Hiring into clinical and regulatory functions has never been easy. But in 2025, it’s slowing product pipelines, delaying trials, and putting entire launches at risk.
The problem isn’t just demand. It’s mismatch.
Across the UK and Europe, we’re seeing a sharp divide between the roles pharma and healthtech businesses need and the ones the market can actually deliver, especially in high-skill, location-sensitive functions like:
Clinical operations
Regulatory affairs
Safety and pharmacovigilance
Data management
Quality assurance (GxP and ISO standards)
These roles are critical. And right now, they’re chronically underserved.
In one rec hub delivery project, it took a global healthtech brand three rounds of search to find a qualified, region-ready pharmacovigilance lead. Not because the talent didn’t exist, but because the role was shaped around availability, not real business need.
This is where hiring leaders lose time: unclear briefs, outdated location assumptions, and too many hands on the steering wheel.
If you’re hiring into clinical or regulatory functions right now, three things will give you an edge:
Prioritise clarity over speed
The fastest route to offer doesn’t always lead to the right hire. Lock in the purpose of the role, the regulatory requirements, and the must-haves vs nice-to-haves before you go to market.
Use embedded delivery to stay close to the business
TA teams often sit too far from the science. Embedded support (like ours😉) connects directly with hiring managers, shaping roles based on what’s needed now, not what was briefed last quarter.
Challenge location assumptions
In some roles, onsite still matters. In others, it’s a legacy requirement. Before you restrict your candidate pool, pressure-test the true reason behind location or hybrid expectations.
Clinical hiring will always be complex. But with the right planning and internal alignment, it doesn’t have to slow you down.