To our Valued Investors,
The fiscal year 2020-21 was an extraordinary year marked by
unprecedented challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic combined with corresponding global
restrictions deeply affected the business of your Company. A substantial part of the
Company's business is "contact intensive"; and given the macro environment
of caution and constraints, we were challenged to conduct normal business operations.
I had already called out during my last annual report communication
that the Q1 and Q2 of FY21 are going to be very challenged quarters. The result was no
different. We had to make very important strategic choices on what business to keep and
what business to let go of. We focused on "Live to fight another day". In
keeping with this guidance from the Board, we made a major decision to shut down our EU
operations. While this was not ideal for the long-term growth of the business, it was
foremost to do this to preserve and attain positive cash flow from operations. The EU
operations had a sustained negative cash flow and, given the circumstances caused due to
COVID-19, it was critical to exit the EU business. This fundamentally rearchitected our
business so as to focus on the Indo US corridor – that we have successfully done.
As we move forward, the ambition of your Company is to be a cash
positive business that is CAPEX lean and asset light. We have taken several steps in this
regard that are enunciated below.
Efficient Organisation Structure
We have de-layered the organisation to become nimble to customer
demands yet providing high value expertise. Our leadership teams have been functioning
exceedingly well with the teams across the board, working together seamlessly living true
to our core and DNA values of Seamless Collaboration, High Performance Mindset and
Customer Obsession.
Our Impact in COVID-19 response
We are very excited about the critical COVID-19 work that we delivered
over the year. Your Company has the medical and scientific expertise to conduct complex
clinical trials within the shortest possible time to support biopharma companies that are
embarking on solutions for COVID-19. We have been an integral part of successfully
delivering 9 COVID-19 trials.
Customer Wins
We continue to be a highly comprehensive CRO in providing end-to-end
services, and over the year, we have been successful in 100% renewal of annuity contracts
from Big Pharma. We renewed long-term contracts with multiple US Federal Agencies and
added 16 new logos to our customer portfolio. Customers have appreciated your Company for
quick responsiveness, strong customer-centric relationships, deep domain and technical
expertise, and superior delivery excellence.
Boosting Innovation to Drive Growth
Our ability to build a pipeline of meaningful innovations fuels our
growth. The Company has continued to deepen its commitment to invest in technology,
intellectual property and platforms. New features were developed and deployed for
TAKE's IP solutions.
We have widened our scope in our Generics business and are delving
deeper into the complex studies, which includes Clamp studies for the Diabetic molecules,
inhalation studies for all the Metered Dose Inhalers (MDIs), aerosols and nasal sprays. We
are also extending our studies into the peptides and conducting specific research in that
area.
Focusing on Technology Enablement
The CRO industry is at an inflection point as COVID-19 has changed
clinical trials forever with technology-enabled services being in the forefront during the
new normal. We are witnessing the beginning of a restructuring of the clinical trial
landscape. Returning to traditional models will not be possible, even in the post-COVID-19
world. Our future plans include a focus on technology enablement which can be achieved by
integrating disparate systems usually used in clinical trial systems and which supports us
in providing real-time insights and also data-driven decisions, for efficient clinical
studies. Through this, we are fully driven in terms of executing the next-gen clinical
trials. We will be future-proofing with real-time insights-driven optimization to inform
sponsor team and executive management with real-time status for informed decisions that
deliver quality outcomes. There will be greater implementation of patient engagement tools
and remote monitoring.
The Company's OneClinical, an AI-driven platform, enables clinical
trial optimisation and real-time data analytics to prompt early data-driven decisions,
enabling remote monitoring and risk-based monitoring. Our other technology IPs (like
pharmaREADY, safetyREADY, rimREADY etc.,) also digitize and drive automation and service
excellence for Life Sciences companies.
TAKE Cares Employee Centric Initiatives
Your Company launched the ‘TAKE Cares' initiative to promote
health and safety of all our stakeholders. As a welfare measure, numerous campaigns have
been promoted to provide continuous proactive support throughout the pandemic. The
initiative underpins the below:
Vaccination support for Frontline workers
Medical helpline number launched to provide timely support and guidance by our in-house
doctors Periodic townhalls and knowledge sharing sessions by in-house doctors
Regular mail communications to employees highlighting DO's and DONT's
Information support that encouraged employees to take care of their mental and physical
health through yoga and meditation.
Frequent mailers about diet and nutrition
Constant reminders to practice COVID-19 appropriate behaviour
The events that unfolded in 2020-21 are unprecedented, and the pandemic
is not over yet. The health crisis had an enormous impact on every aspect of our lives.
Despite all odds, our colleagues have risen to the challenges presented by COVID-19 and
have delivered exemplary services. As a Company, we are committed to our business strategy
and are confident that we will be back on track to propel forward in building a cash
positive business.
We continue to be dedicated to creating shared success for all.