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About NFJ Consulting

Global Experience. Strategic Insight. Lifecycle Excellence.

At NFJ Consulting, we bring more than 40 years of hands-on experience in the global pharmaceutical industry to help clients manage the full complexity of product and brand lifecycle—from early development through loss of exclusivity and beyond.

Our Principal, Dr. Nelson de Franco, has led pharmaceutical and biotech lifecycle initiatives across five continents. He has built a team that brings together scientific depth, regulatory expertise, and cultural fluency to help clients make confident, globally aligned decisions—wherever they operate.

What We Do

We offer a comprehensive understanding of the pharmaceutical product lifecycle, integrating science, regulatory strategy, and commercial insight to support sustainable success.

Lifecycle Management

We help clients align product strategy across markets, with expertise in:

  • Lifecycle planning from early development stages
  • Global regulatory affairs and compliance
  • Product quality, safety, and CMC oversight
  • Intellectual property strategy and early competition risk
  • Post-approval changes and global lifecycle coordination
  • Market retention beyond exclusivity
  • Brand repositioning and evolution in mature markets

Whether you’re an innovator launching a new molecule or an investor managing mature assets, we provide the insights and foresight to preserve and grow value.

Strategic Business & Leadership Support

We advise business units and leadership teams on:

  • Cross-functional team building and training
  • Global execution readiness and alignment
  • Operational metrics for successful implementation
  • Bridging medical, regulatory, and commercial functions

IP and Legal Strategy Support

We provide scientific and regulatory expertise that supports legal and IP teams:

  • Patent strategy and generics anticipation
  • Regulatory and IP scientific support for litigation teams
  • Pathway and exclusivity analysis
  • Scientific input for legal, regulatory, public affairs and communications teams
  • Strategic counsel for crisis management and communication response

Why Clients Trust Us

Multinational pharmaceutical companies, biotech innovators, private equity, and law firms have the alternative to choose NFJ Consulting because we combine decades of operational experience with global strategic perspective. We don’t just understand the rules—we understand how they change across markets, and how to turn that complexity into clarity.

How do we do it?

  • Delivering scientific knowledge.
    • We instill a global scientific understanding of pharmaceuticals, drug regulatory affairs, quality and safety of medicines, intellectual property rights, and other legal details in everything that we do.
  • Providing medical administration expertise.
    • With a background in business management and administration, NFJ Consulting can advise leading business units on team building, help identify and determine what constitutes successful global
      commercialization.
  • Advising on lifecycle management
    • NFJ Consulting has a nuanced understanding of the product’s complete lifecycle, including the startup phase. We have experience with industry challenges and can advise private equity firms and investment companies on managing issues as they arise.
  • Intellectual property and regulatory affairs insight
    • We offer savvy insight into intellectual property early copy competition, and drug regulatory issues, which has been proven highly beneficial to venture capital and private equity firms that are expanding to international markets. 
  • Completing mergers & acquisitions.
    • NFJ Consulting has been instrumental in supporting the drug regulatory affairs aspects of a number of pivotal international pharmaceutical mergers.
  • Counseling on communication, drug regulatory and communication
    aspects of IP challenges.
    • Law firms and legal clients seek our scientific understanding and support for IP of pharmaceuticals and obtain a better understanding of its global implications.
    • Prepare to communicate effectively in situations requiring crisis management.

Expertise in complete lifecycle management

For straightforward, in-depth, strategic answers to complex questions, contact NFJ Consulting.

Contact Us

Nelson de Franco, Principal

Dr. Nelson de Franco is a physician, pharmacist, and university educator with over 40 years of executive-level experience in the global pharmaceutical and biotech industry. Fluent in English, Portuguese, and Spanish—and conversant in Italian and German—he works seamlessly across geographies, regulatory systems, and cultures.

His career spans leadership roles at both local and multinational companies, including Ciba-Geigy, AstraZeneca, and Novartis, where he gained hands-on experience in medical affairs, marketing, commercialization, and global lifecycle management strategy. His work has consistently focused on delivering high-value solutions across North America, Latin America, Asia, and resource-constrained markets in Europe, effectively bridging science, policy, and business.

Core Strengths and Contributions

  • Strategic Lifecycle Management:
    Developed and implemented business intelligence and lifecycle strategies for both early-stage and mature products, with a focus on oncology and other high-impact therapeutic areas.
  • Global Market Insight:
    Led commercial, medical, and regulatory operations across Europe (Portugal, Greece, Belgium, Russia, Poland, Ukraine), the U.S., Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Chile), Asia (Japan, China, Indonesia, Malaysia), North Africa (Egypt, Morocco), the Middle East, and South Africa.
  • Product Launch Leadership:
    Oversaw the successful launch of 10 oncology products in Brazil and Latin America, managing cross-functional teams and navigating complex market dynamics.
  • Regulatory and IP Expertise:
    Provided strategic insight into regulatory affairs, intellectual property dynamics, and legal frameworks, supporting investment assessments and international market entry for venture capital and private equity clients.
  • Government and Stakeholder Engagement:
    Negotiated with health authorities, policy makers, and patient advocacy groups in Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia—facilitating access, approval, and post-market collaboration.
  • Education and Thought Leadership:
    Designed and delivered local and international advocacy programs, symposia, and workshops on innovation, IP rights, pharmacovigilance, and medicine quality. Audiences included regulators and professionals in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Turkey, Thailand, and Egypt—among others.

Why It Matters

Dr. Nelson de Franco brings a rare combination of scientific depth, regulatory expertise, and business leadership, allowing him to deliver clear, actionable insights in a complex and fast-moving global environment. This integrated perspective is especially valuable for effective lifecycle management of pharmaceutical products and brands.

His consulting work is grounded in a career defined by curiosity, adaptability, and a deep respect for the human impact of medicines—from development to delivery, across diverse markets and regulatory systems.

Recent Awards and Recognitions

Candido Fontoura Medal

Nelson was recently awarded a commendation for his lifetime contribution to the development of the pharmaceutical industry in Brazil. This is only one of many such recognitions throughout his career. A US citizen and resident of Miami, Nelson’s career has made him a worldwide force for the responsible development of pharmaceutical enterprises.

Membership in the Brazilian Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences

Full membership into the Academia de Ciencias Farmaceuticas do Brasil was awarded to Nelson at a prestigious gala held on June 30th. His diploma was presented by Dr. Michel Kfhouri, president of the academy, and Lauro Moretto, honorary president. Nelson now occupies chair number 86, a seat which honors Dr. Vital Brasil Mineiro de Campanha, a Brazilian physician and scientist known for the discovery of the polyvalent venom antiserum used to treat bites of poisonous snakes in 1917. He was one of the founders of two important research institutes in Brazil,  Butantan in Sao Paulo and Vital Brasil in Rio de Janeiro.

As an academician, Nelson is driven by his passion for promoting better and more inclusive policies for the advancement of healthcare systems. From his position, he pledges to honor the academy by both learning from his academic colleagues and sharing his knowledge with others. Specifically, he plans to mentor and prepare young scientists and entrepreneurs who share his passion for pharmaceutical and medical sciences innovation. 

In-Depth Expertise

Wherever you stand in the intricate cross-section of the medical, pharmaceutical, and biotech spheres, you know that it takes in-depth expertise to navigate it successfully. Your strategy needs to be in the hands of an experienced professional with proven success in each of its dynamic elements—from a micro and macro level. 

You can trust that NFJ Consulting is dedicated to your success.