When It Comes to Biomanufacturing in Maryland – It’s All About the People
The Biohealth Capital Region Forum held a panel on the State of Biomanufacturing in which representatives from three companies in Frederick–Kite, AstraZeneca, and BioFactura–discussed their perspectives on how people make all the difference.
By Chris Frew | October 23, 2023
This year at the BHCR Forum, a panel was held to discuss the state of biomanufacturing and talent in the Capital Region. The conversation spanned several different subject areas, and a common theme emerged throughout the panel discussion: that people are making the difference in Maryland’s biotech community.
While it was intended to be a regional conversation spanning the BioHealth Capital Region, all of the panelists happened to be from companies based in Frederick, MD. Perhaps this was a coincidence, but it isn’t too unexpected given the growth of Frederick as a biomanufacturing hub within Maryland and beyond.
Panelists included
- Alexis Melendez, Senior Director of Engineering & Facilities at Kite Pharma
- Lisbet Young, Director, Clinical Biologics, AstraZeneca FMC
- Darryl Sampey, Founder, CSO at BioFactura
- Lucy Alexander, Capabilities Lead, Global Supply Chain & Strategy, AstraZeneca (Moderator)
Here are some of the highlights:
What has changed in the region in the past 10 years?
The simple answer shared by most panelists? “The people.”
Alexis Melendez of Kite described how he has been part of the region since 2012 and has noticed that not only are there many new companies coming to town, but also that the biotech companies are talking to each other and working together more. “We didn’t used to do that in the past and now we’re starting to be more operational,” he shared.
Melendez is one of those who moved to the region for a job and has since decided to stay. Now 10 years later, he reflected on how, when he goes out to local events, he sees that a lot of the people are also deciding to stay in the area. Attracting and maintaining talent in the area is important, and that’s the difference from 2012. Now the culture in our region is that, “we are all friends and are all talking to each other even though we’re working in different companies.”
“I believe the people are the thing that is our differentiator. Our products could be amazing. We’re treating patients, but if we don’t have the right set of people to develop or produce those products, they’re not going to get to the market.”
What makes Frederick a great place for Biotech?
Since every panelist was from Frederick and working for a Frederick company, this question came with a lot of personal conviction. Believe it or not – the answer still centered around ‘people.’
Lisbet Young, Director, Clinical Biologics, AstraZeneca FMC shared that there is a lot of engagement and support that they get when working with Frederick County and the City of Frederick; as well as from the state of Maryland. The high level of interaction and support that biotech companies receive in Frederick, as well as the many initiatives at the state level, really make this a friendly region for biotech.
“Also from BioBuzz, there are a lot of education and awareness initiatives for getting people into industry and upskilling,” Young shared in closing.
Awareness and workforce initiatives are at the core of our mission so we’re thrilled that this work is making an impact on our industry with companies like AstraZeneca.
Melendez added to the Frederick fodder, sharing his experience working with Frederick government when he was part of the Kite site selection team.
“I had the opportunity to help select the site, and one of the things we like about Frederick County, which competes with other top locations like Texas, is the people. They made the difference. Our building process was faster, our government people here engage with you and they become part of your team. I have built in other places and that doesn’t happen, it’s not the norm. In Frederick we have partners, and that’s the difference.”
He also shared that the people he interviews are looking at what this job is going to bring to their family, both in and out of work. People, even those without kids, want a quality of life; including good schools and a place where they can feel safe. Improved quality of life is what will bring job satisfaction, and he believes that if you want a good quality of life, you go to Frederick.
“I moved my family to Frederick because of that,” Melendez stated.
What is the talent like in this region?
When it comes to talent, the shared sentiment was that it has become one of the region’s strengths and continues to improve. The growth of several local employers such as Kite, Horizon, Novavax, Regenxbio, and Arcellx has really added to the talent pool in the region.
We have always been a region that is robust with PhD research talent, as reflected by the CBRE report that ranked our region 2nd in Research talent. With the growth of the later stage and commercial workforce it has really positioned the Capital Region to compete more holistically as a destination for top companies and top talent.
Continuing to grow a strong workforce in our region is still an active effort that needs more coordination and more investment. Talent is the foundation upon which this whole industry is built.
Melendez reflected that when you work at a startup, you desire to grow big but you have a great culture. But when you work at a big company that has to focus on cost and efficiency, many employees crave going back to startups because of that culture.
“In my opinion,” Melendez shared, “If your people don’t feel that they can innovate, or that they have the freedom that they can do their work and have fun by doing it, you’re not going to have a workforce. So, I believe we need to put our investment and our time into our people. That’s what’s going to make your company different, and our region different.”
There are programs that continue to address our workforce development, such as BioHub, various biotech boot camps, such as those through Montgomery College or the BioTrain and Bio-Trac training workshops. Frederick Community College and the Office of Workforce Development have launched their own biotech boot camp program, in addition to industry-led Cell and Gene therapy training in collaboration with Kite and Hood College, and they are also advancing the expansion of apprenticeships in biotech.
At BioBuzz, we just announced that we are launching a new solution in 2024: the TalentLab – a next-generation talent marketplace platform. While we’re not addressing training and education like the aforementioned programs, we believe that we will help talent and employers find each other and connect more effectively, and at a lower cost.
While these programs are all important and making a difference, we can learn a lot from some of the other regions such as North Carolina, Philadelphia, and Boston that have more robust, well-coordinated and well-funded workforce programs and regional talent strategies. With talent being so vital to this industry, the programs and initiatives deserve an appropriate level of funding, support, and attention if the Capital Region is going to compete with the others.
Compensation: To Pay or Not to Pay?
The topic of compensation has been a part of many boardrooms over the past few years. With COVID the industry saw rapid compensation increases as the competition for talent became cutthroat between companies vying for the workforce they needed, and candidates emboldened by the demand for their niche skills. Now with today’s inflationary pressures, many of those compensation expectations have remained unchained, even though unemployment has risen with a wave of layoffs.
BioFactura Founder Darryl Sampey has had to deal with those compensation pressures at his company where he is competing for talent with some of the region’s top employers.
“As a small company we don’t get a pass from the people we hire,” Sampey shared. “We can’t tell candidates – ‘we’re just small so we can’t pay you as much as a big company.’ So, we pay exactly what the big employers pay for these positions and sometimes more because we expect a lot more from our employees.”
While company size is one factor, the general expectations that candidates have now in our industry is a variable that needs to be addressed. If people have a different expectation going to a clinical company, in terms of their role, scope, and salary, they often have a totally different expectation on the same three if they’re going to go to a commercial company. Even different modalities can have different expectations. Melendez feels that this is something that as an industry we need to work to normalize and understand better in order to address compensation.
People remain the x-factor when it comes to our region and the success of any biotech company. That fact came through loud and clear in this discussion.
