Most life sciences organizations use a variety of methods to source their open medical affairs positions. Does your sourcing strategy include one or more of the following?

Online Recruitment Sites. Human Resources and hiring managers utilize job boards like LinkedIn and Indeed to advertise medical affairs opportunities.

Online platforms allow companies to reach a large audience of potential candidates; however, a greater pool of candidates doesn’t automatically result in candidates who meet an organization’s distinctive criteria, including clinical experience, therapeutic expertise, disease state knowledge, Key Opinion Leader (KOL) relationships, etc.

Additionally, HR and hiring managers turn to sites managed by research associations and societies specializing in specific physiology and disease states (e.g., the American Academy of Neurology, the American Society for Clinical Oncology). Posting on association-related job boards is a more targeted approach; however, the cost to post and maintain it is expensive.

• How many hours do you spend reviewing CVs before you find a gem?

• What is the return on investment for job posts on association and society job boards?

• How do you promote an open position to passive candidates?

Recruitment Agencies. Life sciences organizations can work with recruitment agencies to source medical affairs candidates for open positions. Agencies can help companies identify and secure qualified candidates, including those not actively seeking new job opportunities.

Achieving hiring success requires determining the appropriate agency. The right agency focuses on medical affairs; has a successful track record of medical affairs placements in the life sciences industry; and is transparent when it comes to their sourcing, screening (background checks, skills assessments, reference checks), and selection processes. They also offer competitive rates and provide a clear breakdown of fees. An agency’s hiring process must be exacting to ensure only qualified candidates are presented. 

• Do you fully understand the range of benefits that a recruitment agency provides?

• Does the recruitment agency report back to you on your ROI?

Campus Recruitment. Life sciences companies often work with universities to recruit recent Ph.D. graduates for scientific roles within their organization. This approach can attract talented individuals who are starting their careers. Organizations may prefer hiring candidates out of universities because they have the opportunity to shape recruits. 

• Does your organization require seasoned medical affairs professionals or will new graduates suffice?

Social Media. Social media platforms can be useful tools for life sciences companies looking to source medical affairs candidates. Companies can use targeted advertising to reach individuals with specific skills and experience. LinkedIn is geared toward business and science professionals and is generally the platform hiring managers choose to review the backgrounds of medical affairs candidates.

• What is the return on your social media advertising investment?

Internal Recruitment. Like other organizations, life sciences companies prefer to fill open positions with existing employees who have the necessary skills and experience. This involves promoting employees from within the organization or transferring them from other departments. 

• When internal recruitment fails to produce results quickly, what are your next steps?

• How long do you wait before trying another sourcing strategy?

If you are dissatisfied with your answers to the questions above and feel like you’re spending far too much time searching for candidates, have little return on your marketing investment, and don’t have confidence in the recruiting agency you’re working with, let TriNet Pharma help you.

We’ve been providing life sciences organizations with recruitment services since 2009, specifically in the areas of medical affairs, clinical affairs, and regulatory affairs. 

We have a proven process for efficiently acquiring talent for life sciences companies. We offer more than a database of resumes. With us, you get targeted lists and customized marketing, proactive outreach to candidates, access to people considering a job/location move, and access to leaders in their field but passive job searchers. 

We know what’s happening in the pharma, biotech, device, and diagnostics industries (layoffs, mergers, the drug fails the clinical trial, etc.) often before it’s public knowledge. We know when highly qualified people become available for new opportunities. Not only that, we make it a practice to identify candidates who are a good fit for your corporate culture. We do more than match a person to a job!

If you’re looking for a partner to find you the best medical affairs talent while saving you time, effort, and money, TriNet Pharma is the answer.

Leverage our expertise with no upfront cost.