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Biology版 - [Career Series]The Business Development Career Track
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话题: brandon话题: business话题: bd话题: companies
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发帖数: 6830
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打算每周至少转两篇。这是这周第二篇
By David G. Jensen
April 17, 2009
http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_magazine/previous_i
As I've stated many times in my columns, the best way to learn about a job
that sounds interesting to you is to talk to someone who's already working
in that position. In this series, I'll be doing some of that work for you,
but I urge you to take it further. Tools like Informational Interviewing can
be invaluable when you combine what you learn on Science Careers with your
own research.
This month, I'll explore business development (BD) careers. This is the job
option people ask me about most often when I give seminars about alternative
careers. It is also one of the most misunderstood. For many, the term
brings to mind a rep from the local reagents supplier--someone they
generally avoid when they see him in the lab. Or they think of a used-car
salesman--and all that says about pushy sales behavior.
Much more than sales
"In small companies, the term 'business development' is often applied to
salespeople because the perception is that it sounds friendlier," says
Brandon Price, a business-development consultant who runs his own business,
Falcon Ridge Associates, in Cary, North Carolina. "But the term is a broad
one, and it actually represents careers in several niches."
Few careers for scientists offer such a wide variety of employment
opportunities. BD staff work in small companies, large companies, government
centers, universities, and private institutions. The daily activities are
varied, ranging from strategy and market planning to customer contact, new
business development, and licensing.
Business development professionals at small companies may be involved in
sales and marketing, but Brandon says that they're also involved in scouting
for new technologies, developing business opportunities, licensing, and
dealmaking. I think smaller companies are a great place to start a career in
BD because of the varied work. You can be developing a marketing plan one
day and be working on the terms of a licensing agreement with a major
company the next. Small companies give you a mix of experiences, a base from
which you can zero in and become an expert in one niche.
At larger companies, business-development jobs are much more specialized. "
In the big corporations, business development most often refers to teams of
people looking for new products, new markets for existing technologies,
strategic partnerships, and the like," Brandon says. Scientific knowledge is
really important in these jobs, and although there are non-Ph.D.s in
business development, employers will readily pay a premium for advanced
degrees. I see far more BD positions that require Ph.D.s than I do positions
that require any other degree, including MBAs.
Technical know-how is also the key to another business development niche,
technology transfer. "There are also BD types engaged within tech-transfer
entities at universities whose job it is to work with the inventors to
generate good summaries of inventions they want to see commercialized, and
then find and engage prospective industry licensing partners," Brandon says.
Tech-transfer positions are found both in organizations that want to
license out their technology, such as universities, and in organizations
that want to license in an idea to develop into a product, such as a medical
device or biotechnology company.
Licensing specialists work with both "in" and "out" licensing agreements.
Sometimes, a licensing specialist may add a law degree to their technical
credentials at midcareer or later.
Brandon's experience and recommendations
Brandon's career is a good example of how to make a move into business from
the bench. He started his professional life as a Ph.D. biophysicist in
academia. After a few years, he was on the tenure track but was receiving a
fair amount of funding from industry. He had developed contacts in companies
and liked the applied nature of industry.
"I moved from academia into a technical role at J&J [Johnson & Johnson] in
the company's flow-cytometry business unit," Brandon says. "I was soon
supervising two technical teams, one involved in developing clinical
protocols for a new flow cytometer and the other engaged in developing new
measurement parameters to enhance an existing blood-cell analyzer."
Like many others who have crossed the bridge between technical work and
business, Brandon found that the sales and marketing team didn't really
understand these complex instruments. "These folks found that I was
delighted to work with their clients and prospects to help them understand
the features and benefits of the new technologies we had developed, and I
began to do more and more of that."
Several people moved from J&J to form a new biotech company, Damon Biotech,
including the start-up's chief executive officer and vice president of sales
and marketing. They recruited Brandon for a product-director position with
the new venture. Damon Biotech was an important biotech start-up--one of the
first contract manufacturing organizations and an important building block
for the Boston-area biocluster.
Damon Biotech offered contract cell-culture services to other companies,
producing monoclonal antibodies for both therapeutic and diagnostic
companies. Brandon went into direct sales and was responsible for sales to
clients who were developing therapeutic products. He was also posted to the
United Kingdom for more than a year so he could establish Damon's European
business development organization.
Since those days in the early to mid-1980s, Brandon has been in or had
responsibility for many business-development niches. He's worked for both
large companies and start-ups, including a couple of stints as CEO for start
-up companies.
Brandon didn't go directly from the lab into business development--it took a
few steps to get there. This is typical for people in these careers. BD isn
't a target that you can easily transition to directly; it's always better
to go in sideways, by first taking a technical role at a company or
institution and then taking advantage of your connections within the company.
"In my view, the most important connection to the transition from research
to BD is a mentor, someone who sees your attributes and who recognizes the
value that an articulate, technically competent person can bring to the
business development function at his or her organization," Brandon says.
Breaking into BD
One mistake many scientists who want to go into business development make is
that they try to forgo actual work experience by getting an MBA. Although
some BD jobs, notably in the larger companies, may require an MBA, these
jobs are in the minority. "If you already have an advanced technical degree,
like to work with people, and are a good communicator in both written and
spoken English, I strongly urge that you find the right company to employ
those traits, perhaps even in a sales position to get some good experience,"
Brandon says. "Besides, your new company will most likely have a tuition-
reimbursement plan, and you can get your MBA on their coin!"
If you're interested in jobs in this sector, don't just start looking at
online ads for jobs that appeal to you. As I've said in many "Tooling Up"
columns, you need to use your networking skills and talk to people to find
out what the industry's needs are and how your skills can help to meet those
needs.
"Believe me, good, articulate, technical people who want to work in business
development are hard to find, even in the current economic climate,"
Brandon says. "If that sounds like you, one great way of landing a job is to
talk to the salespeople at trade show booths. Corporate VPs are always
lurking about, especially if it is a large conference, something like the
BIO or FASEB meetings. With the right kind of technical background and a
good first impression, you may find that a position opens up."
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