Early in his career in pharmaceutical drug development almost twenty years ago, Gyan (John) Prakash was in charge of overseeing the clinical development of an antimicrobial drug. Though the product had seemed promising, his review of the data showed that the trial had failed, and it was Prakash's job to tell his superiors that the program must be killed. "At that time I was so naive," he says, declining to name either the company or the product. Killing the program he was working on meant he'd be out of a job, he thought, so before meeting with his bosses, he packed up his office, preparing to clear out.
To his surprise, however, the company saw it differently, and he wasn't fired - aborting unsuccessful projects early meant money and resources saved. That philosophy - acknowledging your mistakes and stopping while you're ahead - is crucial, but rare, he says. Now ...
