This is our discussion with Harry Henson which was recorded for the Solutions OP Clinical Trials podcast. You can listen to the original recording here. Please note that the interview below is adapted and not a transcript. This was done to improve readability.
Interviewer: Welcome to today’s episode of the podcast. Today, my guest is Harry Henson, the associate director of RBW Consulting. RBW Consulting is an international recruitment agency, and I am sure all of us who work in clinical research are familiar with them, as they specialise in life sciences.
Harry has worked in the field for many years with various recruitment agencies. Before joining RBW Consulting. I invited him today not only because he is an expert in recruitment and can offer us professional advice, but also because he is one of those recruiters who takes the time to speak with job seekers, understand their situations, and then provide open feedback about the job interviews. He genuinely tries to help both job seekers and his clients. This is something very valuable and uncommon among many recruiters these days.
Thank you, Harry, for joining me today. I’ll start with my first question: What is the current situation regarding the clinical research job market, both contract and permanent roles? Also, how challenging is it for young people who have just graduated to find a job? And let’s try to keep it from being too depressing.
Harry: OK, so putting it politely, it’s quite tough out there at the moment, and I don’t think that’s a problem that’s unique to the UK or specific to contract or permanent roles. I believe it’s a reflection of the current global climate. It is affecting the job market not just in clinical research, but in almost every field. I think, at the moment, it is one of the toughest job markets I have seen.
However, there are still definite positives you can take from it in the overall clinical research job market. I believe we at RBW are definitely focusing on cleanups, and I think in the broader business as well, we’ve noticed over the last two to three months an uplift, thankfully, in the UK in permanent jobs and permanent recruitment. There’s also been a steady increase globally in contract hiring. I’m by no means saying it’s busy, but it is definitely busier than recent times.
I’ve worked in recruitment for over 10 years, and I think the last 2 years, particularly in the corporate market, have been some of the toughest I’ve ever seen. However, it does seem like we’re starting to consider coming out the other side, with a few things gradually bubbling up in the background and steady increases.
I believe all it will take is some serious investment from the sponsor side. Then, the work will start to trickle through, most likely from the larger CROs first, and gradually reach some of the smaller and mid-sized CROs. That, in turn, should help create a busy market again.
I would love to tell you how soon I think that might be, or even a rough timeline, but I could only do that if I had a crystal ball, because at the moment, it would just be guesswork. However, if we can take a positive from it, it’s that we are seeing things gradually become busier.
Interviewer: Yeah, I see. And what about entry-level jobs? Many young people are searching for those. So, how’s that going? Is it still the same, or has there been some improvement? What’s your impression?
Harry: I actually think it’s probably a better time overall for entry-level jobs in clinical research, especially in clinical operations. We have observed that I think this might be the case.
I don’t want to say it affects recruitment agencies negatively, but it is something where, with more companies, perhaps due to slightly stricter budgets, we have seen a lot more companies, both CRO and sponsor, making hires at a more junior level.
I think it depends on how you look at it, because some people might see that as a higher risk since you’re not hiring people with 5, 10, or more years of clinical research associate (CRA) experience, especially if it’s for an entry-level CRA role. However, you could also see it as an opportunity to hire someone at an entry level, train them according to the company’s preferences, and promote internally. It also tends to be a lower-cost option, although it may be cheaper initially; however, there might be higher turnover, with more people starting at the entry level and then not working out, whether due to the client’s decision or other factors.
The candidate as such is a choice. However, I think overall, we are seeing more entry-level roles, which companies obviously tend to hire for themselves directly. I would also say we’ve seen a spike in industry companies hiring from the public sector.
I think there has been quite a lot more in recent years where this market has been more challenging, particularly regarding entry-level roles in the industry. Instead of hiring someone with no experience or someone from a clinical trials assistant (CTA) background, we are now seeing people from the not-for-profit or public sector CRAs transitioning into the industry.
But I think, again, that creates another issue where companies are making those hires. Candidates coming from not-for-profit or public sectors could potentially feel a bit hard done by because even if they’ve got 3 or 4 years of CRA experience in the industry, they’re being viewed as entry-level with minimal experience. So it’s a bit of a catch-22.
I think it depends on the person and whether they’re happy to effectively transition sideways. The positive aspect of that is that the industry typically pays considerably more.
Interviewer: Yeah, I agree with you. The industry definitely pays slightly more than the nonprofit sector.
Before I ask you my next question, I want to share a very interesting short story. Last year, I was working with a hospital in the UK NHS system, and they had a data entry person. They hired a data entry person based in South Africa, which I found quite interesting.
So, I asked them why they would hire someone in South Africa to do remote data entry in the UK. And they said it’s because she’s experienced. I mean, it’s quite fair. She was truly a lovely lady. I have no issue with her, but it still puzzles me that an NHS hospital in the UK would hire someone in South Africa to do data entry for them.
And this is why I wanted to ask you my next question: are there any initiatives that prevent employers from hiring and training young people in clinical research?
Harry: In my opinion, no. But I think there is something we have seen across the board in all the different sectors: in tougher markets, people have looked to outsource certain roles to other countries, and I believe a lot of that comes down to cost.
We have a couple of mid-sized CROs we work with, and I’m sure they’d agree that, as a cost-saving measure, they moved their data entry and IT functions to a lower-cost country. They set up a whole new operation there because they calculated that the actual amount of money they could save was, quite frankly, astronomical. These savings then enabled them to expand into other areas.
But I think it’s a shame because it really does seem to be getting harder and harder for young people to get into clinical research in the UK, for example. However, there shouldn’t be anything stopping employers from hiring and training young people to enter clinical research.
I think the public sector is probably much better at advocating for it, and I believe we are still seeing that. We are then seeing people trying to transition into industry, and I know some of the larger CROs have gone through phases where they have had, for example, their CRA academies, but again, I don’t think we see as much of that any longer. I do think, however, that it reflects the kind of global market that we’re in.
So, I think, when normality returns at some point, we will see a shift in hiring, with more focus on getting young people into clinical research, which might potentially make it easier again.
Because I think most companies, I like to believe, aim for an ideal hiring situation where you have a mix of senior employees, whether that’s freelance or permanent, combined with more entry-level, new-to-clinical-research staff, because that creates such a good balance between the two.
I believe that this clearly allows newer CRAs or those new to clinical research to work alongside more experienced colleagues and learn from them. At the same time, some of the more senior candidates or people will still learn from the newer type of employees and the freshers in clinical research. I think some of them could be surprised by how much they might learn from the younger people coming in.
Interviewer: Yeah, definitely. I completely agree. So, when I say young people, I mean those who are recent graduates, you know, they’ve graduated from university or school and are looking for jobs. The reality is many people are interested in clinical research; they just don’t know how to get involved.
We previously discussed with my colleague Lydia Ainsworth because she graduated in psychology and was very interested in research. We talked about what kind of awareness she had regarding options to get into clinical research, but there wasn’t much.
That’s why I wanted to ask you what you would recommend if someone has graduated and is looking for a clinical research job. What do you think is the best thing for them to do if they want to find an entry-level position?
Harry: I think my first piece of advice would be: don’t give up and be patient, because it will take some time, but it will happen. If you want it enough and stay focused on it, then you can make it happen, because all it takes is, I mean, I know this firsthand from working in recruitment, how many NOs you sometimes need to get a YES. Whether it takes 10 applications, 30, or 80, you will find the right thing for you.
My advice would be to stay flexible as well. I believe that, although you may have your ideal scenario in mind, such as wanting to pursue the CRA route and thinking, I want an entry-level CRA role. You should also consider the current market conditions and your competition too, since there are unfortunately many more experienced candidates out there who are currently without work.
I would suggest being flexible about what you’re focussing on. If the longer-term goal is CRA, then consider looking at CTA, regulatory admin, or even exploring broader avenues in clinical research, such as trial master file (TMF) roles or possibly moving into the quality assurance (QA) route. It might be helpful to consider a wider range of job titles initially.
I would suggest keeping an eye out. It sounds very simple but watch for vacancies where they specify in the job title or in the initial summary that they will consider entry-level candidates. These positions are not as common as those seeking more experienced candidates, but they are out there that will specify ‘Entry level’. Sometimes it takes a keen eye to spot them. But if you find them, they’re not just calling it ‘entry level’ for the sake of it; they will genuinely consider candidates at an entry level.
I think it’s always important, especially when searching for your first role in clinical research, to make your CV stand out. I believe many people fall into the trap, something I also see in experienced candidates, of listing numerous buzzwords like ‘great communicator’, ‘team player’, and similar phrases on their CV, which is acceptable. Still, keep those if you want them, because soft skills are incredibly important, probably more so now than ever.
But having those things written on the CV, does it really make you stand out from everyone else? I would say focus on what makes you unique. Whether that is, say, being a recent graduate, having awards, or something from your dissertation, anything you’ve achieved at university, whether it’s some form of work experience within industry or the public sector.
Also, from my experience of working in recruitment for over 10 years, I know that when I advertise a job, of course, we’ll get plenty of applicants. But it’s the follow-up that truly matters, whether it’s an email or, even better, a call to say, ‘Look, this is me, this is what I’ve applied for. Do you think it’s suitable? If not, do you have anything more suitable?’ And sometimes, it’s simply a matter of asking us for advice.
As a recruiter, mainly for contractors, when I am approached by entry-level candidates, I often say ‘Welcome to the industry! I would highly recommend speaking with one of my colleagues who has excellent connections on the permanent hiring front, because that is the best route to begin with.’
And I have a colleague, Joe, who has placed quite a few professionals from the NHS, not-for-profit, or the broader public sector into industry for their first industry CRA role. I believe RBW will always try as much as possible to support candidates eager to enter the industry at that entry level. I think it’s a tough time now, but it’s important not to give up and to keep going.
Interviewer: Yeah, I think it’s very important not to give up, it’s really critical.
But when we talk about looking for a job, how do you find LinkedIn? I find LinkedIn to be absolutely dead. There are so many advertisers and, when you look at it, there are like 1 million people who have just applied in the previous 24 hours.
Harry: Yeah, and then you’ve got to think about the poor person who has to sort through all the applications. I think it’s tough. It really varies again depending on the type of jobs. So, we primarily use our three main sources of advertising: LinkedIn, PharmiWeb, and our company website.
PharmiWeb used to be where every CRA and clinical candidate was registered. We actually noticed a bit of a trend: we still receive some excellent applications from PharmiWeb, and I believe they do have a section for entry-level roles there. I could be mistaken, but I think they do.
But we have observed a significant shift to LinkedIn over the past few years, likely involving more senior roles or more experienced candidates. However, it is tough when you apply for a job and there are 400 applications within the first two days. I understand that can be discouraging, especially for someone coming in at an entry level, thinking the competition is going to have 5, 10, 15, or 20 years of experience.
So, I would say again, when applying for jobs on LinkedIn, it is probably our best method of finding applicants. However, as you mentioned, there are lots of applicants on LinkedIn, so it can feel like you’re fighting a losing battle.
I would suggest that if you see jobs, such as a senior CRA role, and you’re looking for an entry-level position, it’s better to give yourself peace of mind by not applying for that one. Instead, look for roles labelled as entry-level, or positions that specify like CRA 0 to 18 months’ experience or similar.
But I think, unfortunately, there are only a limited number of job sites, effective advertising methods, and ways candidates can apply. The ‘don’t give up’ message still rings true here as well. It will be tough, and it is by no means easy at the moment. However, platforms like LinkedIn, the PharmiWeb, and direct company websites, which, in hindsight, might be the most effective for an entry-level candidate. Applying directly on a CRO, biotech, or farm’s website is probably your best initial option for finding something right now. This is because, again, with the market in its current state, many of our partners may be stricter with their recruitment budgets, especially for junior positions, which they often prefer to fill themselves. So, I would say, looking directly at companies’ websites is probably the most viable way to apply for an entry-level role if you want to enter the industry directly.
Because you’re somewhat missing out on using the agency for all the support during the process and similar things, you might be limiting yourself to a smaller pool of candidates. I believe that generally, more candidates tend to apply through agencies. However, for those more junior roles, applying directly to a company might give you a better chance of success compared to when a company pays a recruiter for that level of role.
Interviewer: Yes, especially for the entry-level roles, because they’re not very well paid.
And do you receive a lot of applications when you advertise for an entry-level job? Do you get many applicants who are completely ineligible for the country? Or do you receive a lot of spam, or is it only genuinely valid applications?
Harry: I think this applies to pretty much any role we advertise. Unfortunately, now we get a lot of irrelevant applications. I would say that if I were to advertise a CRA role now, I would expect to have over 500 applicants within a week, probably.
Over half of them are probably not in the right country, genuinely, and I would expect many of them to also have completely irrelevant skill sets or backgrounds. Unfortunately, this is a problem that the recruitment industry as a whole has to deal with, and it also has a somewhat negative impact on applicants who are genuinely eager to progress in their careers in this role. Because of the high volume of applications, each one is often met with some scepticism.
It’s a huge problem, with people applying for things that are completely irrelevant, unfortunately. I don’t think that’s going to change, though. It’s a challenge we’re having to adapt to, and it has become more apparent over the past few years. Sadly, it doesn’t seem like it’s going away anytime soon.
Interviewer: Well, on the bright side, at least when you see all these 1000 applicants, you know that half of them are rubbish, so you still have a chance.
Harry: Yeah, that’s true, you can whittle it down to 500 straight away. But then I suppose it does give you a certain sense of reward when you do find the needle in the haystack. It’s a funny old world we live in at the moment.
Interviewer: Yeah, I think you can update your job title now to “finding needles in the haystack”.
Thank you very much, Harry, for your time today to speak with me. In conclusion, I would like to emphasise that if you have recently graduated and are looking for a job in clinical research, you should not give up. That is our message.
It’s very hard, but that’s just how the industry is. It’s not only in the UK; it’s an international issue. So don’t give up, keep trying, work with recruiters, find good ones like Harry who are willing to help, and eventually you’ll succeed.
