July/August 2024 • PharmaTimes Magazine • 26-27
// DIVERSITY //
All inclusive
Navigating pharma’s diversity terrain – a call for authentic action
In the corridors of the pharmaceutical industry, where breakthroughs are celebrated and lives are changed, there’s a quieter, yet critical, conversation underway – one centred on diversity and inclusivity.
The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has recently offered insights into this dialogue through its ED&I strategy. Within its pages lie revelations about the industry’s strides and stumbles in embracing equality, diversity and inclusion (ED&I).
One thing that jumps out from the ABPI report is the growing sense of accountability among pharmaceutical companies.
They’re acknowledging the need for diversity beyond the checkboxes of sex and ethnicity. But here’s the kicker – only 14% of leadership teams feel fully representative.
It’s a wake-up call, a reminder that while we’ve come far, there’s still a long road ahead to ensure everyone’s voice is heard at the top table.
Part of this involves companies living their values. Putting KPIs in place to say that a certain percentage of people needs to be from a certain demographic just doesn’t work in the modern world. The reality of achieving diversity and inclusion is far more subtle and nuanced.
Businesses need to consider: how are they going to attract certain people? What messaging are they going out to the market with?
What events are they going to use as part of their engagement strategy? It’s about thinking about how they are going to enrich the environment they live in. That doesn’t mean just the workforce, but the local community to build up that brand awareness and try to break down the barriers.
Then there’s the matter of data and how we measure diversity. We’re talking numbers, percentages and targets.
Delving into data
More and more companies are crunching the numbers and setting targets, which is promising. But here’s the kicker – a whopping 79% of companies aren’t using this data to drive their ED&I initiatives.
It’s like having a map but refusing to use it – how do you expect to reach your destination?
Data alone isn’t enough; it needs to be backed up by a clear roadmap of what they are trying to achieve.
It’s not about getting a certain percentage of our quota in place, but making sure that the right people, with the right skills, are in the right seats by widening the talent pool.
Thinking you are going to increase representation across the board in one fell swoop isn’t realistic.
So, you need to go back to basics, where is it you want to make the most impact within in a particular sector or demographic? Collecting data is all very well, the big question is how is it going to be used? Just inputting stats into a board report isn’t going to be genuinely impactful – analysing the data and creating a concrete plan of action is crucial.
Doing this effectively involves looking deeper into the data and considering DE&I from a more holistic perspective.
Multidimensional diversity
Many of the diversity issues in the sector such as the gender pay gap and the lack of ethnic minority representation are well documented.
But what about the other dimensions of diversity? We’re talking about individuals with disabilities, LGBTQ+ folks, people from different socio-economic backgrounds – the list goes on. By focusing solely on gender, we’re leaving out a whole lot of voices that deserve to be heard.
‘Diversity has expanded so much that society is constantly redefining its meaning, making it challenging to keep up’
We need to take a more holistic approach to diversity. The narrow focus on ethnicity and gender is often more focused on using standardised categories.
Diversity has expanded so much that society is constantly redefining its meaning, making it challenging to keep up.
We need to get back to the root cause and consider what diversity means. What does this mean for the workforce? What does it mean to the local community? This should be taken seriously and not reduced to a box-ticking exercise.
The question: what steps does the industry need to take to make it a more inclusive working environment?
Incorporating individuals from diverse backgrounds enhances diversification, enabling businesses to spread brand awareness and reach a broader target audience. While there is an ethical dimension to this, it is ultimately in businesses’ commercial interests.
It has been shown that companies with diverse thinking have more growth potential, growing at a higher rate and improving bottom-line revenue. Research by Forbes reveals that diverse teams deliver 60% better results and make better decisions in 87% of cases.
So, where do we go from here? It’s simple, really – action. We need to move beyond the boardroom buzzwords and take real, tangible steps towards inclusivity.
That means listening to the voices that are often overlooked, amplifying their stories, and giving them a seat at the table. Sometimes this involves talking about uncomfortable topics. So we need to talk about the C word, class.
Class ceiling
The lack of social mobility in the sector is an important though often overlooked diversity issue within the pharmaceutical industry. This is despite an estimated 9% of the UK life sciences workforce being from a working-class background.
Four in ten companies surveyed say they have focused little to no on social mobility in the past year. The traditional route into the sector is generally via a university with formal academic qualifications in science or other STEM-based subjects.
This creates a social mobility barrier as people who go through that route are typically from a particular socio-economic background.
We need to consider how to reconcile the legitimate desire to attract top talent and high achievers, with creating a more pluralistic social intake.
Part of this involves showing young people that there are different opportunities to have a career in science. Pharma companies need to reach out to schools to promote the possibility of a career in science.
This involves showcasing the plurality of routes into work in the science industry, whether it’s marketing or content writing. It isn’t all about working in a lab with test tubes and Bunsen burners. There’s room for creatives as well as PhD scientists to make an impact in the industry.
Tackling this problem is about collaboration. We’re all in this together, competing not against each other, but against the barriers that hold us back.
By sharing our successes, learning from our failures and standing shoulder to shoulder, we can drive real change, not just within our own companies, but across the entire industry.
So, let’s roll up our sleeves and get to work. Let’s be the change we want to see in the world, not just for the sake of diversity quotas, but because it’s the right thing to do.
After all, in an industry dedicated to improving lives, shouldn’t that include everyone?
Lara Langdon is Head of People at Ramarketing. Go to ramarketing.com
PharmaTimes
PharmaTimes is the UK’s leading pharmaceutical magazine, tracking the trends and issues that affect the industry here in the UK, in Europe and across the world. We deliver independent, authoritative and trustworthy content through impartial, balanced and informed opinion and analysis.