Resilient Life Science Leadership in a Complex World

In this article Jill Lockett, Strategic Advisor at Alumni Global discusses the issues of resilience within sustainable leadership and how we best support leaders within Life Sciences in today’s turbulent business climate and going forward. Looking at resilience through two different perspectives we have listened to individuals in our network and across our own business community, about the models of joint working and partnership that have actively supported sustainable leadership and built resilience in their teams.

In our many conversations with senior executives looking to explore new career opportunities as well as with our clients across the Life Sciences industry, we often find ourselves looking through two lenses on resilience: how individual leaders might become more resilient in their roles, and how the pipeline of sustainable leaders might be made more resilient.

All organisations, not just our clients across the Life Sciences community, are stepping into an uncertain future with the imperative to become more automated, digital, and agile in their operations; smart in their commercial approaches; and increasingly integrated with providers, partners, and customers. Throw in the major challenges of the actions needed now to secure a sustainable environment, progressive thinking around EDI and fostering innovation whilst navigating hybrid working, today and tomorrow’s leaders are facing quite the challenge.

“Motivation and achievement for our patients, students and staff are the cornerstone of a successful leadership career. Yes, we live in complex times, but the potential to work in partnership, to role model collaboration, exists and we must strive to maintain this and showcase achievement to the next generation of clinical academic leaders.”

— Professor Dame Carol Black

If that wasn’t enough, we have to set all this against a background of geo-political instability and economic flux. Suddenly achieving the type of sustainable leadership with the temperament and skills to drive Life Sciences forward and maintain momentum becomes both urgent and a bit like finding a needle in a haystack.

Sustainable leadership requires resilience across many new areas of business

Leadership success factors are no longer about having deep sector knowledge and great stakeholder relationships, but how nimble and creative a person’s approach is to challenge and complexity.

They will demonstrate confidence and optimism, as well as curiosity of mind, continuously daring to push boundaries and look into new ways of working.

As Robert Noyce, Intel co-founder said, “Optimism is an essential ingredient of innovation. How else can the individual welcome change over security, or adventure over staying in safe places?“[1]

Arguably, a great Life Sciences leader may have the well-trodden path of traditional scientific careers but increasingly have had experience in an industry where a commercial paradigm shift has already occurred. Alumni Global have been having some great successes in finding fantastic leaders in unlikely places.

“My experience as a CEO of major chemical industry manufacturing company, including a pharmaceutical standalone company, provided me with the insight to support our Life Sciences partners. I have a strong sense of their needs, now and in the future. Anyone leading smaller as well as big Pharma, molecular sciences partnerships and Med Tech firms has the great opportunity and significant challenge right now. Finding and developing the leaders of the future with the appetite and skills to drive the collaboration, workforce development and succession planning needed for successful navigation of this industry is an essential key motivator for me.”

— Michael Pieters, Alumni Global Denmark

Michael Pieters

Associate Partner, Alumni Global

Unicorn hunting requires a both deep and broad approach, and an extensive talent network. It also requires an excellent understanding of the leadership and values structures that resonate with talented millennials.

Of course, as brilliant executives from a wide range of industries step into leadership roles within Life Sciences, accelerated and richer onboarding becomes paramount for them to learn, feel supported, and enable them to accelerate the transfer of their skills to this new industry. Research proves that effective onboarding can improve retention rates by 50 percent and time to productivity by 60 percent[2].

Great succession planning comes from a pipeline of resilient future leaders needs

The same rigour that has been applied to driving growth from new technologies and capital investment in Life Sciences, should be applied to human capital. As it becomes harder to find the right leaders ‘in the wild’, then it becomes more important to also nurture and develop the leadership potential within teams. There are benefits to networking more long-term with potential future leaders as well as upskilling and training internal future leaders.

“Our partnership with universities and hospitals in Aarhus, Denmark called Human First creates our platform for leadership in Value Based Healthcare. This collaboration builds on all that is good and creates the opportunities for future leaders to test new ways of working and international development opportunities. No matter how complex the day-to-day business is, it’s collaboration that paves the way to future success.”

— Dr Per Jorgensen, Medical Director, Human First

The great news is that development and personal investment is known to be a great attractor and retainer for the next generation of leaders. They want to learn and develop and feel valued for their individuality. Ambitious upcoming leaders are looking for companies that will help them grow – whether this be through training, action learning, mentors, coaches, and role models. If we don’t talk about these issues, value them, and constantly reinforce them, these future leaders may go elsewhere.

In this complex and ever-changing world, external high quality leadership development programmes at an accessible price can be key to growing and nurturing talent, reducing burnout, and maintaining focus. The Life Sciences sector has a pivotal role to play in describing and supporting the changing requirements of leadership. It can bring leaders together, and articulate a set of behaviours, values, and skills to leverage sustainable leadership and create the strong values-driven organisations of the future. It is a truism to say that when things get bad the only thing you have left is leadership culture. If it hasn’t been nurtured, then organisations will likely just drift when times get tough. Often it is this culture of collaboration and partnership that showcases the opportunities and benefits for the way forward and brings motivation and momentum.

“As I step down as the Joint Director of Research at both of Bristol’s acute NHS trusts and move towards focusing more time on our AHSC collaborations, I am proud of the achievements we have achieved collectively across our clinical academic community. We continue to grow our recruitment into clinical trials and our commercial and grant portfolios, and the city attracts a wide field of excellent PhD students and research fellows. If they are the litmus test, then the future is strong and in good hands. Together, as AHSCs and research partnerships across the UK and beyond, we must maintain this framework of research excellence and the careers that support it, now and in the future.”

— Professor David Wynick, Director, Bristol Health Partners AHSC

Many leaders have achieved a level of success in their careers because of their technical acumen and scientific capabilities in the Life Sciences arena. However, being in a leadership role is about so much more. It requires different muscles. Leaders need to collaborate, communicate, and drive change. It can be an uncomfortable and lonely place to be.

In his book Hidden Potential[3], Adam Grant talks about us becoming “creatures of discomfort and the unbearable awkwardness of learning”. Grant says this takes three kinds of courageous acts: “Abandon your tried-and-true methods, put yourself in the ring before you feel ready, and to make more mistakes than others make attempts”.

Success in the current context requires leaders that have grown their knowledge and focused their development on key areas of business delivery, not necessarily part of the old leadership toolbox. Their role modelling of the narrative, actions and business benefit of a stronger focus on EDI, supporting and growing staff with protected characteristics, responding to and driving business change for a more sustainable society, to new and developing teams and future leaders is key. Those companies who are already demonstrating good practice in nurturing the leaders of tomorrow in sustainable, values led leadership are building benefit and showcasing positive and sustainable leadership change. These teams are developing more inbuilt resilience and demonstrating success in the face of disruption and challenge.

“My strong track record in research operations was the understanding that helped me make the leap into health and life sciences executive search. I know the talent pool well and can work in a careful and thoughtful way to deliver the bespoke needs of my clients. This is important as they grow their portfolio and reach. It’s a privilege to be able to support our Alumni Global partners and watch sustainable leaders grow across the system”

— Marcus Engeman, Deputy MD Alumni Global, Australia

Marcus Engeman

Marcus Engeman, Alumni Global

At Alumni Global, we strive to find and support our clients in developing leaders who embody resilience alongside industry knowledge and achievement. Combining this with compassion, collaboration and inclusion will mobilise a new model for sustainable leadership across the industry. Whether found or fostered, authentically great leaders are fundamental to all our futures.

Do get in touch for a confidential discussion about how we have helped organisations identify and develop sustainable leadership and how we may support you.