By Dirk Brinckman
Chief Compliance Officer, Johnson & Johnson
Chair, IFPMA Ethics and Business Integrity Committee
Chair, IFPMA Chief Ethics and Compliance Officers Roundtable 

Today is Global Ethics Day and this year’s theme is “Re-centering Ethics”. At a time when organizations face competing pressures and unprecedented change this theme serves as a call to intentionally place ethics, integrity, and sound judgment at the center of how innovation reaches patients, how trust is earned, how decisions are made and how businesses succeed. For the pharmaceutical industry, ethics no longer sits at the defensive edge of strategy but is a competitive advantage. 

This theme was the focus of a joint public-private sector session at the 2026 Global Anti-Corruption and Integrity Forum in Paris. I was privileged to open that session as Chair of the Chief Ethics and Compliance Officers Roundtable at the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA). The Roundtable is the world’s most senior forum uniting ethics and compliance executives from global research-based pharma industry to steward sector-wide integrity standards and initiatives. 

The conversation in Paris reinforced an important point: ethics is not separate from business success, but fundamental to it. 

Research published in 2021 by the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC) covering nearly 250 pharma and medtech companies across 18 economies, found those with stronger ethical maturity were more likely to grow revenue, enter new markets, attract and retain talent, and raise employee wages. A follow-up study conducted in 2025 identified several additional capabilities contributing to sustainable commercial success in ethical mature organizations, including employee training, conflict-of-interest controls, third-party due diligence, and disciplined regulatory compliance. Ethical maturity is measured by the observable behaviors and organizational capabilities that enable organizations to act with integrity, fairness, and accountability. It is not simply the absence of misconduct. It is the active presence of sound judgment, disciplined systems, and trusted partnerships. It is what earns and sustains confidence, and with that confidence comes the ability to navigate complexity with more options, more credibility, and greater resilience. 

Ethically mature behaviors and capabilities can contribute to successful business outcomes:  

In the follow-up study conducted in 2025 involving 17 health-related SMEs across nine APEC economies, the link between ethical maturity and economic performance was further explored. The research provided some insight into how ethical maturity creates value in practice and identified potential business outcomes that may be associated with stronger ethics and compliance capabilities: 

• Ethical maturity can create access to new opportunities. Companies with strong ethics and compliance practices may be better positioned to enter new markets, participate in procurement opportunities, and pursue growth with greater confidence. Disciplined regulatory compliance and adherence to ethical standards were repeatedly associated with domestic and cross-border expansion, particularly in environments where credibility and reliability influence access. 

• Ethical maturity can strengthen partnerships. Ethical standards play a role in enabling organizations to establish and sustain high-value business relationships. Strong third-party due diligence, conflict-of-interest management, and consistent compliance practices helped companies position themselves as reliable partners and secure valuable commercial opportunities. 

• Ethical maturity can improve resilience and execution. It can drive stronger employee retention, fewer internal investigations, more resilient supply chains, and reduced operational friction. One case study described a company that reduced customs-clearance times from 14 days to three through disciplined documentation and compliance practices. Another secured high-value international agreements through robust third-party due diligence and alignment with global compliance standards.  

Ethical maturity enables innovation.   

Scientific breakthroughs create potential, but their value is realized only when new therapies and technologies successfully make their way to the patients who need them. That journey depends on the responsible conduct of clinical research, the generation of credible evidence, the transparent communication of scientific and medical information, and the effective exchange of knowledge across the healthcare ecosystem. 

Ethical maturity helps ensure that these activities are carried out with integrity, transparency, and accountability. It creates the conditions for healthcare professionals to make informed decisions and for patients to benefit from the latest advances in science.  

Re-centering ethics means leading by example — and raising the bar together. 

Individual companies – including leaders like Johnson & Johnson – must serve as role models. While every organization is responsible for its own conduct, healthcare operates within shared healthcare ecosystems and thrives on collaboration. The effectiveness of that ecosystem depends on common standards and a collective commitment to doing business the right way.  

Integrity remains at the center of discovery, development, partnership, and patient impact

Success is best achieved by raising standards together. In fact, the research found that organizations with strong ethical maturity often performed better when operating within sub-sectors characterized by higher overall ethical maturity. In other words, the benefits of ethics and integrity can compound across the entire industry. 

IFPMA plays an important role in advancing collective action on ethics and integrity, from stewarding the industry’s global Code of Practice to fostering ethical collaborations across patient, healthcare professionals, hospitals, and industry. These efforts, including through IFPMA’s Always Innovating platform, help ensure that scientific innovation advances through trusted systems and delivers lasting value for patients and society. 

Re-centering ethics means ensuring that integrity remains at the center of discovery, development, partnership, and patient impact. It guides how we make decisions, form partnerships, and uphold the standards that allow science to reach patients with confidence. 

For pharma executives and board members, the opportunity before us is to be known not only by the innovation we deliver, but by how we deliver it. 

This op-ed was published first on PharmaBoardroom on 21 October.

Author

• 
  Dirk Brinckman Chair of the IFPMA Chief Ethics and Compliance Officers Roundtable