What it takes to succeed and where
the new ones are coming from

As industries go, biotechnology is a mere child, not yet a quarter of a century old. But the child is growing well here. California and San Diego have been, and likely will continue to be, hotbeds of biotech activity. As reported by the Technology Directory, San Diego itself is home to about 250 companies engaged in the biosciences industry with total employment surpassing 21,000. Local firms led the nation in securing biotech venture capital funding in the second quarter of 1997. Of the top 10 biotech drugs on the market, nine of them are from California companies. Although none of the firms are in San Diego, the feat is quite an accomplishment, since it typically takes more than $250 million and seven to 10 years to move a new drug from the lab to the marketplace.

    That exhaustive process says a lot about the nature of the industry. Not all companies succeed. As Emily Rosenberg, author of "The Job Hunter's Guide to Biotechnology in California," explains, "No one knows for sure which companies will survive, which will be merged or acquired and which will reach and sustain profitability." She characterizes biotech as "a high-risk industry."

    According to Maria De Santis, human resources specialist at Beckman/Hybritech, this "risky" reputation does not keep job applicants away from her doors. She says that many San Diegans, having witnessed the decline and near disappearance of the defense industry, are more or less immune to such fears. "It’s not really a problem. People are excited about biotechnology."

    De Santis accurately notes that although many companies get swallowed up in the developmental process, the overall picture is one of growth and that leads to strong employment prospects for biotechnologists even if they might occasionally have to change companies. "Every time you turn around, there are more companies. It’s a tight community and easy to network," she says. In her view, this presents a "very positive" employment picture in the foreseeable future.

    One view of biotechnology is that it is now going through a period of consolidation, narrowing itself down to a relatively small number of major players with fewer and fewer fledgling start-ups. Aggressive acquisition and growth policies from industry giants like Genentech, Beckman, and Amgen would seem to support this claim. On the other hand, the small companies keep coming. To understand why is simply to repeat how biotech got here in the first place. San Diego — spurred largely by UCSD, Salk Institute, and Scripps Research Institute — has long-standing status as a source of scientific innovation. That history, coupled with a ready supply of scientists produced by our local universities makes this fertile ground for biotech growth. It was that way in the beginning and it still is today. UCSD alone has spawned more than 50 biotech companies. And new companies spin off from the established members of the community.

    Beckman/Hybritech has produced 12 such spin-off companies. If success does not exactly beget success, at least it encourages others to try.

    Among the primary beneficiaries of all this abundance are qualified, job-seeking biologists. As De Santis explains, "San Diego supplies most of our labor pool. Many qualified students come out here locally." Biology is UCSD's most popular major and it annually graduates hundreds of biologists. Although many of these young scientists choose to continue their education, mostly preparing for health care professions, the university does keep a steady flow of new workers moving through the biotech doors.

    For more experienced researchers, however, the biotech companies have a tougher time. De Santis says it is "sometimes difficult to find people with specific scientific or clinical experience, particularly at the Ph.D. level."

    As companies move into the sought-after manufacturing stage of product development, though, this is less of a problem, since these companies need fewer researchers and more production workers. Particularly at this phase, those with community college or technical school training can also fare well within biotech.

    What does it take to succeed in biotech? De Santis puts it this way: "A high energy level. A self-starter who is comfortable working independently as well as in multi-disciplinary teams. Perhaps most importantly, adaptability because it’s an ever-changing environment."

    Neil Murray is director of career services at UCSD.