[00:02]
Whether you are focused on access to capital, access for payers, access for providers, patients, it’s access to everything including our expertise and that’s really the past year we banded together as a team to ensure that’s at the forefront of everything we do.

[00:19]
We can bring folks from somewhere to somewhere and that from two can be base one to two, base two to three, base three to FDA regulation, launch approval, all of the great things all the way through LLE, but the most important piece is we have the tools to bring you from to and doing in a way that’s repeatable. Do it in a way that’s predictable and do it in a way where the front and center piece is getting a drug from a manufacturer to a patient.

[00:53]
When considering the future, the leaders of Precision AQ are focused on broadening access for patients. In this episode of the podcast podcast, we’re going to explore how the agency is redefining what healthcare access means from patients and providers to payers and capital. With a pair of leaders here to share personal insights, articulate the company’s mission, and describe how a culture of collaboration and innovation is shaping the future of access solutions.

[01:16]
I’m Jack O’Brien, managing editor of MM+M and this is the MM+M Agency 100 Strategies for Success podcast with Precision AQ.

[01:28]
As I said in my intro, joined here by a couple of leaders at Precision AQ. Hi Jack, I’m Isabella Sergio, executive vice president, managing partner of our healthcare agencies at Precision AQ. Dan Cummings here, chief commercial officer at Precision AQ across all things Precision AQ, agency, advisory and products. A Jack of all trades, I so appreciate that. Well, thank you both for being on the show here today. Let’s talk first things first, zoom in a little bit on the personal side.

[01:57]
Dan, I know you joined more recently and have a pair of fresh eyes and perspective on the agency. Talk a little bit about what clicked for you when it came to joining Precision AQ. When what was that moment like for you? Yeah, it’s real easy. I mean my first interaction, I call this a coming home story, it was about 10 years ago. Precision reached out to me when I was a different place, different time, just not the right time just then. And I’ve been following this company ever since. I played in the space and life sciences for 15 plus years.

[02:25]
I’ve been a market access console and I’ve worked for agencies, I worked for bigger companies, I’ve worked for digital health start-ups, and I always had this derivative, this focus on access. And so when I looked at this place, there was this this spirit of access and innovation. There is this spirit of redefining really what access meant, right? As you opened up with. It’s not just payor, right? That’s the headline. There’s also still this founder grit that I love, right?

[02:50]
Being from startup world and a little bit of a tech focus, right? It’s not just service, it’s tech too. And this ability to connect, to create, to understand, to iterate and most important important, and this was the number one thing. It’s a company that’s obsessed with the customer and puts the customer at the center, right? And surrounds and enables the people that help bring our customers’ vision to life in a way that’s just provocative, differentiated, and ultimately unique. And so take all that, and essentially we’re co-building.

[03:20]
We’re co-building with our clients to enable access for all. And really, that’s why I’m here. It’s that simple. Awesome. I appreciate that background on your journey to arriving at Precision AQ and really finding your home there. Isabella, it was interesting as Dan was saying that that, you know, he’s been in the space for 15 years. You’ve been at Precision IQ for the same amount of time. Talk to me a little bit about, you know, building and shaping that company. I like what Dan said there about co-building. It’s an interesting concept I want to unpack here. Absolutely. So it’s it’s interesting.

[03:48]
I started my career on the HCP side of the world and I sat in a number of different conversations about these novel therapeutics that were coming out in the market and access became more and more a part of the conversation to ensure that patients had access to these medications. So I started my journey at Precision at that time. Starting in the market access, the traditional market access organization.

[04:11]
I have been here closing in on about 15 years at this point and what Dan said is exactly it. There are so many different areas of this organization that has drawn me in over the years and it’s evolved multiple times. It’s not just one thing over the course of almost 15 years. It’s actually actually been this this progression over time where it started in Market Access and understanding that space. Then it was, well, what do we really think access means?

[04:40]
We’re going to redefine access as an organization. We’re going to put the customer at the center like Dan said, and we’re going to solve their challenges for them. So at the end of the day, patients have access to medications. Period. That is our mission, always empowering access for all. So it has gone through so many different We have iterations. We have built capabilities within this organization, which has been incredibly exciting.

[05:04]
So from my point of view, being somebody that came in on the agency side, watching us grow into an organization that has expanded capability abilities not just with the expertise of the people we have and then data that’s at our fingertips that we can leverage to solve customer challenges and provide access, but also work through proprietary tools and products that we have that really put us in that innovative position. I’d be remiss if I didn’t say this. Our people are always going to be at the heart of everything.

[05:32]
And when I say people, I’m not solely speaking about the people at Precision. It’s also the clients we work with because we become an extension of their team. So it is this whole comprehensive and holistic approach that we have as an organization that has kept me here for so long. And it just keeps me very excited for the future. Now, it comes through in droves through through the speakers here and and I appreciate you talking about this idea of like how much more of a focus and emphasis there has been on access in a prior life I used to cover hospitals and health systems.

[06:02]
I remember that used to be something where it’s like, yeah, the focus is always there and I think the COVID pandemic really accelerated this focus into no, access is a really critical aspect of the healthcare journey. And so I appreciate appreciate you honing in on that. Let’s zoom out a little bit for our audience though and talk about the agency. We can get a little meta here. Talk about the agency and its evolution. Isabelle, maybe you can start us off here. In terms of, you know, what has changed over the past year? It’s been an interesting thing whenever we do our education 100 is talking to the agency and it’s like fill us in. You know, what is it what has it been like?

[06:32]
And so give us the walkthrough Precision AQ from from last year to where we are now. So last year, Precision AQ launched in the market, same organization, same mission. What has been so exciting to see for us as an organization is how we have continued to come together as a network of agencies really putting the client at the center of everything that we do. So, we’ve broken down silos.

[06:56]
There’s not so much about oh you focus on medical communications or traditional advertising or IRPR or market access. It’s more this is the customer that we’re working with. These are the challenges that they have to solve for. Let’s get the best of the best at the table. So, we can solve them together as an integrated team. That’s a lot of what has changed.

[07:16]
We’ve grown the organization and you’re going to hear Dan talk a little bit about this as well as we focus in on some of our capabilities that have always been there but maybe not as much in the forefront of how people think about Precision AQ and that’s something that’s very much top of mind and the focus for us. We’ve brought a new talent. Dan just introduced himself and it feels like I’ve been working with Dan for the 15 years that I’ve been at this organization but that’s obviously expanding our leadership and the talent that we have within this organization.

[07:45]
So, it’s not just our creativity, the expertise that we bring to the table at all the different facets of access, whether you are focused on access to capital, access for payers, access for providers, patients, it’s access to everything including our expertise. And that’s really the past year we’ve banded together as a team to ensure that’s at the forefront of everything we do. Dan, what do you want to add to that point too about this ongoing evolution?

[08:13]
I think the thing that’s interesting too and being at several portfolio companies that you can find on my LinkedIn, I won’t name them here. This company’s differentiated, right? It’s moded. It’s It’s really knows its mission, right? And our mission is not simple or simplistic, but it’s very focused. It’s in power, access for all, right? And And I just want to really unpack that and say that slowly because in the end, when you put access at the center, it’s exactly what Isabella said, patients, providers, payers, and capital.

[08:42]
And And then when you surround that that square with what we can do, it’s not just humans, people, but it’s also unique perspectives of thousands of employees that are looking at access from different lenses. And then it’s also this fact that, hey by the way, we have real intellectual property that no one else in the world has. We have 10 unique differentiated data products that help with things around EHR, things around treatment pathways and everything under the sun to create a mastering of what who are the payers?

[09:12]
Who are the providers at the most atomic and forensic level. I could tell you. We could tell you that. We understand that. And in the end, I think this mission is so important in this environment because it helps like this very simplistic mental model. We can bring folks from somewhere to somewhere, right? And that from to can be phase one to two, phase two to three, phase three to FDA regulation, launch, approval, all of the great things all the way through LOE.

[09:37]
But the most important piece is we have the tools to bring you from to and doing a way that’s Do it a way that’s predictable and do it in a way where the front and center of piece is getting a drug from a manufacturer to a patient, right? And that’s a mission that I can get out of bed every day, every day to do and it’s only because we have this collection of networks of agencies, this collection of advisory firms, and this collection of unique data that we can pull through in a very interesting way. And I’ll tell you this, right?

[10:06]
I was just on a call this morning with people from all different parts of AQ talking just about that. And having this dialogue and really drilling in on the why and the so what and how we can think about this in a way. And we brought it to the client and the client quite literally said I’ve never ever even thought that that was an option. And it is an option We can get that detailed in that specific because of what we have.

[10:28]
And so impact in the end to empower access for all is not simplistic, but it’s simple and it’s what gets me out of bed and it’s why I’m here. Well, now I feel motivated too. Now I want to get out of bed and and Yeah do everything I can to run healthcare access. You know, it’s it’s wonderful to hearing about the evolution over the past year and and one of the big points that our editor and chief Jameson really tasked us with with Agency 100 this year was focusing on points of differentiation.

[10:54]
You know, what makes the agency that I’m speaking with today, different than the 99 other agencies on the list. And I I want to throw it over to you in terms of when you think of the value proposition that you put out into the marketplace, how does that differ than others that are out there? Because a lot of agencies will have similar language, but ultimately, you know, you have to define yourself to the clients that you’re going out there to pursue, to the target audiences that you’re trying to market to. Like, what is that for Precision AQC? Yeah, I could start and then I’ll I’ll bring it to Isabella, right?

[11:22]
And I think I’ll give you some proof points and she can give you some reality. And here’s a fact. We have 1,200 plus experts covering every aspect of the commercial journey. We have 20 folks, 20 human beings that are a former staff of access decision makers, right? Pairs, PBM, so on and so forth. We’ve helped launch 450 drugs in recency. 450 assets, 450, you know, drugs that change people’s lives. And we have this proprietary data.

[11:49]
And so you take this a mixture of 1,200 experts, unique ability to talk to people that are our customers’ customers, right? That’s our access experience team. That’s the 20 staff that are former access decision makers. Fact that we’ve launched 450 drugs, that’s more than some big pharma companies and mid-sized pharma companies. And suddenly, we have an ability to be easy to work with, easy to work for, and ultimately achieve that mission.

[12:14]
One of those examples, and if you go into and look at the ASCO fodder, and the ASCO noise is, and which was great, is Belle and I just got back and we’re quite tired. Um but we’re excited, is we brought this idea around precision AQ oncology.

[12:31]
And what that is is a full launch full holistic solution that ties all this together in a way that can help companies launch their assets in oncology or help assets that are already launched to achieve access for all, right? And it connects each one of these points in a very simple way that again makes us easy to work with and easy to work for. But Isabel, what would you add? You’ve been living this 15 years. I’m just the new guy. Yeah. So, thank you, Dan.

[12:57]
I mean, you just hit on so many points and you know, I I mentioned this earlier or at least one of us mentioned this earlier. We as an organization evolve the market of how you define access. We really redefine what access means in this landscape. So, Precision has always been known as a market access organization, right? That I think if you were to to go look at Precision, you you would absolutely say, “Okay, market access leaders in the market.

[13:26]
Um, Dan just mentioned, we have over 20 full-time staff employees that came from varying groups of, you know, national health plans, health systems, IDNs, PBM’s, medical management groups, etc. But we take a look at Access to be so much broader than that. It’s not just about the payer because at the end of the day, there’s an entire ecosystem that is either making decisions and or influencing Access.

[13:52]
So we are looking for how we can can be that intersection for payers, providers, patients, and and investors really to ensure there is access for everything, right? And and empowering access for all, we we keep saying that. So, one of the things that differentiates us and there’s so many, right? And it’s hard to just pick a couple that we’re going to hone in on and Dan honed in on on some of our stats and and our capabilities, talked about oncology AQ, which we were so excited about at ASCO.

[14:22]
We have expertise across this organization where you have the access experience team of former payers. We have access to NCCN cancer centers and the physicians that sit in that. We have access to identify key opinion leaders and digital opinion leaders, who are the right stakeholders that you need to engage with so that you can understand your reach for your product and where education may still be needed.

[14:50]
We have in our clinical staff, we have deep clinical and scientific expertise PhDs within this organization. We have PhDs, RMDS, MDs that are all all staff within this organization that drive the development of content. All of our experts sit in the continuum of everything from project initiation, initial strategy, all the way through completion as an organization. I can continue talking about the different expertise within this organization.

[15:17]
You know, we obviously have subject matter expertise, whether it be in raising capital or if it’s going to be a about setting the economic or clinical evidence and value proposition that is required to get products in the market and in the hands of patients. You know, we have all of this. We have these proprietary tools Dan Mead mentioned, we have 10 proprietary tools. I mentioned one of them with the key opinion leader and digital opinion leader, uh Matrix 365 that we have.

[15:47]
We have a proprietary pull-through resource that allows HCPs to be able to understand on a local level what is the access for their patients to be able to get a medication in their hands. There’s so much that differentiates as an as an organization and then I do think that this is going to dovetail a little nicely into talking more about who precision is as an organization. Our people differentiate us. We’re an organization of people and principles.

[16:15]
The expertise that we have at your fingertips is just that that is at the end of the day what makes us so different and allows us to continue to innovate as an organization and meet the needs of our clients and then ultimately patience. I really appreciate hearing about that mission-driven focus there and really how it differentiates you from others on the list. And Isabelle, I want to go back to something you had talked about earlier where you talked about obviously being there as long as you had, you know, the the cultural aspect of it.

[16:41]
And I, you know, I hear from agency people all the time like, “Oh, we have a culture and it really drives us and everything.” But like, something must be clicking at Precision AQ if you have dedicated your career to being there and it continues to reinvigorate you and and make you want to go out there and do the best work. Can you talk a little bit about that for our audience and what that’s like within the organization? 100%. It’s probably one of my favorite topics to talk about if I’m being candid.

[17:03]
So, one of the things that drew me into this organization outside of wanting to learn a little bit more about the access side was every company is going to have a mission and a vision and some of them may have set principles. We as an organization have five precision principles that are rooted in core elements of client service, purpose, accountability, mutual respect and collaboration. They are how we’re measured as an organization, as individuals, as leaders.

[17:31]
It doesn’t matter the position you’re in as an organ in the organization. We all are expected to live by these principles. They’re not just words on a wall. So that really defines the culture that we have at precision. Everyone has a seat at the table and it’s so important to be thinking about it that way. When you look at organizations like agencies, we know we work really hard but we have a ton of fun as we’re doing it, right?

[17:58]
So that is you know at one point I’m pretty sure we had to check yourself for your record self or work hard, play hard, some sort of principle that was in there traditional agency type of principle Um, and we do that. Uh, that said, we also know how important work-life integration is. These are our careers, but we also have families. We also have and that’s work family and personal families, right? We have things outside of of work and we as an organization celebrate everything.

[18:26]
We celebrate each other’s personal milestones and accomplishments. We celebrate the professional ones as well, of course. Um, we have an inclusive culture when we take a look look at the individuals that are in this organization, it’s so important to us to make sure that we are bringing in different perspectives to the company. We think about the culture of this organization, we think about how do we as a company ensure that work life integration is at the forefront of our minds.

[18:55]
How are we making ourselves easy to work with and easy to work for? And it’s very much integrated into our culture. We’re also an organization that gives back. We have a really strong partnership with St. Jude, it’s obviously very near and dear to a lot of our hearts, but we also recognize heart health month, mental health month. There are so many different initiatives that we do to give back in the communities as a whole, and that’s incredibly important to us. And like most organizations, we’re in a hybrid working environment.

[19:25]
So, how do you keep that connectivity with folks that you’re so used to seeing every single day prior to 5 years ago? Um, how do you keep that that connectivity, that relationship Uh, we really prioritize that as an organization to make sure that you don’t feel like you’re at home at a computer and there’s not another person at the other end of that computer. So, that’s incredibly important to us as well. And if I could say this and Dan I obviously let you weigh in on this as well.

[19:53]
You know, having an opportunity to speak to somebody like myself who’s been here almost 15 years and then Dan who’s a bit newer to the organization, one of the things I love is the tenure of the organization we have and the balance that we strike where we bring in fresh new innovative perspectives to keep us to keep our finger on the pulse of everything that’s either externally in the market with our capabilities, how we differentiate ourselves and how we continuously evolve the culture of the organization. Absolutely. Anything you want to add to that, Dan?

[20:22]
I mean Isabella really going to cut all the bases for me. I mean favorite to talk about. Isabella sold me, right? She She interviewed when I was interviewed me when I was coming here. I mean ultimately, I would absolutely agree. If I could summarize it in two words, grit and curiosity. That’s what I could add to it if and and that’s something that you can’t find that’s intrinsic to this company. Awesome. Well, I I appreciate that.

[20:47]
Let’s We’ve talked a lot about, you know, what the year that was for Precision AQ, where things stand here in the middle of 2025. What’s the future look like? What’s next for Precision AQ? Yeah, here’s here’s the thing. This is all about bearing the fruits of not only the rebrand but living it on behalf of our clients and our staff.

[21:06]
And overall, if you think about this company in the simplest way, we can define strategy, we can create the content to engage with core audiences, and then we can leverage customized data solutions to provide clear insight to make the communications the most important. And right now, over our 12 years and even in the last year, we’re connecting that a lot more for our customers, right? We’re building, go to market models. That’s why I’m here as a chief commercial officer to make it simpler and easier to work with us, right?

[21:33]
We are creating a an operating model that drives us to look right and left and up and down. And you’re seeing the fruits of that. You’re seeing the commitment to empowering access for all and the fact that we have not just hundreds of clients, but many that have been with us for not 10 years 15 years and are growing, you know, at meaningful clicks. You’re seeing biotech being treated and want to work with us to be and ensure that they can drive repeatable and predictable growth.

[22:00]
And folks are coming in not only from our investor relations, I need capital, access to capital, but even further back. And what we didn’t talk about is we also have a CRO and a labs business. That’s much more early stage. And I talk to my counterpart every day about biotechs that were supporting in oncology and rare disease where they are focused and how we can help. and we do just that, and we did it at Asco. And then in the end, and Isabella hit this, how are we innovating for the future? AI is a piece. AI to drive productivity.

[22:29]
AI to drive unique products. Uh, one of them, again, is around identifying the digital opinion leaders that are driving the most HCP engagement online in real time with sentiment. We’re building connected go-to-market models and solutions, that’s Precision AQ Oncology. And we’re ultimately living and breathing our mission, right? To empower access for all I want to keep doing that. Keep doing that for our customers, bringing our customers to the table and co-building with them to what they need, what they want, and what they should have.

[23:00]
Awesome. This has been a wonderful conversation. I really appreciate you both being on the podcast and again congrats on being on the Agency 100 list. You know, it’s it’s certainly a an industry honor that I take a personal shine for because I work here. But for those in our audience, final takeaways for them. What should they know about Precision AQ? And how can they get in contact with you if they any sort of questions about best practices or one learn more about the agency. Sure. So, one, visit our website precisionaq.com.

[23:28]
We have a thought leadership, our experts, and everything you’d ever want to know about us, one click, get in contact, ping it, or listen to this, ping it, and said you heard Isabelle and Dan. I will personally respond to you. Number two, we actually have a opportunity right now for anyone listening that’s marketing or medical affairs. And any of those professionals that are, we’re offering 30-minute strategy sessions for free with lunch. Uh and all things medcoms. And so, I’ll eat with you and I’ll be excited.

[23:53]
If you can only remember one thing, remember we empower access for all and that’s payers, providers, that’s patients and that’s capital. And that’s through our people, our perspectives and our proprietary data. If you want to get in contact, precisionhu.com. Hit us up on LinkedIn, I’m Daniel Cummings. Isabella Sergio. And of course, our commitment to you is easy to work with, easy to work for. I can’t think of a better way to end the podcast. So, we’re going to wrap it there. Isabella and Dan, thank you so much for being on the podcast. Thank you. Thank you.