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The life sciences are bustling with innovation – ambitious startups seek to solve the world’s toughest healthcare challenges, technological evolution is accelerating, and big data looks set to transform personalised medicine forever. It’s an exciting time for those looking to scale a business, but a tricky one too.
In ultra-specialised niches, the right recruitment process can be the difference between success and failure. When you’re trying to scale a startup in the life sciences, pouring time and money into talent acquisition isn’t always an option.
This is where a great recruiter can shine. As your business grows, you’ll need to make sure your people are equipped to grow with it. Here are just a few ways a recruiter can support your scale-up process.
Keep the Pace
As one of the world’s fastest-growing sectors, the life sciences are a hotbed for career opportunities. For startups to match the pace of the industry, they need to identify, attract, and secure their candidates as soon as possible. Great talent doesn’t stay on the market long, especially not when they’ve got more options than ever before.
Recruiters can reduce your lead time, giving you the edge over the competition in the process. A willingness to hire quickly might seem like screaming desperation, but in many cases, it plays to your strengths as an employer. It shows your candidate that:
· You’re ready to invest in their professional development
· They will have a critical position in your company
· Your internal processes are efficient
· You’re engaged and committed to the candidate's experience
A specialised recruiter will have the means, tools, passion, network, and industry know-how to dramatically shorten the time it takes to source candidates, and if you need support with your internal process at any point, you just need to ask.
Building Your Employer Brand
A strong employer brand is a powerful tool in the never-ending talent hunt, and it’s part of the process that many businesses struggle to conquer. In some cases, it’s a major barrier to successful growth, particularly when your company is yet to establish any kind of presence.
Your recruiter can be the brand champion your company needs to attract candidates. A committed recruiter should know your company down to the molecular level, from the team culture to the core values and mission statement.
How exactly does this help you scale your startup?
· A brand champion can help you establish credibility in your niche, making your company more attractive to both candidates and potential investors.
· Your brand can be the means through which you compete for the best candidates available.
· Your reputation as an employer can play a pivotal role in the life of your business. News of a bad name gets around quickly, as does a good one (the bad one probably gets around faster though).
· A great employer brand turns your employees into advocates. It’s an ideal form of organic marketing goodness.
· Your scaling, so you’ll need people who are willing to scale and grow with you. An adept recruiter can tell your story to the people who need to hear it, and in a way that resonates.
Streamline Your Internal Processes
Your internal processes provide the sturdy foundations on which your business stands. It’s essential that these processes are effective and optimised, enabling you to maximise your time and budget. Recruitment is one of these processes.
Your staffing agency can align your hiring goals with your long-term company objectives without losing sight of your ideal candidate. From the way you interview to your diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging policy, a recruiter can do a deep dive into what works (and what doesn’t).
Seasoned recruiters have seen many, many hiring processes throughout their weird and wonderful careers, and they should know what a winning one looks like. It usually has characteristics that look like this:
· Short lead times
· Clearly defined job specifications and inclusive ads
· A strong foundation of clear communication
· Hiring managers with unconscious bias training
· Equitable assessment conditions
Scaling a business is no mean feat. The two most powerful aspects in any scaling process are money and people, two areas in which a dependable recruiter excels.
If you’re hoping to scale a business soon, reach out to the team at BioTalent, our specialist recruitment consultants can be the difference you need to thrive.