Massachusetts

the BioPharma Hub of the US

Massachusetts: the BioPharma Hub

Find out which companies have had the most growth over the past 12 months, all with headquarters in Massachusetts >

There are a number of reasons why Massachusetts continues to be a central hub for Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Manufacturing. Being home renowned research institutions like Harvard University and MIT is a big factor. But as we discovered through our research, there are other universities producing high quality talent.

Does this information affect your talent attraction strategy?

Insights from EVP data:

It is no surprise that among all levels of experience, compensation and benefits remains the most important aspect for employees. In today's economic climate, people need a competitive salary that will support them and their families.

In 3 out of 4 experience brackets this is followed by the opportunity for career growth within the company. And yet the average tenure for professionals within the BioPharma sector is 1.8 years. This suggests that companies aren't providing the development opportunities that their people want.

Some questions to reflect on:

Are you going to grow your headcount with permanent or temporary staff?
How does that employee mix impact career progression?
Have you identified senior roles which pose risk should your leader leave?
Do you have a succession plan in place?
How could you create a culture of learning within your organization?
How can you elevate the capabilities of your current workforce?
Have you identified the skills that will be most important to your business in 3-5 years?
Can you up-skill instead of hiring new talent?

The importance of Learning & Development

Our data shows that for the majority of this talent pool, the second most important aspect of a job is to have opportunities for career growth within the company that they're working for. However, the average tenure length is less than 2 years, suggesting that most employees are not satisfied with what is being offered.

TScan therapeutics are investing heavily in their L&D programs and are definitely leading by example. The question is how long will it take the rest of the industry to catch up and will we see it have a direct impact on the retention rate among BioPharma firms?

We probably take 20 different topics, minimally a year and put out programs on those for our employees.

Ann Hargreaves, Senior Vice President Human Resources at TScan Therapeutics

Watch to find out about L&D at TSan Therapeutics