By Mikael Petrosyan, MIT Sloan Fellow MBA ’22 and Vice President, SDP Boston Chapter
As an MIT alum, it’s always a privilege to return to campus — but it’s even more meaningful when it’s to co-host an event that brings together students, alumni, and industry leaders around the topics that matter most.
On April 29, I partnered with James Morrison and the MIT Career Development Office to organize an evening session with the Society of Decision Professionals (SDP) Boston Chapter, focused on one of the most urgent and fascinating questions in life sciences today:
How do we make better, faster, smarter decisions in R&D — and what role can AI play in getting us there?
Our featured speaker, Dr. Helen Merianos, SVP and Global Head of R&D Strategy & Portfolio Management at Sanofi, offered an unfiltered and deeply practical perspective on how her team is transforming decision-making across a global R&D organization. It was powerful to hear how they moved from 100+ Excel files to a single AI-enabled platform — and even more powerful to see how that change is enabling a shift in culture, accountability, and strategic clarity.
A few moments that stood out to me:
- “We didn’t just adopt AI — we used it to drive cultural transformation across the enterprise. It wasn’t about getting the ‘right answer’; it was about making the room smarter.”
- “We moved from over 100 Excel files to a real-time, transparent platform that senior leaders actually want to use — because they can understand it and act on it.”
- “Decision-making in pharma isn’t just complex — it’s emotional. When leaders don’t understand the analysis, they can’t engage. We built a system that invites them into the process.”
- Helen also shared examples of how AI-enabled simulations helped Sanofi make key trade-off decisions between clinical investment and market expansion — and even inspired a team to redesign a study using real-world data, allowing them to deliver on both fronts within the same budget.
Beyond the talk, what made the evening special was the mix of voices in the room. Students connected with MIT alumni, industry professionals, and SDP board members — including leaders from Novartis, Biogen, Alnylam, Novo Nordisk, Takeda, Intelligencia.AI, and more. The conversations didn’t end at the Q&A — they continued in the hallways, over coffee, and on LinkedIn afterward.
These events remind me why I stay involved with SDP and the MIT community. They’re more than just lectures — they’re opportunities to build relationships, challenge your thinking, and stay close to the people shaping the future of our industry.
If you’re a student or alum curious about strategy, data, innovation, or decision-making in biotech or pharma — I hope you’ll join us for a future event. For me, this has been one of the best ways to grow my network, stay inspired, and stay connected.
Special thanks to Helen Merianos for her thoughtful and inspiring talk, to James Morrison and the CDO team for making this event possible, and to Intelligencia.AI for their support as our event sponsor.
Let’s keep the conversation going.
