By Rebecca Stauffer
“Our human capital is our greatest asset,” Chris Frew, CEO of BioBuzz and Workforce Genetics, said at May’s BioBuzz Awards Celebration & Symposium.
He introduced panelists Aon Governance Director Kevin Wells and Action for Equality - Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM) Director Rosie Walker at a discussion examining the rise of human capital in life sciences.
The 2023 talent management environment is much different from the one that companies experienced in the tail-end of the pandemic, Wells said. He compared the current talent management environment to that of 2021-2022 using data from Aon’s recent life science compensation and workforce survey. This survey gathers data from 1.7 million employees at 1,660 life science companies. An analysis of this data shows that in 2021-2022, the top trends were returning to the office (RTO); turnover driven by the Great Resignation; interest in career progression; visibility of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) efforts; and location-based pay.
2023 looks different.
“I think we’re likely to see less aggressive hiring,” he said, pointing to survey data. “Two years ago, it was 40% aggressive, now it is 12% aggressive.”
The survey also shows that turnover has slowed down in the industry.
“Voluntary turnover has cooled,” he said. “I would expect voluntary turnover to go down.”
Insights from the Aon survey of life science employees include:
· Reorganization and Restructuring of Companies
As the economy enters a projected downturn, hiring has slowed, and layoffs are occurring. Companies are also being more selective about who they hire, which leads to his second bullet.
· Competition for New Types of Talent
Candidates with skills in artificial intelligence and machine learning have an edge, Wells explained. “Machine learning and AI, that’s where we’re seeing greater focus,” he said.
· Emphasis on Training and Retraining
New technologies like AI and machine learning require new skillsets, necessitating support for training staff for this new era.
· Workforce Resilience
Companies are recognizing that by putting employees first and supporting their wellbeing, this can ensure an agile and resilient workforce. Examples of this are flexible schedules, remote work, etc.
Wells concluded his presentation with his predictions for 2023-2024:
· “Quiet Hiring” of employees with critical skillsets will grow along with salaries
· Talent management will become more intertwined with AI
· Hybrid flexibility will become more common
· Awareness will increase about how AI can introduce bias in the hiring process by potentially screening out capable candidates
Walker then took the microphone and provided data specific to the cell-and-gene therapy workforce from an ARM report released in March 2023.
She said that 30,000 new positions are anticipated in this sector by 2025. Currently, there are 2,000 cell-and-gene therapy trials under way—43% of them at sites in North America.
She said the top three workforce gaps are in manufacturing, analytical development and testing, and quality control. Manufacturing has the largest gap of the three.
Barriers to employment growth include:
· Training and Development
· Compensation
· Relocation
· Poaching
The need to train the new cell-and-gene therapy workforce has drawn the attention of universities, which have begun offering new, specialized curriculum and certificate programs.
Regarding compensation, she said, “there has been an increase in job title inflation, but you can implement strategies to prevent this in onboarding.”
Traditional biotech hubs such as Boston, and parts of California remain hot, but Walker noted that new hubs in Columbus, Ohio, and Houston, Texas are emerging as workers are priced out of markets in the Northeast and San Francisco.
To prevent poaching, she encouraged companies to look at monetary incentives, acts of genuine appreciation, company culture, and non-monetary offerings such as generous time off policies as tools for retaining staff.
In his remarks concluding the panel, Frew also emphasized the major role cell and gene companies will play in the job market, particularly as competition for traditional biotech firms.
“If you’re not in cell and gene therapy,” he said. “Cell and gene companies are taking your people.”