Drug discovery and development, while usually a role of the pharmaceutical industry, is a long, difficult and expensive process, which can present academic organisations and spin-off companies with a number of challenges. There is a high uncertainty that a drug will ever reach patients, making the process of bringing a compound from the lab to clinical development even more difficult. Bruno Speder and Luc-Alain Savoy of SGS identify seeking advice from experts at crucial moments as being integral to successful drug development.