With Layoffs Looming, Optimize Your Networking — Your Success Depends On It

By Larry Blankstein, Ph.D.

Having personally experienced the shock and awe of losing one’s job, I am concerned about the future job stability in our industry going forward, especially based upon the layoff history observed in our industry as outlined below. The fact that we are in a volatile sector that constantly faces financial pressures, strategic restructuring, and market dynamics that you, as an employee, have little to no control over should make you have “eyes wide open” regarding job stability.

Consider this:

In 2024, the biotech and pharmaceutical industries experienced significant workforce reductions:

• There were 192 layoff rounds reported in the industry.¹
• At least 86 companies disclosed layoffs affecting over 15,134 employees, with others reporting layoffs as percentages or without specific numbers.¹
• Approximately 24,000 positions were eliminated across the sector by the end of the year.²

Several factors drove pharma and biotech companies to reduce staff:

1. Reprioritization of the research and development portfolio. This could result in a whole division being downsized and could have larger ramifications on other parts of the organization.
2. Clinical trial failure. Large Pharma may be able to reallocate some of these resources, but mid- to small-size biotech may not have this flexibility resulting in a reduction in force (RIF).
3. Corporate reorganization. A reorg may have you reporting into a new department and to new manager, requiring you to re-establish credibility. And if there is a need to reduce staff, you could be at the top of the list.
4. Reducing redundancies. Companies might choose to streamline the organization to increase efficiency and reduce costs by consolidating R&D, administrative, or manufacturing to a centralized facility. Redundant employees or employees who do not wish to move will be part of the RIF.
5. Acquisition. As part of an acquisition, you and/or your department may be redundant and could be downsized.
6. Political influence. In today’s environment of political uncertainly, merger and acquisition investments into small and mid-size biotech companies may be slower and could impact staffing.

Layoffs Can Happen To Anyone

I know losing your job can be a shock. The first time I lost my job was in January 1992.

I was called to the human resources department and informed that the company where I spent nearly nine years working wasn’t making its quarterly numbers for the past year. They chose the most expeditious path to making their bottom line — layoffs/RIF. The RIF affected 1,000 people! I was in shock. How could this happen to me? I was a dedicated, committed employee. I worked more than 40 hours a week to ensure we met our corporate goals, had excellent performance reviews, and my group had delivered many new products and applications since I was head of the department. Unfortunately, a recent reorganization put me in a very vulnerable position.

Losing my job… made my new job… finding a new job… a full-time job.

It also taught me three important life lessons:

No job is forever.

No matter how successful you are in your job, how devoted you are to the company, how much your company invests in you, how long you have been there, or how secure you feel in your job, you are a liability when financial decisions must be made. If a company needs to make the bottom-line numbers or is acquired, you become expendable. So, don’t expect to stay at a job forever. You must always be planning your next step. In almost all cases, losing your job is not about you, so don’t let this impact how you think of yourself. You just got caught in an unfortunate situation that is out of your control. However, planning in advance for this possibility is key to your success in finding a new job and your financial stability.

Losing a job is an opportunity.

Losing your job does not have to be the end of the world. In fact, it can be a positive, life-changing event. Losing my job in 1992 offered allowed me to work in clinical drug development, a field I never knew existed, but which enabled me to apply my love of science and effective management skills to successfully develop drugs for people in need.

Networking is key.

After getting laid off, I had no network. Just by chance, a colleague from a company my former company was patterning, called me. When I informed him of my situation, he was the connection for me to be hired by their company. Discovering that I could find a job through people validated the importance of having a reliable network. Having an active, vibrant people network enables you – not your employer – to drive your career success. You want to be the one deciding whether to stay or leave — not the company. Today, individuals in their 20s and 30s could have up to five job changes in their professional career. This further emphasizes the need for a reliable network for your career management, livelihood, and professional growth.

Several hiring companies claim that 80% of professionals³ find networking essential to their career success. There is no hard evidence to support this, but I believe you will have a much higher return on your investment by building and maintaining an active people network rather than blindly sending your resuume to a company’s human resources (HR). Blind submission can be successful only if you have a contact in your network working at that company who can be your advocate and follow up on your application.

Tips For Building A Professional Network

The key to job security, no matter your age or whether you are in your first or fifth company, is to have an active human network. Building a vibrant people network takes time and effort but is necessary.

1. Develop a complete contact list of all your friends, family, professors, colleagues, recruiters. This list should include email addresses, phone numbers, and addresses. Keep this list current.
2. As you move through your career, continue to build a network of people you enjoy working with, you trust, and you value.
3. Make sure you have a complete and up-to-date profile on LinkedIn and other reputable social media accounts.
4. Have a Facebook page or an X account. Keep your postings professional. Employers will look at them. Join social media industry professional groups.
5. Meet with people in person, not over Zoom or Teams. Face-to-face communication is essential.
6. LinkedIn is a wonderful platform to start building a network by following specific biotech or pharma company postings or individuals you may want to add to your network. Join and participate in groups such as “Professionals in the Pharmaceutical and Biotech Industry” that are relevant to our industry and focus on clinical operations, regulatory, etc.
7. Pay it forward: Bring security to the people in your network. I always reach out to people in my network if I know they have lost their job or are in a vulnerable situation.
8. Be realistic: One-on-one communication with people in your network is critical, but you can’t meet everyone. On LinkedIn, I have 1,500 connections. On my phone contact list, I have 150 contacts. When it comes to key contacts, I have about 20 to 30. I try to have at least one to three meetings a month with people in my network. These are people I enjoy meeting with. I learn from them; they are knowledgeable. They often know when a position is becoming available in their company or in other companies, and they could be your advocate for an open position.

The process you use to develop your network should be driven by your personality and communication style. If you are an introvert, you may be more selective in who you add to your network or meet with. An extrovert may be less selective in adding people and more open to in-person meetings. For your network to work best for you, you must be comfortable with how you build it, how you manage it and how you engage with it.

To build a network, you should consider attending industry meetings as often as possible. Our industry has many local and national organization you can consider become an active member: Drug Information Association (DIA), Regulatory Affairs Professionals Society (RAPS), Association of Clinical Research Professionals (ACRP), etc. Consider speaking or being a session chair at key industry meetings. Social media is a great way to initially build your network, but to make those connections truly work, you must meet the people. That’s right — no texting, no email, but having coffee, lunch, or a drink after work or at a professional meeting. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of meeting the key people in your network to exchange ideas, issues, career paths, etc. It is about building a relationship that will make your network work!

Losing your job can be traumatic. Establishing a professional industry network can be your protection to ensure a successful outcome. Establishing and maintaining my network is a very active endeavor and has resulted in me never having to worry about looking for a job even after being laid off in 1992 up to the present. My network works, and yours can work for you, too.

References:

1. FierceBiotech, Jan 3, 2025: “Big Pharma Layoffs Rounds Jump 281% in 2024; but overall Industry Rates Similar to ’23”; Gabrielle Masson
2. BioSpace, December 19, 2024: “The 5 Largest Biopharma Layoffs in 2024”; Angela Gabriel
3. Appollo Technical, June 24, 2024: “15 Important Networking Statistics Everyone Should Know”, Ryan Bradshaw

About The Author:

For over 35 years, Larry Blankstein, PhD has worked in leadership positions in clinical operations and project management at virtual, small, mid-size, and large biotech companies as well as a CRO. He experienced the emotional and demoralizing impact RIF had on himself and others. Having been part of a RIF in 1992 due to his company not meeting financial goals, made him realize the power of a vibrant, active, industry-focused people network to ensure one’s success and livelihood. The power of his network was fully realized after he was part of RIF in 2015 after an acquisition and reorganization; by reaching out to his network he was able to build a very robust consulting business in clinical operations and project management that is still active today.