PERSPECTIVE
It takes more than a new tool. Reinvention means reshaping how pharma shows up for customers, through transformed processes and new ways that people work.
5-MINUTE READ
October 28, 2025
While human relationships are (and always will be) the crux of meaningful customer engagements, AI is reshaping how field teams and digital channels interact with customers—which include not only physicians but also nurse practitioners, administrative staff, account executives, C-suite and more. AI is also reshaping how functions work together to enable customer engagement, changing the game as we know it.
The field brings together human connection with clinical insight at an unbeatable scale. And with customers valuing these interactions as a trusted source of support, continuously elevating this strength is non-negotiable.
Up to 70%
of impactable sales are driven by field engagement, 5-10x more than direct-to-consumer and non-personal promotion efforts.*
*Accenture Benchmark, 2025
After years of navigating fractured systems, the field is calling for seamless, coordinated, omnichannel pharma experiences. This is not a “new” challenge. However, the tools that can finally tackle the problem are here.
The Veeva–Salesforce split exposed just how fragile the CRM backbone really is. What was once a behind-the-scenes operational challenge has become spotlighted as a glaring limitation—slowing engagement and magnifying inefficiencies.
1 in 4
field teams feel fully supported by their CRM.*
*Accenture Research, 2025 – Field Team Survey (n=300)
Now, with AI making every touchpoint smarter, more personal and better connected, the path forward is clear: empower the field to orchestrate the customer experience. Doing so is not just about elevating a function—it is about capitalizing on a new engagement model made possible by emerging tech.
And field teams are ready for it.
81%
of pharma field teams believe AI can elevate the HCP engagement strategy and experience and make collaboration seamless.*
*Accenture Research, 2025 – Field Team Survey (n=300)
Pharma is entering a new phase where people and AI work side-by-side. Agentic systems—AI copilots, digital agents and orchestrators—are reshaping how work gets done.
AI is no longer just about automating backend tasks. It’s creating impact by enhancing field engagement, streamlining content workflows and improving marketing execution all the way to full agent-customer interactions. Across all use cases, this means changing how teams spend their time and energy, and how they collaborate with each other.
The modern workforce is changing fast. As AI technologies take hold, organizations are rethinking how work is structured, how talent is managed and where competitive advantages can be created.
In collaboration with the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Accenture is studying what it really means to build a Human+AI workforce, where people and tech work together to boost productivity, collaboration and smarter decision-making.
55%
of workforce hours in life sciences are impactable by digital and physical agents.*
*Accenture–Wharton Research, 2025
Research from Accenture and Wharton shows that more than half of workforce hours in life sciences are impactable by digital and physical agents. Translating this impact to outcomes, the research estimates that adding autonomous agents to commercial functions could unlock 6-10% in extra global revenues—up to $6B in uplift for industry leaders—and reduce labor costs by 15-25% for the global pharma companies included in the analysis.*
* Agentic Economic Model, Accenture Research and Wharton School of Business
For sales, marketing and medical teams, this means high-volume, repetitive, or insights-driven tasks can be streamlined or completely reimagined. The result is greater productivity and more capacity for strategic work that drives impact.
*Accenture–Wharton Research, 2025
Tools can’t drive reinvention on their own. While the shift may be sparked by technology, real impact depends on the people and processes.
Adopting AI at scale isn’t about rolling out new tools—it’s about redefining roles, reshaping collaboration and retraining teams to work alongside agents that operate 24/7, deliver real-time insights and handle execution tasks that used to be done manually. And more than ever, data will be a core lever to deliver the value potential.
Most critically, it requires a mindset shift. Companies must move from managing people who do the work to orchestrating systems where humans and machines work in tandem.
AI is becoming the connective tissue between field teams across all functions, marketing teams and customers. AI drives personalized, insight-led engagement that adapts in real-time to customer needs.
Trust is no longer something built after the fact; it’s embedded into every engagement through smarter systems that learn, respond and guide behavior in compliant, scalable ways.
AI in pharma marketing and field is changing how teams connect with customers. Think sharper calls, content that clicks and teams that work as one.
1. Smarter call planning and insight capture
Imagine reps walking into a call already knowing what matters most. AI-powered tools can suggest the right content for meetings, guide discussion priorities, and handle notetaking. Every call becomes sharper, and insights are fed back to the team.
2. Hyper-personalized content in one click
No more one-size-fits-all presentations. With AI, reps can instantly adjust materials to match specialties, preferences or patient focus. Content feels relevant, and built-in feedback loops mean content keeps getting more personalized and impactful.
3. Collaboration without silos
AI is breaking down barriers across roles—sales, medical, market access and key account managers (KAMs). Intelligent systems surface insights, engagement history and preferences so cross-functional teams can align around the customer and account goals.
Pharma companies are facing a once-in-a-decade opportunity: to move past legacy CRM and fragmented engagement models and build something more intelligent, coordinated and insight-driven.
Yes, there are costs and complexities. But the upside is bigger—not only for field teams but across the commercial ecosystem.
Pharma CRM powered by AI unlocks real value by amplifying field engagement, which is their most effective channel.
76%
of HCPs believe interactions with field teams positively impact clinical decisions.*
*Accenture Research, 2024 – HCP Survey (n=300)
Modernizing CRM with intelligent engagement takes that impact even further.
There are big expectations around the power of agentic, and proving value fast and at scale. However, companies leaning into transformation are realizing value doesn’t arrive all at once – it comes in waves.
Each horizon brings a deeper and broader impact, moving from efficiency to engagement to entirely new value pools.
Horizon 1: Do the same work better
Automating low-value work, simplifying tech infrastructure and accelerating cycle times are already creating measurable returns. These early gains free up time and reduce costs.
Horizon 2: Improve how you engage
AI and orchestration tools are boosting rep productivity and enabling more personalized, relevant customer interactions. Coordinated digital and field touchpoints are proving far more effective than traditional campaigns.
Horizon 3: Unlock new revenue
Intelligent agents and self-service tools are extending access to hard-to-reach customers and creating new digital-first engagement models. These capabilities are helping brands grow reach in white space and launch differentiated experiences.
The companies leaning in are already seeing returns that go far beyond cost savings. In a market where access is shrinking, reinvesting in smarter engagement is proving to be one of the few ways to cut costs and grow impact simultaneously.
Accenture is the strongest partner in life sciences with real-world experience leading clients through next-generation commercial transformation.
We’ve helped companies navigate the Veeva–Salesforce divide, embed agentic AI into their operating models and redesign engagement strategies across field, marketing and access.
Not every company needs to pursue all three horizons at once. The right path depends on intent, readiness, ambition and where realizing value is most urgent.
Clients take different approaches—some focus on foundational CRM, others layer in orchestration and AI and a few go all-in to reinvent their model entirely.
We’re built to support all three. With proprietary accelerators, deep cross-functional expertise and a tested playbook, we help clients move faster—with confidence, coordination and measurable impact.
This isn’t just a re-platforming exercise. It’s customer engagement reinvention.
