AstraZeneca Vaccine Case Study (Essay Sample)

AstraZeneca Vaccine Case Study Author Institutional affiliation Course number and name Instructor name Assignment due date AstraZeneca Vaccine Case Study The case study is an analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic and the issues that unfolded as companies such as AstraZeneca tried to develop vaccines to contain the pandemic. The author discusses the challenges that hindered the development of COVID-19 and the complexities that ensued as AstraZeneca coordinated with the University of Oxford to develop the most effective and affordable vaccine within the shortest deadline. AstraZeneca and Oxford’s partnership brought hope to the world since the two organizations boast of the most skilled and experienced vaccinology specialists who understand the complexities of emerging diseases and can relate them to previous diseases (Guina, 2021). Apart from the initial complexities that affected the development of the AstraZeneca vaccine, the case study also discusses project management issues that affected the organization during the development and distribution of the vaccine to different parts of the world. The risk associated with AstraZeneca’s decision to undertake the task of developing a COVID-19 vaccine that would be affordable to people from all backgrounds is also another pertinent issue discussed in the case study. The organization’s leaders were reluctant to commence the project since its failure could damage the company’s reputation as a pharmaceutical giant. The management also took a huge risk with the project since it required considerable investments to ensure that the vaccine would be available within the shortest period and the FDA would approve it as safe and effective before introducing it. Therefore, the organization had to freeze some of its projects to direct the workforce and finances to the COVID-19 vaccine since it was the priority and the company depended on its success to cement it as the most respected pharmaceutical company in the world. Unlike other projects AstraZeneca had been involved in, the COVID-19 vaccine project was more complex since there was no time for conducting clinical trials before commencing manufacturing. According to Burki (2021), “the company was forced to commence with the production of vaccines while simultaneously conducting clinical trials; this was an expensive and complex affair since the production teams were supposed to make swift changes if clinical trials indicated any mistakes.” Also, the organization was under pressure from world leaders to produce an effective and affordable vaccine that would cater to the needs of people from all backgrounds. AstraZeneca’s management received numerous calls from world leaders who wanted to know when their countries would receive the COVID-19 vaccines. AstraZeneca also struggled with the development and manufacturing of the vaccines since different countries had unique regulations, meaning that the company had to develop different variations of vaccines to suit different regions. Some countries requested the organization to develop a vaccine whose expiry date was more than one year since their health departments had set such standards to safeguard the population from exploitation by pharmaceutical companies. Also, some leaders required long-lasting COVID-19 vaccines since their health budgets could not allow them to dispose of and purchase additional vaccines within short periods. Therefore, the company’s managers had to develop a vaccine that was effective and reliable in terms of expiry dates to suit the needs of different populations. Building a project management office is also another issue presented by the case study that affected the development and dispersal of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine. The team was supposed to develop a project management office that was supposed to deploy in less than one week and therefore, the management had to prioritize key roles such as contract management, integration of schedule and budget team process guidance, and risk management. Integration of the project’s budget and its schedule was the most critical role in the project management due to budget restrictions and the speeds at which the U.S. government and other clients required the COVID-19 va...