The case for people, organisation, and culture in life sciences

#1 The People and Organisation triple threat

Talent and skill – not people – shortage

The life sciences industry is continuing to grow due to an unprecedented increase in demand, leading to a triple threat: talent scarcity, organisational stagnation, and skills mismatch.

The challenge

Nearly 70% report a skills gap in their organisation,³ while 44% of workers' skills are expected to be disrupted between 2025 and 2030.⁴

How can People and Organisation help mitigate the triple threat facing life sciences: talent scarcity, organisational stagnation, and skills mismatch?

The life sciences industry is experiencing unprecedented growth and demand, leading to a talent scarcity, organisational stagnation, and skill mismatch challenge. This triple threat requires innovative strategies and solutions for attracting, retaining, and developing talent while fostering organisational agility and addressing evolving skill requirements.

Addressing the challenge

Holistic people development

40% of R&D professionals in life sciences cite a lack of career development as a primary reason for considering leaving their jobs.⁵

To cultivate a high-performing, adaptable workforce, life science companies should implement an integrated approach to learning and development, people performance, talent management, and succession. This will enable continuous skills enhancement, clear career progression, and a robust talent pipeline to meet future demands.

Skills-based organisations

Life science companies are 2.3x more likely to excel in adapting to new opportunities with skills-based approaches.⁶

To address the evolving skill requirements in life sciences, we need to transition from traditional role-based structures to skills-based organisations that prioritise capabilities over rigid job descriptions.

This will create a more flexible workforce that can quickly adapt to new technologies and changing needs.

Sustainable organisations

Life science companies achieve 30% performance boost in team performance and innovation due to agile collaboration across the value chain.⁷

To enable timely and effective decision-making, we must implement sustainable organisational designs that promote cross-functional collaboration, rapid experimentation, and decentralised yet balanced decision-making.

This will foster a culture of responsiveness, crucial for staying competitive in the fast-paced life sciences landscape.

#2 The M&A opportunity and PMI obstacle

Driving successful M&A through people

A period of relatively low M&A activity has created a void. Combined with a significant increase in dry powder and the pressure of $300 billion in pharmaceutical revenues facing expiration risks by 2028, a surge in M&A activity is projected. This is driving the need to build leaner, more resilient business models supported by strong PMI capabilities.

The challenge

30% of transactions fail to meet financial targets due to culture and organisation issues, while 67% experience synergy delays because of culture and organisation mismatch.¹⁰

How can People & Organisation succeed with culture, organisation, and people integrations?

The increasing M&A activity in the life sciences industry presents a significant opportunity for People & Organisation to take the lead and drive business success. P&O can make a major impact on M&A outcomes by providing critical insights during due diligence and addressing integration challenges within the people space. However, to fully leverage this opportunity, a shift in capabilities and strengthened methodologies are required.

Addressing the challenge

Integration catalyst

Life science companies are 1.5x more likely to meet or exceed financial synergy targets in M&A when culture and organisation are effectively managed.¹¹

To maximise synergies and adaptability post-merger, we must develop expertise in maintaining ongoing business operations and harmonising and streamlining processes, services, policies, and organisational structures.

This will build operational excellence enabling the creation of a lean, responsive organisation that can quickly capitalise on synergies and adapt to changing market conditions.

Talent retention

Companies achieve ~40% reduction in key talent turnover post-merger when retention strategies and structured change management are prioritised.¹²

To maintain key competencies and productivity during and after post-merger integrations, we need to leverage people analytics to identify critical talent, predict retention risks, and develop mitigation strategies. This enables proactive retention efforts and targeted interventions.

Cultural synergy

Sixty percent of M&A failures post-close can be traced back to cultural misalignment.¹³

To successfully merge often diverse corporate cultures, we must develop comprehensive methodologies for cultural due diligence, assessment, and alignment. This will enable seamless integration and foster a cohesive organisational identity post-merger.

#3 The AI, hyper automation, and people convergence

Leveraging technology to create a competitive edge

Life sciences is transforming into a tech-driven industry, with AI and hyper-automation reducing development lead times and costs, enabling adopters to outperform competitors by a wide margin.

The challenge

75% have not succeeded in scaling AI initiatives in HR to drive significant benefits in efficiency, quality, or experience.¹⁶

How can People & Organisation leverage AI and hyper-automation to become a scalable powerhouse?

The convergence of AI, hyper-automation, and people management is reshaping HR both internally and externally. The expectations are threefold: leverage technology to enhance decision-making, streamline and improve processes, and transform workforce skills to seize new opportunities.

This presents a significant opportunity for People & Organisation to drive unprecedented internal efficiency, greatly improve employee experience, and contribute strategic value to the business. While this opportunity will be a key differentiator, capitalising on it requires investment in capabilities.

Addressing the challenge

Workforce transformation

Life science companies achieve a 30% increase in employee productivity following AI-focused upskilling programmes.¹⁷

Investment in comprehensive re- and upskilling programmes – both for specialists and generalists – that empower employees to effectively leverage new technologies is already a key differentiator. People & Organisation could become a main strategic enabler for the business.

Data-driven people leadership

Life science companies achieve a 25% increase in business productivity through the widespread use of people analytics.¹⁸

To ensure optimal talent allocation and future-proof the workforce, we must leverage people analytics capabilities that deliver actionable insights into workforce trends, skill gaps, and succession planning.

This will enable data-driven decision-making in talent acquisition, development, and retention strategies, helping align the workforce with long-term organisational goals.

Both/and scalability

Life science companies have achieved a 15% ROI on AI initiatives in People & Organisation functions from the start of investment to date.¹⁹

To maximise efficiency and quality, we need to implement hyper-automation solutions that streamline processes, enhance data management, and improve service delivery. This will enable a leaner organisation that can scale with business performance while maintaining a high-quality employee experience

How we have helped our life sciences clients

Case: Sustainable organisational design and new operating model for a global life science CDMO

The project

As part of the company’s overall strategy to become a leading CDMO with customer-centric operations, there was a need to reorganise the manufacturing organisation to be fit for future growth.

The overall objective was to design a new organisational setup and operating model, ensuring a service focus and closeness to customers. Furthermore, the new organisation needed to maintain the right capabilities and retain agility in daily operations.

The foundation of the project was an in-depth organisational assessment of current operations and structures. This was followed by workshops with broad involvement across the organisation to design the future organisational structure.

The impact

The project resulted in a radical change to the operating model and organisational structure. By the end of the project, the client was ready to implement an organisation that:

• Ensures clarity of decision-making and accountabilities across the organisation
• Enables sustainable scalability and synergies
• Maintains critical capabilities

Where to go from here?

In summary, the multifaceted challenges within life sciences – namely talent scarcity, the synergy potential of M&A, and AI-enabled transformation – demand strategic foresight and solutions. By prioritising comprehensive people development, effective cultural integration, and scalable organisational frameworks, life sciences entities can position themselves for sustainable growth and innovation.

References

1. Cervicorn Consulting. (2025, February 9). Life Science Market: Driving Innovation and Advancements in Healthcare and Biotechnology. PharmiWeb.com
2. Spain, H., Rico, P., & Switzerland. (2024). Global Talent Shortage 2024 Today, 75% of Employers Report Difficultly in Filling roles. Japan Global Average Talent Shortages around the World IT & Data
3. The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (2022) “Bridging the skills gap in the biopharmaceutical industry”
4. World Economic Forum. (2023, April 30). The Future of Jobs Report 2023.
5. Durth, S., Komm, A., Pollner, F., & Reich, A. (2023, March 3). Reimagining people development to overcome talent challenges | McKinsey
6. Randstad Enterprise (2024) “2024 talent trends: life sciences & pharma”
7. Aghina et. al. (2021) “The impact of agility: How to shape your organisation to compete”
8. McKinsey & Company. (2025, February 19). Life sciences: Primed for an increase.
9. ChangeFirst (2022) "The ROI of Change Management"
10. Black, Helsop & McCoy (no date) “Mitigating culture risk to drive deal value”
11. Fantaguzzi & Handscomb (2024) “The importance of cultural integration in M&A: The path to success”
12. Black & McGuire (no date) “Flight risk in M&A: The art and science of retaining talent”
13. Instil (2024) "Culture correlations"
14. Taylor & Terry (2024). The convergence of AI technologies and human expertise in pharma R&D.
15. Spain, H., Rico, P., & Switzerland. (2024). Global Talent Shortage 2024 Today, 75% of Employers Report Difficultly in Filling roles. Japan Global Average Talent Shortages around the World IT & Data.
16. Chui et. al. (2023) “The state of AI in 2023: Generative AI’s breakout year”
17. I4CP (2025) “AI Upskilling Can Improve Productivity by 30% or More, Yet Most Companies Are Still Far Behind”
18. McKinsey & Company (2025) “People Analytics”
19. APQC (2025). “Achieved ROI with generative AI initiatives in HR from the start of the investment until now”