The San Francisco Bay Area is one of the most—if not the most—challenging markets in the world for hiring. This is especially true for life sciences and digital health companies that require people with highly specialized skillsets and advanced degrees. New companies with a need for innovative employees are establishing their headquarters in the Bay Area every day, and there is growing concern in the region over whether there is large enough talent pool to keep these companies in motion.
Rising cost of living and lengthy, troubled commutes play a large role in pushing people out of San Francisco and other Bay Area cities. In fact, 46 percent of Bay Area residents plan to leave the region, creating even more competition for top talent in an already tough market. Combine that with the pressures of keeping up with the attractive tech companies such as the Apples and Googles of Silicon Valley, and the life sciences and digital health industries are in for a knock-out, drag-down fight for talent.
What is a mission-driven but under-employed company to do?
Should you consider moving out of the Bay Area to attract more talent? The short answer: absolutely not. San Francisco continues to be the top national life sciences and digital health hub offering countless benefits to the companies that call San Francisco home: access to talent, partners and VCs, as well as strong business development incentives and resources. However, to attract and keep top talent, companies need to be ultra-competitive with their offerings and open to the various needs of the evolving, incoming talent pool.
As an executive search professional serving companies in the life sciences and healthcare high-tech industries, I know firsthand the challenges of filling key executive roles in the Bay Area market, and I’m often the first to feel these regional trends in a meaningful way. Whether you’re hiring in biotech or genomics, seeking bioengineering or AI talent, or looking to bolster diversity and inclusion among your leadership team, biotech and high-tech leaders need to take the following actions to stay competitive in the Bay Area:
Throw away the old playbook
The life sciences and healthcare high tech industries continuously reference the old playbook of hiring talent that checks every box on a lengthy requirements document. We believe there is no such thing as the “perfect candidate.” Because of the current hiring climate in the Bay Area, companies need to be more progressive in how they evaluate potential hires. Today, soft skills and an aptitude for learning are actually more important than traditional education and experience. Assessing a candidate’s ability to learn and grow with the company is how one needs to hire now. REWRITE your position profiles.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Employers must also be more open to different groups of candidates such as candidates returning to the workforce, servicemen and women leaving the military, and seasoned workers who have experience and honed skills to offer. Burn the old playbook and reimagine what the candidate search should look like for your company. Reassessing your hiring protocol will pay out in dividends when it comes to securing top talent.
Create an Attractive and Sticky Culture (Offer More than Money)
In executive search, we need to offer many reasons for someone to join a company beyond just salary– and then we simply try to make it make financial sense. San Francisco is one of the few cities in which a six-figure salary can be considered low income, so cash remains important but not the only driver. Consider what a candidate really wants: a strong understanding of why your company will outperform your competitors; a fair amount of equity; an empowered employee base; a commitment to diversity hiring; clear career progression (which is often more challenging to articulate to executive level candidates, so be thoughtful here); and opportunities for growth, learning and development. (Yes, seasoned executives still want to learn!) Whatever it is that you can offer, be generous. Chances are, if you aren’t willing to meet your candidate at least half way, another company will. In our experience, creating an attractive company culture takes a lot more than free company lunches, “bring your dog to work day” or kombucha on tap to influence your next executive level candidate to join your team.
Cut the commute
This one can seem scary to many of my customers. The baby boomers of biotech are particularly notorious for valuing the traditional 9-5, in-office worker. But did you know that 15 percent of Bay Area commuters spend more than one hour getting to work each day? This keeps Bay Area locals from pursuing opportunities across a bridge, and out-of-town prospects concerned about making the move to the Bay Area. I firmly believe that talent doesn’t have a zip code. In fact, it’s the companies that entertain proven long-distance commuters – typically from Southern California – that get access to better talent. To recruit top talent in a competitive region, the ability to work remotely can be an incredible incentive. Of course, building in work-from-home policies and flexible hours also requires building internal communications programs and processes that ensure remote workers are 100 percent up-to-speed and part of your team, no matter where they work. Additionally, these companies need a performance-based goal structure to measure their success, even when remote.
Now is the time to get ahead of the Bay Area talent crisis. Be flexible, creative and aggressive in your search for talent. Consider alternative types of candidates. Recognize what the competition is offering and don’t bury your head in the sand. It is a job seeker’s market; but that does not have to be the employer’s loss. Make your company’s recruiting strategy as innovative as your potential life-saving drug or service, and you’ll be golden.
