Delivering IT Solutions to Support Patients

James Felix has had a passion for technology all his life. As a young child he was always taking things apart to see how they worked. He disassembled and reassembled a radio at the age of four. When he turned seven, he received a Tandy personal computer and couldn't get enough of it.

"The world was filled with excitement and anticipation about the new computing technologies, and the personal computer captivated my attention," he said. "I consumed as much of it as I could and knew then that technology is where I would make my career."

He entered the field as an international IT consultant and his numerous global assignments included a two-month stint in Japan where he fell in love with the country and culture. Shortly after returning home to New Jersey, he jumped at an offer to work at DS and has been with the company ever since - for more than 25 years. James has become an instrumental leader in guiding the company's IT strategy and digital transformation and is now entrusted with creating a new global technology strategy to support the global transformation and 2030 Vision.

"This is the biggest honor of my career and I'm incredibly grateful for the opportunity to further contribute to Daiichi Sankyo as the company expands in oncology and other areas," he explains. "Our team is leveraging state-of-the-art technologies to establish global capabilities that will enhance our ability to develop and deliver new medicines to more patients worldwide."

The new global capabilities combined with the ongoing integration of innovative digital technologies across the organization will transform the way the company works, maximizing efficiencies and empowering innovation.

Passion for Pushing Boundaries

A key to DX success will be to push boundaries for continuous innovation. Along with his love of technology, James has an immense curiosity and passion for exploring its possibilities and he is also personally driven by an experience with cancer in his family. Under his leadership the DX team is developing customized and cutting-edge solutions to meet the specific needs of DS.

The team is bringing the power of Generative AI to employees through internal proprietary AI platforms and completing the C2 Project, which provides a centralized technology platform to enhance the way the company's 18,000+ employees worldwide communicate and collaborate.

"These exciting automations are just the tip of the iceberg," said James. "By integrating AI and machine learning along with cloud infrastructure and exploring emerging technologies like Meta, blockchain and IoT, we will continue to enhance efficiency, agility, and decision-making across the organization."

James also considers establishment of a data-driven culture critical to the success of the global DX and supports democratization of data for use by all employees in day-to-day activities to inform decision-making, empower innovation and drive competitive advantage.

Guiding Principles: Customer and Collaboration

James is focused on customer and collaboration. The goal of his team is to meet the needs of their customers - the internal business units and functions - to enable them to do their jobs most efficiently and effectively in service of external customers and patients.

"Any success we have is rooted in our ability to build trust and collaborate, so we can determine how to best leverage the technology," he explains. "At the end of the day, these are not IT systems, they are business systems, and we rely on the partnership of our colleagues."

Leading with a Servant Mindset

He also of course relies on his team: "I couldn't do any of this without my team - they make it all happen and supporting them is the most important thing I do," said James. "I maintain a servant mindset to leading, which means I'm here for them, not vice-versa. I make sure they have the tools they need to succeed and try to meet them where they are."

To support work-life balance, James works with his team closely to help prioritize work daily, share responsibilities and focus on what they can control. He believes in asking for help and relying on each other to share the load.

"We work together to meet challenges and I'm happy to say our team has remained stable over the years," said James. "In a field where professionals tend to move around, it's a rarity to maintain such a consistent team. We even had several people who went to other companies and then returned to Daiichi Sankyo."

James attributes the low attrition on his team to DS as a company: "People want to build a career at a place like Daiichi Sankyo, because the company values its employees and has a great collaborative culture. I've worked with several people here for over 20 years and many I consider friends. It makes the job fun."

Personal Interests and Hobbies

When he is not working, James loves spending time outdoors. His favorite leisure activity has always been golf, and he also enjoys hiking and swimming. He often volunteers his time and spent many years coaching his son's sports teams when he was growing up. "I found youth coaching one of the most rewarding experiences of my life," he said. James has two children and was recently married.