Digital Skills and Pharma Knowledge: The Ideal, Hard-to-Find IT Talent Combination

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The pharmaceutical industry faces a critical need for IT professionals with both advanced digital skills and deep pharma expertise. However, this hybrid talent is scarce, and companies struggle to find it. To address this, many pharmaceutical companies are turning to flexible hiring solutions, accessing external IT experts who bring immediacy and agility without adding to fixed costs.

Below, we explore why these hybrid IT profiles are so valuable, why they’re difficult to find, and how external talent solutions can provide the skills pharma companies need without expanding their permanent teams.

Advanced Digital Skills: The Technical Foundation to Innovate in Pharma

IT talent with AI, machine learning, and big data skills is in high demand, but finding these skills combined with a background in pharma is challenging. Some essential digital skills for the pharmaceutical sector include:

• AI and Machine Learning: These technologies are key to early-stage research and clinical trials but require talent familiar with the complexities of drug discovery and the sensitive data involved.
• Big Data Analytics: Pharma companies need data experts to process vast amounts of medical and clinical information. By hiring external experts with these competencies, companies can quickly implement complex analyses without long onboarding processes.
• Cybersecurity: Protecting patient and trial data is critical. External cybersecurity experts familiar with regulations like GDPR and HIPAA can provide robust security without adding long-term structural costs.

"By turning to external IT talent, pharmaceutical companies can cover advanced digital skills quickly and access top-level expertise without expanding their fixed structures."

Pharma Knowledge: Essential for Understanding the “What” and the “Why”

Beyond technical skills, pharma-specific knowledge is invaluable. This includes familiarity with strict regulations and patient data handling, both critical for ensuring compliance. Key areas of pharma expertise include:

• Regulatory Compliance: Familiarity with FDA and EMA regulations is crucial for designing compliant IT systems and ensuring rapid adaptation to changing standards.
• Clinical Data Management: External experts who understand clinical data flows and patient data handling speed up project development, allowing companies to react quickly to regulatory or technological shifts without maintaining a large in-house team.

"The combination of digital skills and pharma expertise allows IT professionals to adapt quickly and innovate, without compromising compliance or security."

Hybrid Skills: The Ideal, Hard-to-Find IT Profile for Pharma

Pharma companies are searching for hybrid IT talent who can foresee regulatory and operational challenges while implementing innovative tech. However, many have found a practical solution in on-demand talent to meet specific needs with the flexibility of external contracting. Some critical roles include:

• Health Data Scientist: Combines advanced analytics with knowledge of regulated medical data, seamlessly integrating with temporary teams.
• Healthcare Solutions Architect: Designs IT infrastructure that adapts to pharmaceutical needs without the long-term commitment of full-time hiring.
• Digital Compliance Analyst: Ensures all digital platforms comply with regulations, working flexibly to accommodate quick compliance changes without affecting cost structure.

"Hybrid IT professionals in the pharma sector are valuable and costly. Hiring them as external talent enables companies to meet specific needs without impacting the fixed cost budget."

Attracting and Retaining Hybrid Talent: Flexible Solutions for Immediate Needs

Attracting and retaining hybrid talent can be challenging. Offering flexible hiring and continuous access to skills are incentives that enable pharmaceutical companies to respond swiftly to specific IT needs without increasing their structural costs. Effective strategies include:

• Hiring external talent for projects or temporary assignments to meet specific needs and speed up implementation.
• Continuous skills update programs to ensure external professionals are up-to-date on regulatory and technical advances without internal training costs.
• Career plans tailored to IT professionals in the pharma sector, emphasizing the meaningful impact of their work.

By combining flexibility and specialization, pharma companies can access top talent without increasing costs or adding unnecessary structure, adapting to market demands as needed.

IT talent with digital expertise and pharma knowledge is rare and valuable. Instead of expanding their fixed structures, many pharmaceutical companies are embracing external hiring solutions that offer unique flexibility and adaptability. By accessing specialized talent on demand, pharma companies can respond swiftly to technological needs while focusing on strategic goals with greater freedom and efficiency.

References

1. McKinsey - Pharma operations: Creating the workforce of the future - Discusses the need for innovative strategies to address specialized talent gaps, especially in data and advanced analytics, which drive many pharma companies to flexible hiring models.
2. TASC Outsourcing - Pharma Talent 2024: Navigating The New Normal in Recruitment Trends - Highlights how digital transformation is shifting talent needs in pharma and how flexible hiring enables companies to attract specialized IT talent without increasing fixed costs.
3. Draup - How can the Pharma Industry Create a Workforce of Tomorrow - Explores the challenges in hiring IT professionals with pharma expertise and the role of upskilling and external workers in meeting high demand in AI and cybersecurity.
4. TurboHire - Pharma Recruitment 2024: Navigating New Talent Trends - Discusses the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies in pharma and how external hiring solutions help cover these skills without inflating fixed costs.

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