A 

Abortion
Accounting
Advertising
Africa
African-American Studies
Aging
Agriculture
American Indian Studies
Anthropology
Archaeology
Architecture
Argumentative
Art: Artists (Alphabetized)
Art: General
Become an Affiliate and Earn $$$
Biographies (Alphabetized)
Book Reviews (Non-Fiction) (Alphabetized)
Business: Companies (Alphabetized)
Business: General
Business: Industries (Alphabetized)
Business: International
Business: Small
California
Canada
Caribbean
Child Abuse
China
Communication: Journalism
Communication: Language & Speech
Communication: Media
Communication: Non-Verbal
Communication: Television
Communication: Television & Children
Communism
Computer Science
Consumerism
Criminal Justice: General
Criminal Justice: Juvenile Delinquency
Criminal Justice: Police Science
Criminal Justice: Prisons
Cuba
Death & Dying: Euthanasia
Death & Dying: General
Death & Dying: Suicide
Drama: American
Drama: English
Drama: World
Drugs: Alcohol
Drugs: General
Economics: Banking
Economics: Economists (Alphabetized)
Economics: General
Economics: Inflation
Economics: International Trade
Economics: Macroeconomics
Economics: Microeconomics
Economics: Taxation
Education: Administration
Education: Curriculum
Education: General
Education: Higher
Education: Physical
Education: Psychology
Education: Reading
Education: Special
Education: Teaching Methods
Education: Theory
Energy: General
Energy: Nuclear
Energy: Solar
Environmental Studies
Evolution
Family & Marriage
Films: Artists (Alphabetized)
Films: General
Finance: Companies (Alphabetized)
Finance: General
Former Soviet Union: Post-1990
France
Gender & Sexuality
Geography
Germany
History: Ancient Greek & Roman
History: European
History: Great Britain
History: U.S. (After 1865)
History: U.S. (Before 1865)
History: U.S. Presidency
History: U.S. Presidents (Alphabetized)
Homosexuality
Immigration
India
Indonesia
International Relations: Arms Control
International Relations: Cold War
International Relations: Non-U.S.
International Relations: U.S.
Japan
Jewish Studies
Korea
Labor
Latin America
Law: Business
Law: Capital Punishment
Law: General
Law: International & Non-U.S.
Law: Supreme Court
Leadership
Literature, American: Authors (Alphabetized)
Literature, American: Faulkner
Literature, American: Fitzgerald
Literature, American: General
Literature, American: Hawthorne
Literature, American: Hemingway
Literature, American: Melville
Literature, American: Poe
Literature, American: Steinbeck
Literature, American: Twain
Literature, English: Authors (Alphabetized)
Literature, English: Chaucer
Literature, English: Conrad
Literature, English: Dickens
Literature, English: General
Literature, English: Joyce
Literature, English: Lawrence
Literature, English: Shakespeare
Literature, English: Swift
Literature, General: Children
Literature, General: Classic (Greek & Roman)
Literature, General: Russian
Literature, General: World
Management: General
Management: Japanese
Management: Motivation
Management: Theory
Management: Women
Marketing: Companies (Alphabetized)
Marketing: General
Marketing: Plans
Mathematics
Medical: Aids
Medical: Dentistry
Medical: Diseases & Disorders (Alphabetized)
Medical: General
Medical: Nursing
Mexican-American Studies
Mexico
Middle East: Egypt
Middle East: General
Middle East: O.P.E.C.
Military
Music: Classical
Music: General
Mythology
Nutrition
Parapsychology/Occult
Philosophy: Ancient Greek
Philosophy: Descartes
Philosophy: Eastern
Philosophy: General
Philosophy: Kant
Philosophy: Sartre
Poetry: American
Poetry: English
Poetry: Milton
Poetry: World
Political Science: Elections & Campaigns
Political Science: Foreign
Political Science: Lobbyists & Pressure Groups
Political Science: Machiavelli
Political Science: Mill
Political Science: Political Theory
Political Science: U.S.
Psychology: Behaviorism
Psychology: Child & Adolescent
Psychology: Disorders
Psychology: Dreams
Psychology: Experimental
Psychology: Freud
Psychology: General
Psychology: Jung
Psychology: Physiology
Psychology: Piaget
Psychology: Rogers
Psychology: Social
Psychology: Testing
Psychology: Therapies
Public Administration: General
Public Administration: Government Agencies (Alphabetized)
Racism
Real Estate
Recreation & Leisure
Religion: Eastern
Religion: General
Religion: Islam
Religion: The Bible
Research: Completed Studies (With Statistics & Results)
Research: Designs & Proposals
Research: Statistics & Methodology
Russia: Pre-1917 Revolution
Science: Astronomy
Science: Biology
Science: General
Science: Genetics
Sociology: Durkheim
Sociology: General
Sociology: Marx
Sociology: Social Problems
Sociology: Social Theory
Sociology: Social Welfare
Sociology: Weber
Soviet Union: 1917-1990
Sports: Drugs
Sports: General
Technology
Transportation: Automotive
Transportation: Aviation
Transportation: General
Transportation: Railroads
Urban Studies
Vietnam
Women Studies
 

Amgen-Applied Molecular Genetics Co   Term Paper ID:27976 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: (1991) Amgem, a bio-medical company, is examined in terms of: history/background; innovative capabilities; resource availability; competitor strategies; technological development; structural & cultural context; new product development; & recommendations.... More...

8 Pages / 1800 Words 8 sources, 6 Citations, APA Format $32.00 Return to List of Papers

Paper Abstract: (1991) Amgem, a bio-medical company, is examined in terms of: history/background; innovative capabilities; resource availability; competitor strategies; technological development; structural & cultural context; new product development; & recommendations. Paper Introduction: BACKGROUND HISTORY OF THE COMPANY Amgen was formed as Applied Molecular Genetics in 1980. A group of scientists and venture capitalists banded together with the common goal of developing human and animal health care products based on molecular biological technology. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles and is today the world's number one independent company. Sales have grown 103 percent annually over the past four years and might pass $1 billion in 1992. The company's success rests almost entirely on two products developed using recombinant DNA technology, also known as "gene splicing." George Rathmann was a vice president at Abbott Laboratories and was recruited as the company's first CEO and first employee. He decided to direct the company toward developing a few potentially Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. Amgen should explore more such possibilities.Joint ventures have also been offered as a strategy, but as can be seenfrom the lawsuits generated by an earlier attempt, there are dangers inthis approach. (1992). Thecompany has a 17-person task force that recently organized the introductionof Neupogen in Canada and Australia and a product development team of 24overseeing the manufacture and marketing of Europe (Erdman, 1992, pp. It is faced with thereality that it takes time to develop this sort of product, test it, andgain approval.Resource Availability The company has a shortage in terms of needed finances and is tryingto overcome this by developing new uses for existing products even as itcontinues trying to develop new products. Amgen created a tiewith Roche Holdings in 1988. Forbes, pp. The company was greatly benefited in 1989when the FDA granted Amgen a license to produce Epogen, the brand name ofEGO, for the treatment of anemia. REFERENCESAmgen is hot and bothered. If Amgen could give the drugs new uses, that would be the sameas developing a new product as far as sales are concerned. (1991, March 11). The headquarterswere placed at Thousand Oaks, California because of its proximity to suchimportant research centers as the California Institute of Technology, UCLA,and UC Santa Barbara. The two products thatwere effective for the company, however, might also provide some of thisneeded capital. Bioprofits. It was then faced with the problem of sustainingits growth. Sales have grown 1 3percent annually over the past four years and might pass $1 billion in1992. New York: Reference Press Inc. Business Week, pp. U.S. The company's success rests almost entirely on two productsdeveloped using recombinant DNA technology, also known as "gene splicing."George Rathmann was a vice president at Abbott Laboratories and wasrecruited as the company's first CEO and first employee. Products from these collaborations are at least a decade away,however, so ways have to be found in the meantime to finance developmentwork (Armstrong, 1991, pp. Amgen grew rapidly withthe approval of Epogen. Can amgen follow its own tough act? The firm's current business and corporate strategies do not providethe needed financing for the sort of product development that is necessaryfor the company to expand even further into the late 199 s. The hormone that's making Amgen grow. The firm needs financing for innovative capabilities. 119). It has sufficient resourcesaside from the financial issue.Competitor Strategies The company is fully aware of what other companies are doing andwhich companies are researching in the same specific areas. At the present time, it seemsthat it will not be until the next decade before the company has anythingnew to offer.RECOMMENDATIONS Amgen may need to diversify to maintain its lead and to continue toraise the money needed to support future research and development efforts.The company has been doing this to a degree by buying products from othercompanies for distribution. (1991, April 2 ). A group ofscientists and venture capitalists banded together with the common goal ofdeveloping human and animal health care products based on molecularbiological technology. In 199 Amgen invested $26 million inRegeneron Pharmaceuticals, a New York company involved in the developmentof neurotrophic (nerve cell growth) products. Amgen introduced its two major products with little fanfare for anumber of reasons. BACKGROUND HISTORY OF THE COMPANY Amgen was formed as Applied Molecular Genetics in 198 . (1987, March 16). Chiron Corp. Amgen is also fully capable of understandingthe way the business is evolving and the sorts of problems to beencountered in the future. Business Week, pp. Fighting over a splice of life. Amgen isin a position to understand this fact and to benefit from changes as theyare made, though some of the larger companies have the financial supportneeded to make breakthroughs and to develop new technologies throughresearch and development while Amgen does not. Amgen remained an anonymous company for most of its history, one ofdozens of biotechnology startups in the shadow of the industry's Big Four -Genentech, Biogen, Cetus, and Genex. 4 -41.Armstrong, L. (1989, January 23). In order to have more products to sell, Amgen has been licensingproducts from smaller biotech companies. has also been prosperingonce it received approval of its pioneering diagnostic test for hepatitis Cvirus, and this came after eight years of losses (Giltenan, 1991, pp. Fortune, pp. 86-87.Erdman, A. This is an area of uncertainty whichevery company will try to foresee and for which they will prepare.Technological Development As noted, this is the area that may change the most rapidly. Amgen should decide whether it will be a niche company orone that takes a broader approach based on its technological capabilitiesand the products it feels it can develop. It hassufficient personnel and sufficient expertise. 96-98.Gabor, A. In 199 the company agreed toinvest $26 million in Regeneron, as noted, to fund research and developmenton two nerve-growth factors to influence the growth of brain cells. The company executivesadmitted that they did not have enough promising new products ready to goto propel the company ahead into the late 199 s. At the same time, this is such a new area offocus that it could be changed radically within a few years if technologyoutstrips what is being done today. This would later lead to disputes between the twocompanies concerning the allocation of sales proceeds. 52). Business Week, pp. The company was then able toraise $19 million to support Amgen's initial efforts. 95-96).INNOVATIVE CAPABILITIES Amgen has been innovative in developing its two products and in theway it has created itself as a biotech firm in a completely new field.Innovation in terms of the delivery or sale of the product is curtailed bythe requirements of FDA approval and similar industry requirements andpractices, but the company is attempting to be innovative by finding newuses for products that have already been approved for sale (though such newuses as well would have to pass through the same review and approvalprocess). The technology is very new, and companies havebeen after the same 3 or 4 products. This remains the mostobvious area of uncertainty, where the greatest change is possible in waysthat cannot be foreseen clearly.Structural and Cultural Context Amgen is dedicated to finding the means to develop new products, andthe business unit has been trying to acquire the funds through a variety ofmeans--joining with other companies for joint ventures, developing new usesfor existing products, and seeking funding through stock offerings.Entrepreneurial Initiatives Amgen is restricted in its ability to deal with entrepreneurialinitiatives by its lack of R&D financing at this time, though the company,as noted, is trying to overcome this limitation.NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT The issue of new product development has been addressed at lengthabove, but essentially the company is dedicated to developing new productsbut is limited by financial considerations, time considerations, andtechnological considerations. It has made the necessaryconnections to other companies for added support. license rights to its own G-CSF patents (Hoover,Campbell, & Spain, 1992, p. The companyhas a strategy that might provide such funding, but this is not certain.One problem with this type of business is that no schedule can be devisedfor discovering a new product. & Dworkin, P. There isconsiderable competition to complete the research first and to gain thepatent for a given product. However, by 1991 Amgen had emerged asthe world's premier independent biotech company. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles and istoday the world's number one independent company. He decided todirect the company toward developing a few potentially profitable productsrather than conducting general research. The company has been searching for new uses for theseproducts. The company has been working on tissue-growth factorsthat could speed the healing of bedsores and wounds, but as yet there areno dramatic gains in clinical trials (Chiron Corporation has also beenworking in this area, also with no results as yet). 94-96.Blood Money. Still, the company operated dangerously close tobankruptcy until 1983. Such a discovery can occur in a shortperiod of time or over many years, or it may never occur at all. 1 -11.Hoover, G., Campbell, A. (1986, November 24). Aside from such hoped-for developments with existing products,executives could point to little in the way of new products for the lasthalf of the 199 s. Amgen made its first public stock offeringthat same year with 2.4 million shares on the market. By 1992, Amgen was growing rapidly, expanding its facilities inThousand Oaks and increasing its workforce by 5 percent each year. Finding new uses for existingproducts tends to reinforce the image of Amgen as a niche company, thoughthis image may be unavoidable for a time until new products can be broughtto market. (1992, April 6). 41-42). (eds.). How to keep that family feeling. In 1991 the FDA gave the company permission to market Neupogen, thebrand name of its G-CSF for the treatment of chemotherapy patients. 52.Gilteman, E. Amgen recently startedtrials on a "stem-cell factor" protein that treats bone marrow damaged byradiation or chemotherapy. It was then that company scientist Fu-Kuen Lincloned the human protein erythropoietin (EPO), which stimulates red bloodcell production in the body. Once it was established thatpatents could be won and enforced, litigation between companies ensued,such as that between Amgen and Genentech. This illustrates some of thedangers encountered when different companies are working on the sameproducts, and this is common in biotechnology. 95-96.Flynn, J. (1991, January 7). & Spain, R.J. New product development is moving forward,but the issue facing the company is whether any new products can bedeveloped for the end of this decade or whether it will not be until thenext decade before they reach the market. 1 -11). The company also wanted toavoid making the sort of exaggerated claims that had gotten Genentech intotrouble (Hamilton & Brown, 1989, pp. News & World Report, p. The Economist, pp. In 1989 Forbes predicted that biotech companies were ready to blossomin the early 199 s with high profits, but the only company to be trulysuccessful as yet has been Amgen. This would be similar to Neupogen except thatit would stimulate production of a broader array of blood cells. The companystarted trials of G-CSF for burn cases in which patients have a normallevel of neutrophils but are in danger of getting bacterial infection.Amgen was also to explore whether Neupogen could help patients after theyhave contracted infections such as pneumonia. Companiesare further faced with stiff competition from a number of other companiesall trying to do the same thing. It was only in the early198 s when the Supreme Court decided that companies had the right to patentmicroorganisms, and by 1986 the U.S. One concern was that the company did not have a large enoughreserve base to fund the $1 million and up needed for research anddevelopment to bring a new drug to the market. One problem facing the company at the time was thepatent dispute with Genetics Institute Inc. Based on this important discovery, Amgen formed a joint venture withKirin Brewery of Japan in 1984 for the development and marketing of EPO.The two companies also collaborated on the development of recombinant humangranulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), another human protein usedto stimulate the body's immune system to combat bacterial infection. Therewere other marketing ventures after this, first on the basis of anagreement for marketing with Ortho Pharmaceutical Corporation, a subsidiaryof Johnson & Johnson. It is expected that companieshereafter will focus on niches, such as improved drug-delivery systems forchemotherapy, or will attack complex diseases such as Alzheimer's andParkinson's (Gabor & Dworkin, 1986, p. patents for its version of G-CSF andassign Amgen its U.S. Alsoin 1991, the federal judiciary denied permission to Genetics Institute tomarket its version of EGO, which effectively gave Amgen a monopoly a U.S.monopoly on the product. Patent Office had been deluged withsome 6, applications. Hoover's Handbook of American Business 1993. Thiswould have application for treatment of Alzheimer's or Parkinson'sdiseases. 94-96). In 1992 a patent dispute with Genetic Institute'spartner, Chugai Pharmaceutical, was resolved in favor of Amgen, and Chugaiwas ordered to renounce its U.S. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.