Hospitals filled to capacity. Case counts climbing by the hour. Quarantine became routine.

It was the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The world needed a vaccine that didn’t exist, and there was no clear timeline for one. No one knew how long the vaccine development process would take — or whether it would work at all.

Then, less than a year later, Pfizer and BioNTech set a record for how fast a drug moved from clinical trials to federal authorization — and to people waiting as the virus surged worldwide.  That speed depended on more than scientific discovery. It hinged on trials, regulatory approval, and manufacturing at scale.

Experience Made the Difference

Startup BioNTech, a small biotech firm, had spent years developing mRNA technology. Pfizer, a huge pharmaceutical company, brought deep experience running large clinical trials, working with regulators, and manufacturing at scale. The two companies had worked together before, which meant they did not have to build trust, decision-making structures, or workflows in the middle of a crisis. Trials moved quickly. They knew what regulators required and how to meet those demands.

According to Georgia Tech research, that kind of business alignment is far from common — and can explain why many promising drugs never reach patients.

Manpreet Hora, senior associate dean for programs and professor of operations management in Georgia Tech’s Scheller College of Business, studies what happens after a drug leaves the lab. In a study published in Production and Operations Management, he and his coauthors analyzed nearly 300 biotech–pharma partnerships to understand why some drugs make it through and others stall.

“If you are a patient, this process is out of your control,” Hora said. “In some cases, it can cost lives.”

Where It Breaks Down

Drug development often depends on handoffs. Small biotech firms typically generate early discoveries. Larger pharmaceutical companies step in to run trials, work with regulators, and bring products to market.

But complications can arise when companies that lack similar experience levels try to develop the drug together.

Decision-making slows down. Roles become unclear. The process starts to erode.

"That's why partner choice matters," Hora said, comparing the process to a popular TV show. "It's like going on Shark Tank — just because someone is offering money doesn't mean they're the right partner."

Hora said the Pfizer–BioNTech partnership worked because both companies approached the work the same way, despite the difference in their size. Pfizer is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. BioNTech was a much smaller firm.

What Decides the Outcome

As of September 2025, 5 billion doses of the Pfizer–BioNTech Covid vaccine have been distributed globally.

Pfizer’s chairman and CEO, Albert Bourla, attributes the unprecedented success to a “world class collaboration” with BioNTech. He said, "I think it was because both companies had developed very similar cultures…We were both really very purpose-driven.”

Hora's research comes to the same conclusion: In an industry where drugs can take a decade to reach patients, the wrong partner can mean they never arrive at all.