Clinical staffing a 'tremendous problem'

The problem is affecting both pharmaceutical companies and contract research organisations (CROs) alike, although pharma firms typically have a deeper pocket than CROs and so are able to pay a bit more to lure candidates when needed, Gail Kniveton from staff resourcing firm Fforde Management told Outsourcing-Pharma.com. "We are witnessing a drying out of talent in this industry compared to 10-15 years ago,"​ said Kniveton, who confirmed that she was speaking specifically in relation to the UK, but that the situation was applicable throughout Europe. "The problem is arising primarily because n​ot enough people are studying straight science subjects [physics, chemistry, biology etc.] at university anymore."​ Instead, people are choosing more applied science subjects, such as physiotherapy, medicine or nursing, or shunning science altogether and opting for subjects that they believe may offer more glamorous or financially lucrative careers, such as media studies, languages, finance and IT, she said. Kniveton added that the problem is being exacerbated by the fact that many of the university places for straight science subjects are now being filled by overseas students, with the problem being that the majority can only work in the UK after they graduate for a short period before being required to return home. At the same time, pharma companies and CROs are going through a period where they are trying to be as cost-effective as possible and as a result, are cutting back on their level of training investment. "Many firms are not taking on trainees anymore because the investment needed is high and there is a lot of commercial pressure on firms to reduce the amount of non-billable staff time,"​ said Kniveton. "As a result, companies are willing to pay a premium for experienced staff and because of this high demand the clinical research industry is witnessing a salary escalation - over 90 per cent of the staff we place are earning well above the average UK wage."​ Meanwhile, this trend is helping to drive firms to conduct clinical research in emerging markets such as India and China, where straight science subjects are still being studied in vast amounts. India, for example, has the world's fourth largest reservoir of scientific manpower and 150,000 MSc Chemistry graduates per year. Graduates also offer multinational companies the advantage of speaking English and the productivity benefits they can offer are continually being recognised. Furthermore, cost savings can be up to 85 per cent on R&D conducted in the West.