As I said in my December 6, 2022 blog reviewing 2022 and a 2023 recruiting forecast, the hot application areas are forecasting, data scientist and, surprisingly, the vendor/consulting side. Now I’d like to expand on the level of the positions that are in-demand.
In 2022 many of the roles I filled were at the Director level but these were roles that required hands-on coding and data skills as well as, of course, strategic input. Big pharma was and continues to be looking for Director level candidates that are able to ‘jump-in’ when needed and who do not stay in an ivory tower and don’t want to get their hands dirty dealing with data. Director level compensation varied from $190,000 to $225,000 base salary.
Associate Director, Senior Manager and Manager level positions in 2022 and continuing into 2023 have multiple vacancies and candidates will be in high demand. While the demand was strong and remains so in for 2023, companies are not compromising on complete skill sets. There was and will not be any ‘settling’ on missing skills or limited experience. The 2023 recruiting forecast will be a carbon copy of 2022. Manager base salaries will range from $110,000 to $155,000, Senior Manager from $140,000 to $175,000 and Associate Director from $160,000 to $180,000.
STEM professionals are the hot commodity to fill data science, commercial analytics forecasting and brand analytic positions at small, mid-size and large pharma companies as well as consulting companies. Top level STEM candidates for consulting companies was probably the hottest area of hiring in 2022. Consulting companies were more flexible with remote working arrangements and travel was not as heavily required as it once was before the pandemic making these positions more attractive to candidates.
Where are we at the start of 2023? The fourth quarter of 2022 had a bit of a pause in offers being extended but I expect 2023 to be very similar to 2022 with candidates waiting on bonus payouts in the first quarter and then ramping up their interviewing in the second and third quarter. Hiring of top talent in the commercial analytics space will continue to be in high demand in the pharmaceutical industry.
