Rob Henderson, President of BioTalent Canada, was invited to speak on the “Aligning Science and Innovation with Global Challenges and Bio-economy needs - skills for scientists” panel in Brussels. Full story here: https://www.biotalent.ca/article/european-union-hears-canada%E2%80%99s-answer-skills-shortages
Ride the Storm: Navigating Through Unstable Periods / Katerina Rudko (Belka G...
The Canadian Bio-Skills Formula
1. The Canadian Bio-Skills Formula
Rob Henderson, President, BioTalent Canada
Brussels, November 20, 2012
2. Canadian Bio-economy
• 80% of companies are SMEs (< 50 employees)
• Contributes to 7% of Canada’s GDP
• > 5,000 Companies
BioTalent Canada is in transition from government
funded to industry supported
5. Skills Required in Biotechnology
Knowledge of Industry 91.2%
Management/leadership 91.2%
Business development 82.1%
Marketing/communication 81.6%
Partnership networking 75.9%
Reading/writing skills related to
the comprehension of Good 74.4%
Manufacturing Practices (GMP)
Commercialization 72.8%
6. Skills Required in Biotechnology
By Occupational Functions
Preclinical Research/R&D 51.9%
Marketing/Sales/
27.9%
Communications
Manufacturing/Distribution 26.0%
Quality Control/ 23.1%
Assurance
Clinical Research 17.3%
Human Resources/
17.3%
Accounting/IT
Regulatory Affairs 14.4%
Legal/Intellectual Property
1.9%
(IP)
None of the Above 9.6%
7. Challenge Solution
Graduates are not ‘job-ready’ Wage Subsidy Program
Regulation Dichotomy Skills Profiles and Recognition
Lack of HR expertise BioTalent HR Tool Kit
11. Thank you
Rob Henderson
President, BioTalent Canada
robh@biotalent.ca
www.biotalent.ca
@BioTalentCanada
Editor's Notes
BioTalent Canada is a National non-profit focused on HR and skills development for the bio-economy to ensure employers have access to ‘job-ready’ people. Currently in transition to industry funded model.BioTalent Canada has been successful in addressing the Canadian Bio-economy skills requirements by:Conducting Labour Market Information – the foundation of everythingForging industry Partnerships – staying connected with the industry is criticalIdentifying the Skills RequiredChallenges and SolutionsThis approach is applicable for the EU as well.
BioTalent Canada stays well connected with: companies who use our products and services. National and regional associations partnerships. The Canadian Bio-economy includes many regional and national associations who represent companies in their regions.Industry employees – they have participated hands-on in advisory and focus groups to help develop the products and services(e.g. Bio-economy Skills Profiles and the BioSkills Recognition Program)
80% of Canadian companies have less than less than 50 employees so staff need to be able to wear many hats and have a variety of skills:ScienceLeadershipCommunications/ Marketing / Business developmentCommercializationManufacturing These skills are needed across the bio-economy sub-sectors, especially because most of the Canadian companies are in more then one sub-sector.Graduates are not ‘job-ready’ though – this is a challenge
80% of Canadian companies have less than less than 50 employees so staff need to be able to wear many hats and have a variety of skills:ScienceLeadershipCommunications/ Marketing / Business developmentCommercializationManufacturing These skills are needed across the bio-economy sub-sectors, especially because most of the Canadian companies are in more then one sub-sector.Graduates are not ‘job-ready’ though – this is a challenge
Here are a couple of key challenges BioTalent Canada is helping solve.Challenge:Research and the industry has told us that graduate are not job ready. They have the science skills but do not have experience working in a small company. Solution:The Career Focus Program is a wage subsidy program for bio-economy employers to hire the talent they need and for recent graduates to gain the work experience they require – by subsidizing the salary of a recent graduate to a maximum of $15,000 for up to 12 months.Government support has been critical in this solution. The program is directly funded by the Government of Canada’s Sector Council Program and is very successful - of those that finish the program 100% have been offered employment.Challenge:Companies at different stages of development require deferent skills. To gear up for the next stage employers need to know what is exactly required. The industry is highly regulated but the positions are not.Solution:The Bio-economy Skills Profiles clearly identify the skills and competencies needed for different positions. They are the national standards. The employers can use for recruitment and professional development, job seekers to plan skills development and academia to develop programs.Challenge:The small and medium sized enterprises often do not have a dedicated HR function. They don’t know how to recruit or retain employees.Solution:BioTalent HR Tool Kit – an easy-to-use, downloadable and customize BioTalent HR Tool Kit is a guide of best practices.
Challenge:Connecting Employers with the Skills Talent they need.Solution:The PetriDish Canada’s #1 bio-economy Job Board, national and bilingual.Job Posting can be well defined using the Bio-economy Skills Profiles – targeting the job seeker.
Challenge:The Canadian workforce does not currently fill all the skills gaps in the industry. Solution:Need to look at alternative labour markets:Internationally Educated ProfessionalsTransitioning talent from traditional industry – they have valuable transferable science and manufacturing skillsIndustry has told us they care more about the candidates skills than their credentials. BioTalent Canada has The BioSkills Recognition Program to identify talent from these labour markets as BioReady.