Key Factors to Improve Pharmaceutical Industry's R&D Productivity: A Case Study of Iranian Pharmaceutical Holding

Background: Productivity is one of the most important factors of development in pharmaceutical companies, which is in direct contact with research and development (R&D) employees. The study aimed to identify and prioritize the effective factors for improving the R&D Activities of Iranian pharmaceutical holding. Methods: This case study was performed by a questionnaire designed into two sectors, demographic profile data, and nine attitude factors. The questionnaire was distributed to Iranian pharmaceutical holding. The main sampling targets were managers and employees of the R&D department. Cronbach's alpha considered the reliability of the questionnaire, and the validity of the questionnaire was measured by the content validity method. Descriptive analyses were done using frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and variance. Also, Kolmogorov–Smirnov, Pearson correlation coefficient, F test, and Friedman test were used as comparative and inferential analyses. Results: A total of 65 questionnaires were collected (43 are men and 22 are women) from 11 companies of an Iranian pharmaceutical holding. The 5-10 years of work experience with doctorate education levels were common. Based on the ranking done on the data using the Friedman test method, economic factors were recognized as the most important and individual factors as the least important factors. People aged 35-40 years had a higher frequency. Furthermore, there was a significant difference between considered factors and productivity of R&D. Conclusion: All current study's hypotheses show a significant difference in productivity in Iranian pharmaceutical companies.