Emerging Leaders: A Collaborative Role‑Playing Adventure

Pharma Projects x Dungeons & Dragons—Experience a Pharmaceutical Project as a Collaborative Role‑Playing Adventure

Event Overview

The Emerging Leaders Committee is excited to introduce an innovative and engaging learning experience: a reenactment of a complex, real‑world pharmaceutical project, structured as an interactive role‑playing game. Inspired by the collaborative style of a Dungeons & Dragons campaign, participants will work together as the diverse members of the project "party," guided by "well-leveled" professionals from each stakeholder "class." Our Dungeon Master will lead everybody through the "main quest," all the while throwing out actual challenges and side-quests that emulate real projects.

To create an authentic and dynamic experience, we have assembled industry professionals [SEE LIST BELOW] representing a broad spectrum of project and stakeholder roles. These professionals will lead you through an unscripted project scenario—one they will not see in advance. Just as in real life, they will need to assess the situation, adapt to evolving information, and make decisions in real time. Throughout the session, we will introduce realistic challenges, unexpected complications and “side quests” to mirror the complexities of actual project execution.

This program offers a unique educational opportunity drawing on expertise from design engineering, project and construction management, skilled trades, R&D, EHS, maintenance and operations, CQV, QA, equipment suppliers, and move coordination. Nowhere else can you experience these perspectives coming together in such an immersive way.

A Multi‑Perspective Learning Experience

At the start of each project phase, participants will rotate into new roles, giving everyone the chance to understand the project through the lens of multiple “classes” or disciplines. Just as a successful quest requires a balanced party—not all mages or all rogues—successful project execution depends on recognizing and leveraging the strengths, limitations, and responsibilities of each role on the team.

By stepping into positions you may never hold in your actual career, you will gain valuable insight into how different stakeholders think, what drives their decision‑making, and how each group contributes to the success of the overall project, even when perspectives differ. This hands‑on, role‑based learning will strengthen your ability to collaborate, communicate and lead within multifunctional teams.

What You'll Learn / Key Takeaways:

By attending this event, you will:

• Directly experience real-world project complexity by working through the phases of a capital project, experiencing the decisions, trade-offs and coordination challenges that arise at each critical milestone
• Understand different stakeholder functions and motivations by rotating through different groups, learning what drives their priorities and what success looks like through their eyes
• Learn to identify cross-functional conflicts by experiencing firsthand where stakeholder interests diverge to develop strategies that retain collaboration through the conflict
• Improve cross-functional communication by learning the language, concerns and success metrics of other groups you'll collaborate with throughout your career
• Accelerate your leadership trajectory by developing the systems-thinking mindset that distinguishes project contributors from project leaders who can orchestrate complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives

Who Should Attend:

This full-day event is designed for Emerging Leaders as well as:

• Process Engineers and Facilities Engineers seeking to understand how design decisions impact downstream commissioning, qualification and operational efficiency
• Commissioning, Qualification and Validation professionals looking to influence projects earlier by understanding construction sequencing and design trade-offs
• Project Managers and Construction Managers interested in anticipating stakeholder needs and managing cross-functional dynamics more effectively
• Operations, Maintenance and Lab personnel exploring how to advocate for end-user requirements during the design and construction phases
• Quality Assurance, Safety and Regulatory specialists developing strategies to integrate compliance requirements seamlessly throughout project lifecycles rather than as late-stage checkpoints

Why This Event Matters:

The pharmaceutical industry is experiencing unprecedented growth in capital investment (from cell and gene therapy manufacturing to continuous processing facilities), yet project delays and cost overruns remain stubbornly common. The problem isn't technical incompetence; it's insufficient cross-functional understanding, communication and coordination (something we rarely learn in school). As projects grow more complex and timelines compress, professionals who can think beyond their functional silo and orchestrate collaboration will position themselves for faster advancement and greater influence. This project simulation leverages ISPE DVC's diverse membership to create a unique experience that no classroom or single employer can hope to replicate!

Event Agenda (8am to 5pm):

8:00 AM - Arrivals and Light Breakfast

8:30 AM - Morning Session Begins

12:00 PM - Lunch

1:00 PM - Afternoon Session Begins

4:30 PM - Closing Remarks and Departures

Morning Session: Project Birth to Build

- Project Initiation & Conceptual Design – Break into stakeholder teams and tackle the early-stage decisions that set the foundation for the project
- Break & Team Rotation #1
- Design & Construction – Experience the transition from concept to concrete as you navigate technical specifications, construction sequencing and stakeholder coordination
- Lunch & Team Rotation #2

You will rotate to a new stakeholder group at each break, experiencing the project from distinctly different perspectives throughout the day.

Afternoon Session: Bringing the Facility to Life

- Start-up & Commissioning – Work through the critical handoff from construction to operations, addressing equipment testing and system verification
- Break & Team Rotation #3
- Qualification & Validation – Navigate the regulatory and quality requirements that ensure your facility is ready for production
- Break & Team Rotation #4
- Move-in & Start-of-Science – Complete the project lifecycle by coordinating the final transition to full operation

Participating Industry Professionals:

Thank you to our sponsors for this event:

Registration opens at 8:00 am; the morning session begins at 8:30 am; the program concludes by 5:00 pm.

Ticket Pricing: 

Before March 6, 2026 (cut-off date)

ISPE Emerging Leader/Member - $150

Non-Member - $200

After March 6, 2026 (cut-off date)

ISPE Emerging Leader/Member - $200

Non-Member - $250

Special Note: "walk-ins" will not be accepted due to SK Pharmteco Security Guidelines.

Location:      SK Pharmteco: 411 Swedeland Rd, King of Prussia, PA 19406 

Not yet an ISPE Member? Consider joining today! https://ispe.org/membership/join