What leading organizations are doing differently in 2026

For regulatory and quality teams in life sciences, 2026 is a year of significant transformation, with many organizations still working out just what that means in practice. Our latest Regulatory Forum brings together Barbara Bovy, Head of Quality Intelligence & QMS at UCB and Lo Ann Thomas, Senior Director Global Regulatory Intelligence at AstraZeneca, to share how they’re approaching quality intelligence activation, building cross-functional programs, and supporting coordinated action with full accountability.

Team of professionals talking in an office and looking at a laptop

Where quality and regulatory intelligence are heading

The distinction between quality intelligence and regulatory intelligence is narrowing, and organizations are increasingly building connected intelligence operations that manage the full lifecycle of regulatory change, from update to decision to visible, traceable action.

Based on findings from the RAPS Regulatory Intelligence Conference 2026 and Infodesk’s ongoing work with leading life sciences organizations, this Regulatory Forum explores how teams involved in regulatory intelligence, quality assurance, GxP, and pharmacovigilance are building quality programs that deliver strategic value.

This is a peer-led discussion focused on practical experience, the challenges organizations face at every stage, and lessons learned along the way.

Older female professional smiling while working in an office

What the forum will explore

What quality intelligence is, why it’s evolving, and where it sits alongside regulatory intelligence
What quality intelligence activation looks like in practice
How to demonstrate the strategic value of quality intelligence to leadership
Key challenges facing quality intelligence programs and how organizations are tackling them
Where processes, SOPs, and governance fit into a mature quality intelligence operation
The role of AI in Quality Intelligence activation
Implications of Annex 22 for quality and regulatory intelligence teams
The E2E regulatory intelligence project and what reporting on implementation means
The future of quality intelligence activation and where AI and technology fit in

Forum hosts

Barbara Bovy

Head Quality Intelligence & QMS at UCB Quality

Barbara Bovy has been working in regulatory, pharmacovigilance and quality for 15 years+. Since 2024, she built a new department in UCB Quality, coordinating intelligence and QMS across the company. Her background includes key diplomas such as a PhD in Pharmacovigilance and a Master in Epidemiology. She started her career in Regulatory Authorities, including EMA. She then became EU QPPV at Mithra Pharmaceuticals where she built the Pharmacovigilance QMS and was directly involved in pharmacovigilance operations, before joining UCB where she led Auditing and Compliance for GLP, GCP and GVP, being responsible for the audit strategy in those GxP and hosting corresponding regulatory inspections. She is currently engaged in different associations and workstreams to shape industry interpretation of some regulatory texts. Barbara is also on the panel of experts at the RAPS RI Conference, 2026, to discuss how quality is increasingly integrated into intelligence functions that inform regulatory, compliance, and business strategy

Lo Ann Thomas

Senior Director Global Regulatory Intelligence at AstraZeneca

Lo Ann is a seasoned Regulatory Affairs and Regulatory Intelligence leader with more than 35 years of experience across the pharmaceutical industry, with many senior leadership roles at AstraZeneca. She currently serves as Senior Director, Global Regulatory Intelligence, where she leads efforts to monitor, interpret, and communicate global regulatory developments that impact business and regulatory strategy. Throughout her career, Lo Ann has built extensive expertise across regulatory intelligence, regulatory policy, submission management, strategic planning, and operational transformation. She has played a key role in driving process improvement initiatives, developing regulatory policies and procedures, and delivering strategic insight to support decision-making across complex global organizations. Lo Ann has extensive experience working with cross-functional stakeholders at all levels of management. Her work continues to focus on helping organizations navigate evolving global regulatory environments while supporting operational excellence, strategic planning, and intelligence-driven decision-making.

Who should take part

This forum is relevant to professionals working across regulatory compliance and quality in life sciences, including:

Quality assurance and GxP teams and professionals
Quality intelligence and QMS teams
Regulatory intelligence teams
Pharmacovigilance teams
Anyone responsible for assessing regulatory impact and coordinating downstream action

Smiling female professional in an office

What you’ll take away

You’ll leave with a practical understanding of how leading organizations are approaching quality intelligence today, including:

What Quality Intelligence activation means
How quality intelligence programs are being defined, structured, and scaled
What it takes to manage the full lifecycle from regulatory update to traceable implementation and decision-making
How other organizations are managing similar challenges as the ones you’re facing
How cross-functional networks and governance structures support accountability and action
How technology, including AI, is helping
What Annex 22 means for teams building AI-supported workflows in GxP environments
Where peers are focusing their development efforts in 2026

After the session, you’ll be invited to complete a short capability self-assessment. It covers people and skills, processes, technology, and governance, and, after you’ve spent five minutes or so answering ten short questions, we’ll generate a free tailored report with a summary of findings and recommended next steps.