The Leadership Shift from Pharma to Biotech
Why even experienced executives stall when the context changes
TL;DR
Enterprise experience doesn’t always translate—especially in fast-moving, ambiguous environments like biotech. Leaders relying on pedigree or past playbooks can lose traction fast.
The issue isn’t capability.
It’s calibration.
Smart hiring asks not:
- “Are they impressive?”
- but “Are they adaptive?”
The hire looked like a smart bet.
A seasoned pharma executive, deeply respected. Stepped into a senior biotech role.
Same domain. Different world.
On paper: gold.
In practice: misaligned from the start.
Execution slowed. Influence waned. And because the move was so visible, so was the fallout.
It wasn’t about competence.
It was about context.
What Looks Transferable—Often Isn’t
Pharma and biotech may orbit the same industry, but they run on fundamentally different operating systems.
Pharma prioritizes scale, process, predictability.
Biotech demands velocity, ambiguity, and judgment in the gray.
It’s not about one being better.
It’s about knowing which system you’re in—and how to operate without friction.
The Resume Can’t Answer This
We tend to assume experience at scale translates seamlessly.
But the real question is:
Can they make clean decisions without layers of infrastructure?
Can they build influence from scratch, not just manage what they inherit?
Will they adapt in motion—or try to retrofit what worked in a different world?
These aren’t tactical gaps.
They’re threshold shifts.
And when leaders can’t cross them, you don’t just lose time.
You lose traction, trust, and the story the market tells about your leadership team.
Calibration Cues: 5 Signs a Leader Will Struggle in the Biotech Shift
- They ask for historical precedent before making moves
- They hesitate in low-data environments
- They over-engineer org structures early
- They wait for clarity instead of co-creating it
- They expect influence to be inherited—not earned
For Sponsors (CHROs, CPOs, CEOs)
Before onboarding a seasoned enterprise exec, align internally on what success actually looks like in your biotech context.
Set expectations around ambiguity tolerance, speed of decision-making, and how influence is built in your culture.
Your onboarding signals—formal and informal—shape whether a new leader calibrates or clings to past playbooks.
If You’re That Leader
You’re walking into a culture that rewards momentum and clarity over process and polish.
Start by listening for what isn’t said.
Ask what’s urgent—not what’s usual.
Test decisions at 80%, not 100%.
It’s not about being right.
It’s about being relevant.
And relevance builds trust.
Final Thought
Biotech doesn’t just require smart leaders.
It requires leaders who know how to operate in motion, without a playbook—and still drive trust.
That’s the shift I help leaders make.
Enterprise experience can be an asset—but only if it’s metabolized into the kind of judgment this environment rewards.
The real risk isn’t in the hire.
It’s in assuming the context won’t matter.
If you're navigating that shift—or coaching someone who is—let's talk.
