We begin by talking to Dr X, a young post-doctoral scientist with a PhD in immunology and an MBA, about moving from lab coat to business suit, what it’s like being involved in the strategic development of a biotechnology company and candidly about the salary disparities for scientists in academia compared to industry.

SCIENCE HUB: Dr X, you work for a company in the biotechnology/biomedical industry.  What do they do? 

Dr X: We develop treatments for cancer and infectious diseases.

SCIENCE HUB: Can you give us an overview of the company?

Dr X:  We’re relatively small with fewer than 10 staff in Australia, consisting of the head office – where I work – and also a research group.  We have about 20 people in Germany, who do some of the early-stage research for our product pipeline.

We have a clinical research officer (CRO) who looks after our clinical trials, and we often outsource special tests or assays that we can’t do ourselves.  We also sometimes have independent third-party labs validate some of our products.  That’s good to do when you’re generating data packages for a product; it gives potential [investment] partners confidence that the products are working well.

The number of senior staff with science qualifications here isn’t large – myself in the head office and the two people who run the research groups here in Australia and in Germany.  Other staff members have a lot of business experience, and scientific qualifications aren’t necessarily required.  In general, however, it’s not a waste to have a PhD in the professional environment I’m in.

SCIENCE HUB: How long have you worked with this company?

Dr X: About 18 months.

SCIENCE HUB: And what do you do?

Dr X: I’m the director of business development.  My main responsibility is initiating and maintaining business relationships with other biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies.  I also do some public relations, and I play a support role with some of the more technical things that auditors require of us.

A typical week for me would involve following up on business contacts and preparing various reports that the CEO requires.  I help put together presentations for meetings he attends, draft ASX announcements, submit grant applications, evaluate potential partnering opportunities and look after the company’s website and annual report.  We meet quite regularly with our current investors, and I’m often involved in some of those meetings.  We also like to have good communication between our research group and the people in the head office, so I might attend lab meetings too.  It’s quite diverse.

The nice thing about a small biotech company is that when new things come along, you get thrown into it all.  You may not necessarily have done these things before, so you need to be a bit multi-talented.  But most of us, at least in the head office, have very defined things to do.

SCIENCE HUB:  Would the variety and constant challenge be one of the best things about your job, or what is it that you enjoy most?

DR X:  The biotech industry is very intense, it’s hard to explain how different it is from the lab.  There are new challenges every week, and you always seem to be moving from one crazy deadline to the next.  Just when you think you’ve finished everything, something else comes up – the board might implement a new strategy or something more important that needs to be finished straight away.

The pressure can be constant and you have to get used to dealing with that, and not always being able to finish things.  You simply need to learn to prioritise your time and deal with the most important project at hand.

SCIENCE HUB: How many hours per week do you work?

DR X: I have a nine hour day.  Occasionally in the evening or early morning there might be corporate functions or seminars – networking and educational opportunities.   They are good to go to, although sometimes you have to limit them.  But because the biotech industry is pretty small, it’s good to meet other people who are doing similar things.

SCIENCE HUB:   Do you still get to attend conferences as research scientists do?

DR X:  Because I haven’t been with the company terribly long, I haven’t done any overseas trips.  But certainly I’ve been to some conferences in Australia, and had an opportunity to visit another research group we’re working with, which was great.  There are definitely opportunities to go and meet people.  As our relationships with other companies mature, there may be more opportunity to meet with other corporate teams.

SCIENCE HUB: How did you get this job?

DR X: It was all a bit of a fluke really.  My post-doc contract had ended, and at that time I had already had started my MBA, perhaps unconsciously making a decision that I wanted to move into more of a business type role.

While I was writing up some papers and submitting grants, I heard about the job from a colleague, who knew someone working for the company.  I had a quick discussion with that person on the phone, and he said, “You sound like the type of person we need.”

That’s how I got an interview.  I didn’t even write an application letter.  I had two interviews in a bit of a drawn out process where they wanted to see some examples of my writing material – my thesis, some of the papers I had written, and my MBA assignments.

But really, I just fell into. I really had no idea about what a business development person did.  My original role in the company was actually ‘Manager of Finance and Business Development’, which then morphed into this directorship role.

SCIENCE HUB: What advice could you give to other people wanting to get into similar work?

DR X:  When you’re working in a biotech company which develops treatments for cancer, it’s really good to have an understanding of science, and that includes being able to evaluate data critically.

Other companies come to ours with their technologies and a proposal to partner with them or license their technology.  Part of my job is to evaluate their data.  Having a good science background is really beneficial to understanding that world and the language used in it.

[In that regard], it seems easier for scientists to move into the business world, than for business people to move into the science world.  Having said that, there are obviously good examples of people with non-science backgrounds who have high positions in biotech companies.

SCIENCE HUB:  In ballpark figures, how much could people expect to earn in your position?

DR X:  It’s very different [to the university system] … And this is one of the big things for scientists moving into the business world: they don’t have a very good idea of the value of their own skills.

In general, you could probably expect to start on a senior lecturer’s salary.  That would be in the realm of at least 100K for an entry-level position.  It’s fairly generous when you look at some of the other salary scales, for example, given through the ARC and the NHMRC.

“That’s your base salary, and then often with biotechnology companies, you get bonuses and options each year as well, which are incentives and reward for good work. Staff members are encouraged, especially if relatively new to the company, to have shares in the business. It helps create an environment where everyone is contributing to the wealth.

SCIENCE HUB: In terms of being a female scientist, or a PhD-qualified woman working in the biotech industry, is there any specific advice you can offer?

Dr X: Firstly, getting a good work-life balance would be great. I don’t know if I’ve always succeeded at that. My partner would suggest otherwise, perhaps! Especially while finishing my MBA, I realised how much it demanded of my after-hours time, because while I was excused from work to sit for exams, I studied in the evenings and on the weekends.

[In a practical sense], try to keep people around you who will keep you in check when you’re getting completely obsessive, and who will pull you back into line.

Secondly, in general, I’ve found women aren’t that good at negotiating contracts. Men, in general, tend to be a little more aggressive and to ask for extra. I don’t think women should be scared to say what they think they’re worth, to really put forward their skills and to ask for the most relevant remuneration for what they do. I think there are some differences in the way men and women approach these things.

SCIENCE HUB: And finally, Dr X, in the last question for this month’s issue – where would you like to see yourself in 5 years?

DR X: Probably in a senior management role. I’m interested in getting some experience as a director of a company –being on the board. That would be nice, and maybe be semi-retired! But I don’t think that’s going to happen…

Related articles:

• Pavlov’s Epilogue – Advice to young scientists from the biotech industry