The future of pharmaceutical human resources; the battle for talent

19 July 2001

Nearly 1.3 million people work in the pharmaceutical industry and,whether they are with giants like Merck & Co or GlaxoSmithKline, or minnows such as the many biotechnology and genomics firms that are springing up, most people entering the sector have something in common; they want to make a difference, according to a new report, The Future of Pharma Human Resources, by consultants PriceWaterhouseCooper.

However, it notes, pharmaceutical companies are not philanthropic ventures staffed by saints and, despite any noble intentions, they remain under pressure to satisfy the financial expectations of their shareholders.

The pharmaceutical industry typically aims to attract the top science graduates and postgraduates from the best universities in North America and Europe, PWC says, but the most able graduates are the very people that blue-chip companies in other sectors also want. Moreover, it adds, an already-competitive market will become even more internecine, as two trends reshape the western world: the shrinking of the working-age population; and the decline in the number of students reading traditional science degrees or choosing a career in scientific research.

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