We’re at the heart of the global response to COVID-19, a powerful reminder of our mission to enable our customers to make the world healthier,cleaner and safer. What’s driving us every day is the feeling that there is a meaning to our work over and beyond the reward of the paycheck. What’s compelling now is that we see more people that are framing their careers in a different light. Many people that work in roles outside of typical life science areas are now considering this industry for the first time ever, and they are starting to see that they can transfer their skills from other industries and make an impact in the life sciences sector – a mindset shift that expands the talent pool for the MedTech and Life Science industry.
Like many other organisations within our sector, we have accelerated projects scheduled to take months and years to a timeline of a few days and weeks, and this in all aspects of the COVID-19 response, including virus research, diagnostic testing components and capabilities, PPE, vaccine and therapy production. Considering the breadth of this value chain, we’ve had to significantly increase our hiring in certain areas to meet this unprecedented demand. Our requisition volume is up 100% over last year and we are hiring at a speed and scale historically never seen.
Looking ahead, the investment in healthcare systems will continue, driven by governments on a national level to bolster capabilities in diagnostics and vaccine development to better protect themselves. There are also large global initiatives like the ‘Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator’ and COVAX, multi-national collaborations with the involvement of more than two thirds of the world to accelerate development, production, and equitable access to diagnostics, treatments, and vaccines. There will be a huge demand for what we and other companies are doing in this sector, and people moving across the industry to work in life sciences will feel comfortable that they will have a career in an area that will continue to grow further.
This unprecedented growth requires adjustments and adaptation. For example, because quality assurance and the regulatory affairs industry play such a central role in global health, safety, and various medicine, skilled regulatory professionals are in high demand, particularly for the steriles development, a highly regulated environment. If I’d be asked to give guidance to young people as to what they should study, I would point them to quality assurance and regulatory affairs where there are just not enough people right now. We’ll have to grow our own talent, cross-train and transfer from adjacent industry sectors.
In support of this process, we offer flagship leadership development programs and entry-level direct hire positions across the organization so people can accelerate their careers with robust, on-the-job learning opportunities, mentorship and structured learning. These programs also aim to address the universal factors that hold women back in the tech industry—and the needs of each individual participant. So, no matter what people plan to do, if they are ready to make a difference in the world, now is the time, and our industry is the place to be.
