Article

From launch to brand loyalty: Why picking the right hub partner matters

Paul Johnson
AVP, Citius Healthcare Consulting

Dec - 24

Engaging with patient services hub suppliers to onboard and retain patients is ubiquitous across pharma companies these days. But selecting the right hub supplier is more than a checkbox – it is a strategic investment in patient and provider experience that can help or hinder brand success. Choosing the wrong partner can lead to costly implementation delays, poor patient experiences, and missed opportunities for growth and efficiency. By focusing on suppliers who align with your vision, deliver operational excellence, and adapt to market dynamics, you safeguard your brand and set the stage for long-term competitive advantage.

Identifying the challenges

Selecting the right patient services hub suppliers can be challenging due to several factors:

Rapid growth in the hub market: Patient services hub suppliers are growing and proliferating in response to market demand, making the selection process more complex. According to the MRFR Pharma Hub Patient Access Support Service Market report,^[2] demand for outsourced patient services is growing by a whopping 23% annually (CAGR). The market reached $57B in 2024 and is projected to grow to $580B in just ten years. The underlying driver in this trend involves the heightened focus on rare disease therapies, which require specialized approaches to patient access and support. Thus creating a short list of potential suppliers in a fluid and competitive market takes skill.
Bespoke patient and provider experience: Another key challenge is finding a partner who shares your vision for the best patient and provider experience. Equally important is supplier expertise in delivering hub services aligned to your therapy area and patient journey. A survey of pharma industry leaders^[1] identified “increasing patient satisfaction” as the top priority for patient services programs, but many hub suppliers are perceived as not fully aligned with holistic patient needs.
Overemphasis on price and pitch: Pharma companies must move beyond viewing HUBs as mere commodities chosen primarily on lowest price or persuasive proposals. Effective patient onboarding and retention are mission-critical to the company, demanding a strategic and thoughtful approach to selecting the most suitable HUB supplier. This involves iterative and creative evaluation techniques that pressure-test and confirm the supplier’s true abilities, and assessment criteria designed to measure best overall value to the brand.
The ripple effect of a bad choice: Too often, pharma organizations launch with one hub supplier only to realize the fit isn’t right – whether in enhancing the patient experience, achieving operational goals, adapting to market dynamics, or collaborating with the pharma manufacturer’s team as a strategic partner. This can lead to poor launch performance, expensive follow-on corrections to process and technology, and the time and expense of relaunching with a better supplier downstream.

Bringing focus to the supplier evaluation

To overcome these challenges, companies should establish a few strategic imperatives that bring focus to the evaluation of potential hub services suppliers. This is key to ensuring that the selected supplier will be a strong strategic fit for the brand. For example:

Asking the right questions in the assessment

Based on the strategic imperatives, here are some considerations for organizations to include in their evaluation strategy for patient services hub suppliers (illustrative only).

1. Operational excellence and quality

How well does the supplier systematically build in quality in every phase of the operation, including both quality control and quality assurance across all external and internal interactions?
Does the supplier continuously identify and act on measures of performance throughout the patient journey, including alerts on outliers such as patients not getting serviced within the expected turnaround time?
What is the depth and length of experience of the supplier’s program manager who would be assigned to this patient support program?
How has the supplier demonstrated continual improvement in KPI performance and cost reduction for similar hub programs?

2. Scalability

Can the supplier provide compelling examples of how they have scaled hub services as the patient volume grew or shrank, including seasonal trends and unexpected market changes?
What is the growth rate of this supplier in terms of revenue, number of clients, and number of programs managed? How have their org structure, operations, and infrastructure scaled accordingly?
What acquisitions has this supplier made in the last few years to augment their capabilities in data/analytics, artificial intelligence, workflow automation, pharmacy integration, and reimbursement services?

3. Agility and innovation

To what degree is the CRM easily configurable to support program requirements such as workflows, patient/provider communications, data integrations, and data analysis/reporting? Are e-PA, e-BV, e-income, e-signature, and e-determination functions available and fully integrated within the system? Can the system track patient and provider responses to specific communications?
Is agentic AI used to streamline and improve workflow quality in tasks performed by supplier personnel, providers, and patients?
Is paperless enrollment and consent in place for all patient and provider workflows?
What patient-level data analysis and insights capability is provided to the manufacturer with the solution, including CRM, phone, and all other communication channels?
What is the average turnaround time to estimate and implement expected technology enhancements after launch (API data integration, workflow change, additional data capture, analytics view, or patient/provider communication)?

4. Therapeutic expertise

What examples can the supplier provide of their experience launching and running a hub for a program in this therapeutic area? For a similar patient/provider workflow?
What latitude is available to customize the hub’s process and technology to this specific patient population and therapeutic journey?
What examples can the supplier provide of close collaboration with the brand team to improve patient and provider engagement and service delivery?

5. Implementation proficiency

How long will it take the supplier to implement and launch the program with full functionality (no requirements delayed to a phase 2 launch)?
What latitude is available to customize the hub’s process and technology to this specific patient population and therapeutic journey?
What lessons learned from prior implementations will the supplier apply to this launch?
Is the supplier able to deliver a project plan of the implementation that includes all major deliverables and durations across major workstreams such as contracting, staffing, process, technology, pre-launch readiness testing, and go-live?

Your hub supplier choice can make or break your program’s success

Selecting the right partner isn’t just a procurement decision – it is a strategic move that impacts launch success, patient experience, efficiency, and long-term growth. Too often, organizations discover misalignment only after launch, leading to costly delays and missed opportunities.

Don’t gamble with your brand’s future

Our team has deep experience with the hub supplier market and specializes in objective, data-driven evaluations that minimize risk and find the best-fit supplier from the start. Schedule a conversation with us now about how to safeguard your brand and provide long-term program success. If you are considering replacing your existing supplier, don’t wait – every day with the wrong hub partner costs you time and money.