2023 Top Consultants: Kevin Barnett

Kevin has served as a strategic advisor to leading life sciences companies for two decades. His consulting expertise spans a broad array of areas including corporate strategy, commercial strategy, pricing and market access strategy, business development and licensing, and operational effectiveness.

Prior to co-founding SciVida, Kevin founded and led Promidian (Eversana Management Consulting). He also has held senior leadership roles with Leerink Swann and Campbell Alliance. Kevin started his consulting career at Deloitte and, before switching gears, worked in various commercial roles with The Upjohn Company.

Kevin has authored a number of articles—and presented at myriad industry conferences—on key strategic issues facing the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries and has been quoted and referenced in leading business publications and industry trade journals including BusinessWeek, The Pink Sheet, The RPM Report, Pharmaceutical Executive, MedAdNews, PharmaVOICE and Managed Healthcare Executive.

Kevin holds a Bachelor of Science degree in bioengineering from Purdue University and a Master of Business Administration degree from Indiana University's Kelley School of Business.

What has motivated you to excel over the course of your career?

I've been continually motivated to excel over the course of my career by seeing the impact we can have as trusted advisors and consulting leaders on the career trajectories of our team members and the marketplace success of our life sciences clients. And, to be clear, the marketplace success of our clients is all about supporting patients and their access to life-saving therapies. There is no nobler cause in my mind. In fact, we've woven this "why" into our SciVida purpose that guides our culture and business decisions: "to help bring science to life so that patients get access to life-saving therapies and our world is a better place."

I've enjoyed both the ability to apply knowledge and experience to solve client business challenges, but also the opportunity to develop close professional relationships with clients and colleagues. When clients and consulting teams are able to partner together effectively, we are able to achieve successful outcomes and results that directly affect patients and their livelihoods.

What has been the biggest factor in your success so far?

I'm a lifelong learner and constantly seeking to expand my knowledge base. This willingness to continue to learn from those around me and the resources available to me has been the biggest factor in my success so far. In both consulting and life sciences, the marketplace is constantly shifting and the rules of the game change, so it is important to be able to develop learning agility—to be able to apply lessons learned and previous experiences when you encounter an ambiguous, uncertain situation. This has served me well as a leader of consulting teams and as a builder of businesses. We may not always know what to do or how to do it, but we must have faith that we can figure it out with the tools at our disposal.

One of the things I've learned over the years as a leader is how important it is to attract and retain extremely talented individuals. Being able to identify and understand the unique skill sets and talents of team members has been critical to building and leading successful consultancies. It's important to ensure diversity of thought and representation in our teams to arrive at the best solutions and the most successful client solutions.

What do you enjoy most about your career in the consulting industry?

There's no shortage of things I have enjoyed about my career in consulting. But, I would highlight 3 areas: serving as a trusted advisor to clients, building sustainable businesses that support team members, and making a difference in the lives of patients and my community.

In serving as a trusted advisor to clients, I enjoy taking ambiguous business challenges and problem-solving to arrive at key insights and actionable solutions. I'm lucky to constantly have the opportunity to brainstorm and partner with our clients to figure out how to solve some of the most daunting business challenges in the industry. These clients have become my friends over the years and it's rewarding to me to have these long-standing relationships.

I'm able to leverage my experience in consulting and life sciences to build consultancies that serve team members and clients alike. It takes business acumen, discipline, and strong resolve to navigate the complexities of entrepreneurship and I've enjoyed every minute of it.

And, most of all, what keeps me coming back day after day is the ability to effect change by bringing science to life so that patients get access to life-saving therapies. I am grateful for the ability to have such an impact on others.

What is your proudest achievement to date?

I feel very fortunate to have been a part of many client journeys in their path to commercial success, career accomplishments for hundreds of team members, and business development and market recognition for both consultancies I worked to establish from the ground up. However, one of my proudest moments happened recently, as we promoted SciVida's first Partner from within our team. It has been an absolute joy to work with this team member over the years and see her growth and progression from Associate Principal to Principal and now Partner within our firm.

Understanding and building upon team member strengths is important to me as a leader. And, seeing their success and impact with clients and team members are always proud moments for me.

I'm also proud of the innovative partnerships I've formed outside of the industry. For example, I'm honored to be part of the Corporate Board of Directors for Level the Playing Field (LTPF), a minority development program that bridges the opportunity gap by training and placing undergraduate students into influential internships and careers. We are actively involved in pro-bono consulting work for LTPF and the placement of LTPF students in our firm's internship program. In addition, we put money, not just words, behind our organizational purpose and mission. SciVida donates 5% of annual profits to three patient-focused charitable organizations whose purposes align with SciVida's—the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation, National Organization for Rare Disorders, and Patient Advocate Foundation, as part of the firm's SciVida StriVe program.

What's the best advice you've ever been given?

One of the best pieces of advice I've incorporated in both my personal and professional lives for many years was given to me by one of my mentors. The advice was that it was important to remember that the freedom and ability to do what you love comes from first putting in the work and discipline. And, putting in the work often means that you have to be bold and not be afraid to take risks. The greatest learnings and the greatest achievements often come from putting yourself in uncomfortable, stretch situations. From that advice I've learned that no goal is too daunting or unachievable when you're willing to put in the necessary time, work, and effort to make it happen.

What does this recognition mean to you?

Being recognized as a Top Consultant would be a great honor to me and a recognition of the years that I've spent building life sciences management consultancies. Prior to co-founding SciVida, I founded Promidian (now Eversana Management Consulting) and expanded its capabilities and teams across the U.S., Europe and India. I'm proud of the strong and winning culture that we built and that was recognized by Consulting as a 2018 Best Small Firm to Work For and one of Seven Small Jewels for 2019. Additionally, Vault recognized the company as a Best Consulting Firm to Work For in multiple categories in its 2019 and 2020 rankings. Now at SciVida in our second year, we were ranked #11 in Firsthand/Vault's Top 50 Boutique Consultancies because of our remarkable culture and enviable work experiences that differentiate our firm within the marketplace and enable our team members to delight our clients at every turn with exceptional quality service and results.

Over the last two decades, I have enjoyed partnering with our teams and clients to operationalize the strategies and plans that have created access to products and services for patients. That is meaningful and important to me as a leader in consulting. This award would allow me to show gratitude to all of my current and former team members and clients for the work on which we have collaborated over the years in service to the ultimate stakeholders: patients and the broader health care community.