There is significant competition in the fight for the skills, experience and talent to transform fledgling biotechnology companies into sustainable enterprises with something more than big ambitions. The small and agile biotech company has many advantages to offer the adventurous and entrepreneurially minded life science professional. Using these attractive characteristics effectively to appeal to talented people takes consideration and analysis as well as huge amounts of time and effort if you’re truly going to hire the quality required to drive the business forward and execute your plan.
Because biotechnology companies are largely in clustered hubs across Europe, often supported and backed by an association or group whose mission is to raise awareness of the cluster, these companies have a great opportunity to ride this publicity wave and deliver their message of opportunity to candidates with impact.
Yet to do this, companies need to concede the protectionist attitudes they take to talent they recruit. It is advantageous to all the companies within the cluster to attract great people as it will make all the companies stronger and more successful by attracting other great talent and stimulate stronger International interest.
It is widely acknowledged that people and skills are critical in executing any business plan but to attract high quality talent to the dynamically changing world of biotech, it sometimes requires those same individuals to think about their contingency options should things not work out. Who else is there that can provide them with a career?
This is where clusters have a distinct advantage. By accepting that people will give you good service but will want to move on at some point, they can work on keeping the talent locked into the cluster rather than losing it to external markets. Recruiting is currently so difficult, expensive and competitive that by creating an open talent forum where cluster companies can broadcast their opportunities and open their doors to those people ready for a fresh challenge, you can strengthen the cluster by retaining skills rather than losing out to competitive talent markets.
But how?...Well, as company executives and investors you regularly convene to discuss trends, alliances and industry developments. You network, share ideas and swap contact information and all these prevalent concepts are well ingrained in modern business and acutely employed across these biotechnology clusters. Take these principles, develop them and apply them to recruiting and careers and you begin to provide the connectivity conditions similar to large companies. People can then move around to progress their careers and acquire the experience they feel they need to achieve their longer term ambitions. You begin to build up the loyalty and ties people feel with the area and the companies that comprise it, which can only enhance the ability of the respective companies to attract other great people from the global talent markets. So preserve your talent pool and work with your fellow cluster companies to find ways to offer opportunity and lock in the skills of the world’s best talents.
Karl Simpson
Managing Director
Liftstream
Medical diagnostics recruitment agency
Speciality biotechnology recruitment agency
Life sciences recruitment agency
Thursday, 25 February 2010
Monday, 4 January 2010
Can middle-men leave smaller footprints?
Fetching and carrying has long been seen a rather mundane activity, a necessity of function required to get the desired object from place to place. It is a task that most of us would rather usually leave to others to do, which is why we see internet shopping take a greater hold year after year.
It could be argued that recruitment companies have benefited from this very outlook. They have repeatedly taken on the role of collector and deliverer and found value in the role of the intermediary; only providing people rather than groceries. I’m sure Fred Smith of FedEx would tell you that the business of getting things from A to B in time, with little inconvenience, is a service people will value greatly and pay for willingly. The fact is, the more difficult it is for the end-user to find the product they want, the more willing they are to pay a specialist to find it and bring it to them.
However, the world is changing. It is not time to talk of killing off the middle man, as for now they are alive and well in this expanding global market. Yet they are having to face up to the more challenging tasks in meeting the desires of their customers.
Over recent years we have seen the growth of the internet which, while serving a considerable advantage in terms of communication and efficiency to the go-between, has equally empowered the end-user. Suddenly, the end-user has the potential to break down the barrier between them and their required product or service. They can access information and details that allow an informed buyer decision and then actually contact them directly and do the whole process without the use of anyone else. No showroom to visit, no distributor, no adviser or salesman, no misleading or diluted information, no unmet promises, just straight and direct, unadulterated commerce.
The middle-man has learnt to live and survive amongst these threats but now a new challenge is facing the middle-man, the environment. Globally people are beginning to face the realities of climate change. In business, whether for genuine reasons or commercial edge, companies are driving the agenda. They are facing up to their environmental responsibilities and also the importance of sharing the philosophies and beliefs of their employees. They are moving to reduce their carbon emissions and go beyond merely ‘off-setting’. The greener we become in our personal lives, the more we will demand this of our employers and so this becomes an important issue for recruitment and employee retention.
So how does the middle-man, in particular recruitment companies, keep pace with this? Most companies select their suppliers on a number of criteria. These can range from expertise, infrastructure, back-up and support through to shared business philosophies. As an example, a company who has a strong equal opportunities policy is unlikely to select a recruitment vendor to supply people unless they know the vendor shared that approach or their pledge is in any way disingenuous.
We are already seeing evidence of increased ‘green’ employment opportunities within larger companies. And as the environment climbs the corporate agenda and companies begin to dedicate more internal resources and finance towards solving environmental issues, they will also surely look to synchronise these values with their partners.
Recruitment companies have both an opportunity and a challenge. Their opportunity is in meeting the needs of a changing workplace. The environmental issue will stimulate a change in attitude by many businesses to think differently about how they might employ and organise people. The necessity of commuting and office-bound workers should decline and people will be encouraged and offered more flexible working arrangements where home-working, telecommuting will be normal. This widens the opportunity to employ people across borders and hands a considerable chance to recruitment companies to deliver value.
But where value is added it can also be eroded. The perceived value of most recruiting services is that they provide a fundamental role in collecting, filtering and delivering people with the right skills and experiences. This is a service that is often seen as time consuming, administratively intensive and fraught with anomalies that can result in failure. Because of this, companies often want to mitigate these pressures by involving a third party recruitment firm that will apply their expertise to identify the person, meet and evaluate them, then deliver the rather more attractive package back to the customer. The problem for the recruitment company will be how to continue to provide this service while meeting the client’s environmental considerations. Will these clients continue to endorse the frequent need to hop around international markets assessing prospective candidates and leave big dirty carbon footprints that lead straight back to their door, or will they require a more virtual and carbon friendly approach. And if they do demand a change, how will recruitment firms continue to provide that rather important intermediary role with the same accuracy and effectiveness on an increasingly international stage, without the chance to properly fetch and carry.
With recruitment companies not yet likely to be forced into examining their supplier agreements to ensure environmental compliance, it is an issue which will ultimately need to be faced. However, the future will undoubtedly require all middle-men with climate conscious clients to draw-up clear guidelines that will ensure that both performance and environment remain protected. Those companies who proactively address the topic now by creatively changing the way they deliver services will naturally establish a lead over the rest.
Karl Simpson
Managing Director
Liftstream
Liftstream is a biotechnology recruitment agency specialising in life sciences executive search and pharmaceutical management recruitment.
It could be argued that recruitment companies have benefited from this very outlook. They have repeatedly taken on the role of collector and deliverer and found value in the role of the intermediary; only providing people rather than groceries. I’m sure Fred Smith of FedEx would tell you that the business of getting things from A to B in time, with little inconvenience, is a service people will value greatly and pay for willingly. The fact is, the more difficult it is for the end-user to find the product they want, the more willing they are to pay a specialist to find it and bring it to them.
However, the world is changing. It is not time to talk of killing off the middle man, as for now they are alive and well in this expanding global market. Yet they are having to face up to the more challenging tasks in meeting the desires of their customers.
Over recent years we have seen the growth of the internet which, while serving a considerable advantage in terms of communication and efficiency to the go-between, has equally empowered the end-user. Suddenly, the end-user has the potential to break down the barrier between them and their required product or service. They can access information and details that allow an informed buyer decision and then actually contact them directly and do the whole process without the use of anyone else. No showroom to visit, no distributor, no adviser or salesman, no misleading or diluted information, no unmet promises, just straight and direct, unadulterated commerce.
The middle-man has learnt to live and survive amongst these threats but now a new challenge is facing the middle-man, the environment. Globally people are beginning to face the realities of climate change. In business, whether for genuine reasons or commercial edge, companies are driving the agenda. They are facing up to their environmental responsibilities and also the importance of sharing the philosophies and beliefs of their employees. They are moving to reduce their carbon emissions and go beyond merely ‘off-setting’. The greener we become in our personal lives, the more we will demand this of our employers and so this becomes an important issue for recruitment and employee retention.
So how does the middle-man, in particular recruitment companies, keep pace with this? Most companies select their suppliers on a number of criteria. These can range from expertise, infrastructure, back-up and support through to shared business philosophies. As an example, a company who has a strong equal opportunities policy is unlikely to select a recruitment vendor to supply people unless they know the vendor shared that approach or their pledge is in any way disingenuous.
We are already seeing evidence of increased ‘green’ employment opportunities within larger companies. And as the environment climbs the corporate agenda and companies begin to dedicate more internal resources and finance towards solving environmental issues, they will also surely look to synchronise these values with their partners.
Recruitment companies have both an opportunity and a challenge. Their opportunity is in meeting the needs of a changing workplace. The environmental issue will stimulate a change in attitude by many businesses to think differently about how they might employ and organise people. The necessity of commuting and office-bound workers should decline and people will be encouraged and offered more flexible working arrangements where home-working, telecommuting will be normal. This widens the opportunity to employ people across borders and hands a considerable chance to recruitment companies to deliver value.
But where value is added it can also be eroded. The perceived value of most recruiting services is that they provide a fundamental role in collecting, filtering and delivering people with the right skills and experiences. This is a service that is often seen as time consuming, administratively intensive and fraught with anomalies that can result in failure. Because of this, companies often want to mitigate these pressures by involving a third party recruitment firm that will apply their expertise to identify the person, meet and evaluate them, then deliver the rather more attractive package back to the customer. The problem for the recruitment company will be how to continue to provide this service while meeting the client’s environmental considerations. Will these clients continue to endorse the frequent need to hop around international markets assessing prospective candidates and leave big dirty carbon footprints that lead straight back to their door, or will they require a more virtual and carbon friendly approach. And if they do demand a change, how will recruitment firms continue to provide that rather important intermediary role with the same accuracy and effectiveness on an increasingly international stage, without the chance to properly fetch and carry.
With recruitment companies not yet likely to be forced into examining their supplier agreements to ensure environmental compliance, it is an issue which will ultimately need to be faced. However, the future will undoubtedly require all middle-men with climate conscious clients to draw-up clear guidelines that will ensure that both performance and environment remain protected. Those companies who proactively address the topic now by creatively changing the way they deliver services will naturally establish a lead over the rest.
Karl Simpson
Managing Director
Liftstream
Liftstream is a biotechnology recruitment agency specialising in life sciences executive search and pharmaceutical management recruitment.
Wednesday, 23 December 2009
10 of the Best Fake Tanners
Can't afford a beach break this year? Worry not. With our top 10 tanners you'll be bronzed in no time...
Fake Bake Lipo Bronze Self Tan with LipoCare
Not only does this deliver a convincing, deep tan in hours, it works to bust cellulite too. Brown and buff? That's what we like to hear.
Piz Buin 360 Self Tan Spray
This spray is magic for getting to those hard to reach places like the shoulder blades and backs of the thighs.
Urban Decay Midnight Cowboy Body Shimmer Lotion.
Achieve a shimmery sheen on already tanned skin or use on nude limbs to cleverly conceal imperfections - plus it's packed with skin-loving green tea and jojoba oil.
Rodial Brazilian Tan Light
From the same people who brought you the Tummy Tuck and Boob Job comes an ultra natural bronzing spray with added avacoado and coconut oil for bikini smooth skin.
St Tropez Everyday Gradual Tan
Build up a believable colour with absoloutely no streaks, guaranteed! Slather on before your hols for first-day-at-the beach confidence.
Clinique Self Sun Face Tinted Lotion
The lotion is tinted so you can see where you're putting it and in a few hours it turns into a non-wash-off golden glow to rival Bar Rafeali.
Benefit Talk To The Tan
If you want a dark deep tan then this is for you. After applying this to our faces, we looked like we'd just come back from a fortnight in the Caribbean!
Soleil Tan De Chanel
This bronzing powder gives a sun-kissed glow that looks very natural, which also makes it perfect for livening up your sun-starved face in the winter months.
Too Faced Tanning Bed in a Tube
This tinted lotion is great for those days when you need some quick fix colour. Plus after a few hours it develops into a natural golden glow that'l last a few days.
L'Oreal Self-Tan Gloves
If you're a girl on the go, you need this product in your bag now! These are great for travelling too and give a natural, even tan.
Sinead O'Donoghue
Look Magazine
All the latest fashion news including Kate Moss, New Look, other high street fashion shops & much, much more.
Fake Bake Lipo Bronze Self Tan with LipoCare
Not only does this deliver a convincing, deep tan in hours, it works to bust cellulite too. Brown and buff? That's what we like to hear.
Piz Buin 360 Self Tan Spray
This spray is magic for getting to those hard to reach places like the shoulder blades and backs of the thighs.
Urban Decay Midnight Cowboy Body Shimmer Lotion.
Achieve a shimmery sheen on already tanned skin or use on nude limbs to cleverly conceal imperfections - plus it's packed with skin-loving green tea and jojoba oil.
Rodial Brazilian Tan Light
From the same people who brought you the Tummy Tuck and Boob Job comes an ultra natural bronzing spray with added avacoado and coconut oil for bikini smooth skin.
St Tropez Everyday Gradual Tan
Build up a believable colour with absoloutely no streaks, guaranteed! Slather on before your hols for first-day-at-the beach confidence.
Clinique Self Sun Face Tinted Lotion
The lotion is tinted so you can see where you're putting it and in a few hours it turns into a non-wash-off golden glow to rival Bar Rafeali.
Benefit Talk To The Tan
If you want a dark deep tan then this is for you. After applying this to our faces, we looked like we'd just come back from a fortnight in the Caribbean!
Soleil Tan De Chanel
This bronzing powder gives a sun-kissed glow that looks very natural, which also makes it perfect for livening up your sun-starved face in the winter months.
Too Faced Tanning Bed in a Tube
This tinted lotion is great for those days when you need some quick fix colour. Plus after a few hours it develops into a natural golden glow that'l last a few days.
L'Oreal Self-Tan Gloves
If you're a girl on the go, you need this product in your bag now! These are great for travelling too and give a natural, even tan.
Sinead O'Donoghue
Look Magazine
All the latest fashion news including Kate Moss, New Look, other high street fashion shops & much, much more.
Thursday, 19 November 2009
Dial O for Fashion!
We remember when shopping online was ‘far out’ but now Oasis have become the first high street store to bring fashion to your phone!
Recently Oasis have created an application for iPhones that will enable fashion fans to view new stock daily, scroll campaign images and find their nearest store using a GPS function all at the touch of a screen.
Sharon O’Connor MD of the fashion brand says “We are very excited to be launching our new shopping application with iPhone and proud to be the first UK retailer to offer this exclusive service to our customers.”
As well as daily updates and the store finder options we love the sound of the ‘Shake Your Style’ feature where musthave Oasis items are suggested each time you shake your phone.
Available now from the App Store or online at iTunes. Shopping will never be the same again!
Bella Binns
Look
lookys@ipcmedia.com
Tel: 0203 148 5000
Fashion News, beauty news, style news...
Recently Oasis have created an application for iPhones that will enable fashion fans to view new stock daily, scroll campaign images and find their nearest store using a GPS function all at the touch of a screen.
Sharon O’Connor MD of the fashion brand says “We are very excited to be launching our new shopping application with iPhone and proud to be the first UK retailer to offer this exclusive service to our customers.”
As well as daily updates and the store finder options we love the sound of the ‘Shake Your Style’ feature where musthave Oasis items are suggested each time you shake your phone.
Available now from the App Store or online at iTunes. Shopping will never be the same again!
Bella Binns
Look
lookys@ipcmedia.com
Tel: 0203 148 5000
Fashion News, beauty news, style news...
Wednesday, 21 October 2009
Tess Daly’s Beauty Range For Marks & Spencer
Tess Daly’s beauty range has finally arrived on the Marks and Spencer shelves.
Tess Daly is the latest celebrity to design her own range of beauty products. The ‘Daly Body Collection’ has been designed to bring a touch of glamour to bathtime.
Our favourite pieces include the skin shimmer, bath soak and body moisturiser. If you’re already adding items to your Christmas wish list then we suggest you put the glamour beauty gift set on top of your list.
Tess spoke to LOOK about her new collection and revealed that her favourite product was the cheek highlighter. “ I can’t live without it.”
Despite having a five-month-old baby, Tess has had full input into the designs “ I’ve been involved in the whole process from day one- that’s why I’m really proud of the range, it’s been a journey and it’s like another baby. It was my idea, the packaging is my design, the products are born from passions of mine - products I'm passionate about - I've been instrumental since day one. I haven't just lent my face to it”
Tess also explained that the collection has been a dream come true, “'It's been wonderful because it's every girl's dream, isn't it - to have a beauty range and be girly? 'I've always been a beauty junkie and love products, so it's been wonderful and interesting.
Check out this week's LOOK magazine to see the full interview and the sexy photoshoot.
Sinead 0'Donoghue
Look
lookys@ipcmedia.com
Tel: 0203 148 5000
Look
Fashion Website.
All the high street fashion shops in one magazine.
Sign-up dor our fashion newsletter.
Tess Daly is the latest celebrity to design her own range of beauty products. The ‘Daly Body Collection’ has been designed to bring a touch of glamour to bathtime.
Our favourite pieces include the skin shimmer, bath soak and body moisturiser. If you’re already adding items to your Christmas wish list then we suggest you put the glamour beauty gift set on top of your list.
Tess spoke to LOOK about her new collection and revealed that her favourite product was the cheek highlighter. “ I can’t live without it.”
Despite having a five-month-old baby, Tess has had full input into the designs “ I’ve been involved in the whole process from day one- that’s why I’m really proud of the range, it’s been a journey and it’s like another baby. It was my idea, the packaging is my design, the products are born from passions of mine - products I'm passionate about - I've been instrumental since day one. I haven't just lent my face to it”
Tess also explained that the collection has been a dream come true, “'It's been wonderful because it's every girl's dream, isn't it - to have a beauty range and be girly? 'I've always been a beauty junkie and love products, so it's been wonderful and interesting.
Check out this week's LOOK magazine to see the full interview and the sexy photoshoot.
Sinead 0'Donoghue
Look
lookys@ipcmedia.com
Tel: 0203 148 5000
Look
Fashion Website.
All the high street fashion shops in one magazine.
Sign-up dor our fashion newsletter.
Thursday, 15 October 2009
Tesco clothing now available online!
Tesco have launched a fully-fledged online store!
We love online shopping and you can pick up an outfit for Friday night along with your groceries. Tesco's online store features Florence and Fred, Liquorish as well as their mainline range.
It's perfect for snapping up a t-shirt or an emergency pair of tights, but there's also some good trend pieces. Give their jumpsuit a try with a wide belt, we also like the foil-print tee and the orange heels give instant impact to an outfit!
Isabelle O'Carroll
Look
lookys@ipcmedia.com
Tel: 0203 148 5000
Look
Fashion Magazine.
All the high street fashion shops in one magazine.
All the latest fashions from high street clothes shops across the UK.
We love online shopping and you can pick up an outfit for Friday night along with your groceries. Tesco's online store features Florence and Fred, Liquorish as well as their mainline range.
It's perfect for snapping up a t-shirt or an emergency pair of tights, but there's also some good trend pieces. Give their jumpsuit a try with a wide belt, we also like the foil-print tee and the orange heels give instant impact to an outfit!
Isabelle O'Carroll
Look
lookys@ipcmedia.com
Tel: 0203 148 5000
Look
Fashion Magazine.
All the high street fashion shops in one magazine.
All the latest fashions from high street clothes shops across the UK.
Wednesday, 14 October 2009
Beauty Product Of The Week: Remington’s Wet2Straight Slim Straighteners
Want sleek and shiny hair to rival Jennifer Aniston’s? Then here’s a new way to achieve A-list hair without spending hours in the hairdressers!
Sleek, glossy hair is always on-trend and looks great whatever your face shape or hair type. With the party season soon upon us, it's great news that you can now achieve a long-lasting silky-smooth style, with the new Remington Wet2Straight Slim.
Forget spending hours with the hairdryer or in the salon, as long-lasting, silky-smooth hair can be achieved in seconds, without ruining your luscious locks.
All you have to do, is simply run the new Remington Wet2Straight slim over wet hair and it will instantly straighten hair while drying. Genius!
According to Remington’s research, 82% of women who tried the new starightners preferred them to their current ones.
So if you want a straightener, hair dryer and conditioner rolled into one, then it's time to make the Remington Wet2Straight your new must-have essential!
Sinead O'Donoghue
Look
lookys@ipcmedia.com
Tel: 0203 148 5000
Look, the high street fashion magazine.
Check out the latest fashion & beauty news.
Sleek, glossy hair is always on-trend and looks great whatever your face shape or hair type. With the party season soon upon us, it's great news that you can now achieve a long-lasting silky-smooth style, with the new Remington Wet2Straight Slim.
Forget spending hours with the hairdryer or in the salon, as long-lasting, silky-smooth hair can be achieved in seconds, without ruining your luscious locks.
All you have to do, is simply run the new Remington Wet2Straight slim over wet hair and it will instantly straighten hair while drying. Genius!
According to Remington’s research, 82% of women who tried the new starightners preferred them to their current ones.
So if you want a straightener, hair dryer and conditioner rolled into one, then it's time to make the Remington Wet2Straight your new must-have essential!
Sinead O'Donoghue
Look
lookys@ipcmedia.com
Tel: 0203 148 5000
Look, the high street fashion magazine.
Check out the latest fashion & beauty news.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)