare Provider Digital Services 2024 RadarView™ reveals that around 60% of service providers are enhancing remote healthcare delivery and patient experience by supporting enterprises with chatbots and telehealth platforms.
Figure 1 – Healthcare providers are implementing digital technologies to drive personalized patient experience
Another key highlight at the Cognizant Health Sciences Innovation Center was the use of robotic arms to automate medical device testing, ensuring consistent and error-free performance. Additionally, augmented reality and virtual training platforms were showcased, enabling participants to visualize complex molecular structures and simulate surgical procedures. These immersive technologies are transforming medical education and collaborative research, reinforcing Cognizant’s commitment to driving innovation in healthcare.
Analysis
Below are some key takeaways from Cognizant’s approach to healthcare and life sciences.
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- Unified data integration: Cognizant excels in merging clinical, administrative, and chemical data, facilitating informed decision-making across the healthcare spectrum.
- Patient-centric innovations: The company leverages tools such as IoT kits and video-based platforms to enhance interactions between patients and providers, ensuring a more connected and responsive healthcare experience.
- Sustainability and scalability: Cognizant’s investments in bio-manufacturing and diagnostics underscore its commitment to long-term viability and impactful healthcare solutions.
- Global collaborations: Strategic partnerships with industry leaders such as Google and Amazon amplify the reach and efficacy of Cognizant’s solutions, driving innovation and efficiency in healthcare delivery.
Recommendations
As the HLS sector continues to evolve, Cognizant possesses capabilities in these areas and can enhance them further to strengthen its offerings
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- Enhancing drug development processes: It can continue to leverage advanced technologies such as AI, ML, and data analytics to accelerate drug research, optimize clinical trials, and streamline regulatory compliance.
- Optimizing the pharma supply chain: Cognizant can enhance the pharma supply chain by integrating IoT, blockchain, and AI technologies to improve inventory management, ensure transparency, and enable better tracking of pharmaceutical products. Additionally, by leveraging data analytics and digital marketing platforms, Cognizant can help pharma companies target the right audiences and personalize campaigns for greater customer engagement.
- Expanding Gen AI use cases: To drive further innovation in healthcare, Cognizant should continue exploring Gen AI applications, particularly in areas such as diagnostics, patient engagement, and operational efficiency.
- Adopting the industrial metaverse: By creating virtual spaces for global collaboration, Cognizant can accelerate R&D cycles and enhance collaboration in a geographically dispersed environment.
- Strengthening global partnerships: Cognizant should deepen collaborations with international research organizations, HLS consortiums, and regulatory bodies to align solutions with global healthcare demands.
Cognizant’s strategic investments in AI, IoT, and collaboration ecosystems, combined with its focus on enhancing healthcare accessibility and streamlining operations, position the company as a transformative leader in the HLS sector. As demonstrated during its Analyst and Advisor Day, Cognizant is well-equipped to address industry challenges and lead the next wave of advancements in healthcare and life sciences.
By: Eratha Poongkuntran, Research Leader Aditya Jain, Research Leader
