Global pharma affiliates
A launch or a brand that needs a plan the team can run
Country and regional teams that need launch readiness, a localized core story or an omnichannel redesign, without waiting for headquarters.
Pharmaceutical marketing consultant · Ex-Pfizer, J&J, AbbVie
Pharma Marketing Consultant
I am a pharmaceutical marketing consultant who learned the trade inside Pfizer, AbbVie and Johnson & Johnson, where I created Janssen’s first unified Simponi campaign and led its launch across EMEA emerging markets. I help pharma and biotech companies plan launches, position brands, engage healthcare professionals across channels and run medical education that changes practice, in the United States, Europe and the Middle East.
- Pfizer · AbbVie · J&JProduct management, launches and biologics marketing, 2011 to 2019
- Simponi, EMEA emerging marketsCreated the first unified campaign and launched it to the region’s marketing teams
- LIPTIS PharmaceuticalsDigital transformation head and US obesity product launch
- Pharmacist by trainingFaculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University
The record
From Pfizer and AbbVie to J&J’s first unified Simponi campaign.
My career started in the pharmacy and moved quickly into pharma marketing: early roles at Pfizer in Kuwait and AbbVie in Saudi Arabia, then Johnson & Johnson in Kuwait and Janssen in the UAE. As EMEA Emerging Markets Product Manager for biologics and immunology, I covered Africa, the Middle East and Eastern Europe.
Simponi was the defining brief. The brand had different stories in different countries. I created the first unified marketing campaign, “Where others stop, Simponi prevails”, and launched it, with new campaign materials, to the marketing managers and directors who would run it in their markets, so one core story could be adapted to local practice rather than rewritten in every country. Alongside it came new product launches and medical education with rheumatologists across the GCC: the first GCC Rheumatology Conference, the Janssen Rheumatology Forum and the Kuwait SpA management guidelines meeting.
At LIPTIS Pharmaceuticals I led digital transformation across international markets and the launch of LIPTIS Pharmaceuticals USA’s latest obesity product, with scientific launch meetings for healthcare audiences. At BioNixus Group I lead marketing, market research and business development for healthcare and pharma clients.
What I consult on
Pharmaceutical marketing, from brand plan to field execution.
A pharma marketing consultant should leave you with a plan your brand team can run and defend in front of medical, legal and finance. These are the areas where I do that work.
- LNCH
Launch strategy and readiness
Launch sequence, critical path, stakeholder map, message platform and KPIs for new molecules, indications and line extensions, from pre-launch to year one.
- POS
Brand positioning and messaging
A positioning built on the evidence you can substantiate, a core story that works across countries, and message testing with the specialists who will prescribe.
- HCP
HCP omnichannel engagement
Field, email, WhatsApp, webinars, portals and rep-triggered content orchestrated into one HCP journey, with consent and preferences captured. Pharma omnichannel marketing
- MED
Medical education and KOL programs
Congress symposia, specialist forums, GP education and guideline meetings designed to change clinical practice, accredited and compliant. Medical education in the GCC
- DIG
Digital strategy and AI
Search, content, programmatic and social for pharma within the rules, plus segmentation, scoring and automation that make a small brand team productive. Pharma digital marketing strategy
- RES
Market research and insight
Prescriber, patient and payer research, segmentation and forecasting through BioNixus, so positioning and plans rest on evidence rather than opinion.
- GCC
Middle East market entry
Commercial planning for Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and the wider GCC: stakeholders, localization, Arabic content and compliant launch. Middle East pharma market entry
- REG
Compliance built into the plan
Approval workflows, promotional codes and data protection designed in from the first draft, for the US, Europe and MENA. Compliance guide: MENA and US
In the field
Campaign launches, congresses and guideline meetings.
Pharma marketing is built in rooms like these: presenting a regional campaign to the teams who will run it, CME-accredited meetings with specialists, and the scientific meetings behind a product launch.
Janssen · EMEA emerging marketsPresenting the new Simponi campaign to marketing managers and directors
1st GCC Rheumatology Conference · Kuwait, 2019Organized by the Kuwait Association of Rheumatology, around “Sharing our local experience”
Janssen Rheumatology ForumWave II of Janssen’s rheumatology forum
Kuwait SpA management guidelinesA meeting on spondyloarthritis management guidelines in Kuwait
Rheumatology in General Practice · Kuwait, 2018Honoured on stage at the first edition, a CME-accredited conference
LIPTIS Pharmaceuticals USAPresenting at the launch of its latest obesity product, Alexandria
What goes wrong
The five pharma marketing mistakes I am hired to fix.
Most briefs I receive start with one of these. Knowing them early is cheaper than fixing them after launch.
- 01
A positioning that medical cannot defend
The message was written by marketing, then sent to medical and legal for approval. It comes back stripped of meaning. The fix is to write it with the reviewers in the room, from the evidence outward.
- 02
Multichannel without orchestration
Reps, emails, webinars and portals each run their own calendar. The HCP sees noise. Orchestration means one journey, one content plan and one measure of engagement per specialist.
- 03
Launch planning that starts at approval
The sequence should start 12 to 18 months before launch, with KOL mapping, disease awareness, market access groundwork and field readiness. Starting at approval costs the first year.
- 04
Global campaigns translated, not adapted
A European campaign translated into Arabic still assumes the wrong buyer, the wrong proof and the wrong channel. One core story, adapted to each market’s practice, is the Simponi lesson.
- 05
Measuring activity, not change
Calls, opens and attendance are easy to count. The business question is whether prescribing, referrals or formulary access moved. Agree the measure before the campaign, then attribute honestly.
Who hires a pharma marketing consultant
Built for brand teams, affiliates, biotechs and investors.
Regional and generic manufacturers
Moving from price to brand
Manufacturers in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf building branded generics, OTC and specialty portfolios, and the marketing capability to go with them.
Biotech and specialty
First commercial plan for a specialty asset
Small teams that need KOL strategy, medical education and a first launch plan sized to a narrow prescriber base.
Investors and consultancies
Expert view on a market or a deal
Commercial due diligence and market assessments, including expert calls through GLG, AlphaSights, Guidepoint and Dialectica.
Engagement models
Project, fractional or advisory.
Project
Launch plan or brand plan
A fixed-scope engagement with a written deliverable: launch readiness plan, positioning and message platform, omnichannel design or market entry plan. Typically 6 to 12 weeks.
Fractional
Fractional CMO for pharma
Ongoing marketing leadership for an agreed number of days a month: strategy, team and agency direction, budget and reporting to the CEO or general manager.
Fractional CMOAdvisory
Advisor and expert calls
Hourly expert calls and board-level advice for leadership teams, investors and consultancies.
What pharma leaders say
Recommended by colleagues from Pfizer to biopharma.
Mohammad is an exceptional professional with tremendous industry knowledge and experience in the pharmaceutical industry. Working with him has been an absolute pleasure: his expertise, professionalism, and communication methods provided strong deliverables and helped us successfully complete our common project. If you get the opportunity to work with him, do not miss out.
Mohammad is a connector of connectors and seeks to create communities of learning and sharing best practice. I am inspired by his commitment to excellence and in growing a knowledge base in health care and biopharma for the benefit of patients in the Middle East.
Mohammad is one of the best people I have ever worked with. He helped me a lot at the beginning of my time at Pfizer: a proactive and responsible colleague with great skills, so I called him my senior.
Mohammad has a large scale of experience and capabilities. His commitment and accountability are a driving force for growth, and he is able to strategically manage challenging situations.
Pharma marketing guides
Frameworks and checklists from the field.
Launch
Pharmaceutical product launch checklist
The launch sequence from pre-launch to year one, and the mistakes that cost the most.
ReadStrategy
Pharma digital marketing strategy
A seven-part framework for prescription brands, with a 90-day plan.
ReadOmnichannel
Pharma omnichannel marketing
From multichannel noise to orchestrated HCP journeys, and what to measure.
ReadDigital
Digital marketing in pharma and healthcare
The method under every other guide: audiences, channels, compliance and measurement.
ReadMedical education
Pharma medical education in the GCC
Lessons from rheumatology on programs that change practice.
ReadMiddle East
Pharmaceutical digital marketing in the Middle East
Regional channels, languages and compliance, country by country.
ReadThe wider picture: healthcare marketing across pharma, medtech, digital health, hospitals and labs
FAQ
Questions about pharmaceutical marketing consulting.
What does a pharmaceutical marketing consultant do?
A pharma marketing consultant builds the commercial plan for a prescription or OTC brand and helps the team execute it: launch sequence and readiness, positioning and messaging that medical and legal can defend, HCP omnichannel engagement, medical education and KOL programs, digital and AI, and measurement that ties activity to prescribing or access. The deliverable is a plan the brand team can run, not a slide deck.
How are you different from a pharma marketing agency?
An agency executes a brief. I write the brief, own the strategy and the result, and direct the agencies and in-house team that execute. I spent eight years inside Pfizer, AbbVie and Johnson & Johnson as a product manager and brand lead, so I have sat on the client side of every agency conversation you are about to have.
Which therapy areas do you know best?
Immunology and biologics from my Janssen years (rheumatology, including Simponi), obesity from the LIPTIS USA launch, and earlier brand work at Pfizer and AbbVie in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. The launch and omnichannel method transfers across therapy areas; the KOL map and evidence base are rebuilt for each one.
Do you handle regulatory affairs or product registration?
No. Registration with the FDA, EMA, SFDA or the Egyptian Drug Authority stays with your regulatory affairs team or local partner. I work alongside them on the commercial side and design every campaign to pass medical, legal and regulatory review the first time.
Do you work in the United States as well as the Middle East?
Yes. I led the US launch of LIPTIS Pharmaceuticals USA’s latest obesity product and serve US clients remotely as a fractional CMO, with overlap in US hours. In the Middle East I bring direct experience from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt, in Arabic and English.
How long does a pharma launch plan take, and what does it cost?
A launch readiness or brand plan is usually a 6 to 12 week project with a fixed fee agreed in writing. Fractional leadership is priced per agreed days a month, advisory per hour. Book a strategy call and I will propose the scope that fits your launch date.
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