Big Health 2024: The Biotech Winter, the Rise of CGT, and the Golden Age for Traditional Chinese Medicine and Elderly Care Services | Year-End Review of Workplace Benefits ②
"Workplace Bonus" (ID: ZhiChangHongLi)
The big health industry is ushering in a historical turning point.
The innovative drug industry has endured a long and difficult winter, but it has already gone through a complete cycle. In China, the development of the CGT (Cell and Gene Therapy) industry is also rapid. Among them, cell therapy is one of the few fields in our country that can compete with the United States.
In this year when the silver economy shows vigorous signs, elderly care services and traditional Chinese medicine are the two talent markets that we recommend to pay attention to. The elderly population aged 60 and above in China has exceeded 250 million, and the elderly care industry is developing rapidly. The traditional Chinese medicine industry presents two major trends - the number of enterprises and participants in the OTC market conference has increased significantly; the attention of funds and enterprises to products in the elderly disease market has significantly increased.
Biotech: Mismatch between supply and demand of BD, and an increase in both overseas return and ╱ 01
CGT: Biostatisticians are still in high demand ╱ 02
Traditional Chinese Medicine: Compound TCM talents are more popular ╱ 03
Elderly Care Services: Undergraduates are "snatched up", and there is a shortage of elderly care talents ╱ 04
Biotech: Mismatch between supply and demand of BD talents, and a significant return of overseas talents
After a period of wild growth, the industry has ushered in a capital winter, but mature Biotech and start-up Biotech in China are experiencing two extremes.
For more mature Biotech companies, they have abundant cash flow and want to grow into Biopharma or even Big Pharma. As of the first half of 2024, 16 Chinese innovative drug companies have successfully achieved profitability, among which 8 companies, including Baili Tianheng, Kelun Botai, Heyu, and CStone Pharmaceuticals, have turned losses into profits for the first time. In the third quarter report of 2024 released by BeiGene, the "Number One Innovative Drug Company", the operating income increased by 26.9% year-on-year, reaching 7.139 billion yuan.
For start-up Biotech companies, at present, survival is still the main theme of development. In August last year, the China Securities Regulatory Commission issued four announcements, including tightening the IPO and refinancing rhythm, and restricting share reduction, which have increased the pressure on start-up Biotech and investors. Without a clear exit channel, the choices of investment institutions have become more cautious, which has put unprofitable and unlisted Biotech companies under great pressure.
"Struggling to hold on" and "Valuation discount" once became the state of Chinese Biotech this year. In this situation, downsizing and BD (Business Development) have become common practices.
The positions of pharmaceutical BD are mainly divided into R & D-oriented BD and commercial BD. R & D-oriented BD must have a R & D background and an academic background, and is mainly responsible for the early clinical stage or preclinical pipeline; while commercial BD focuses more on business, is mainly responsible for the clinical Phase III or listed products, and needs to have the ability to quickly establish a value model.
However, whether it is a Biotech that was established later and is still in the early stage or a mature Biotech that has achieved profitability, BD is particularly important. At present, the strategic challenges faced by enterprises are becoming more and more prominent. BD talents are even called "strategists in the era of new drug research and development", and strategists have become the highest level of BD.
Being a professional, having a scientific research background, understanding finance and management, and being a master of communication and negotiation are almost the basic requirements for a BD in this industry, which are very comprehensive and integrated.
At present, the overseas expansion of innovative drugs has become an important strategy for pharmaceutical companies to solve the cash flow problem. Especially in developed countries such as the United States, which have a stronger ability to pay for innovative drugs, new income source opportunities can be seen in the market.
Under this trend, License-out is the mainstream choice for domestic pharmaceutical companies to go overseas, and the total transaction amount and quantity are increasing year by year. The so-called License-out means that after the early research and development of local pharmaceutical companies, the project is authorized to other pharmaceutical companies for later clinical research and development and project sales. The advantage of this model is that it can use the resources and experience of external forces such as international giant pharmaceutical companies and investment institutions to achieve the overseas promotion and commercialization of products and shorten the market penetration cycle. In addition to License-out, other overseas business models also include independent overseas expansion and cooperative overseas expansion.
Because of this, among the scarce BD talents, Biotech BD heads who have successfully completed License-out transactions are highly sought after in the talent market.
"Workplace Bonus" (ID: ZhiChangHongLi)
Although the winter has not yet ended, the talent activity of positions such as Medical Representative, Biopharmaceuticals and Engineering, Drug Production and Quality Management is still relatively high. Positions such as Medical Investment Promotion, Sales Representative, Medical Representative, and Clinical Quality Management still have a large demand.
In addition, the return of overseas talents is obvious, especially highly educated talents with work experience are more popular. Shanghai, Beijing, Suzhou, Chengdu, Guangzhou and other cities have also become the regions with the largest inflow of talents in the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry.
With the transfer of the biomedical industry, the demand for talents in the central and western regions such as Chengdu, Wuhan, and Changsha is increasing day by day.
CGT: Biostatisticians are still in high demand
As an emerging field, the core of CGT (Cell and Gene Therapy) technology lies in using cell and gene materials to combat various diseases. This is also a field that requires the integration of different professional backgrounds, and at least talents in various aspects such as pharmacology, toxicology, and clinical are needed to do it well.
Cell and gene therapy enterprises not only need to be able to quickly advance the project to the clinical stage that meets regulatory requirements like other drug research and development enterprises, but also their manufacturing process and scale-up production may directly determine the success or failure of the product.
Public data shows that in the first three quarters of 2024, there were more than 60 domestic CGT financing enterprises, including Dingcheng Peptide Source, Saiqiao Bio, Kanglin Bio, Laimang Bio, Zhongsheng Siyuan Bio, Kejun Pharma, and Saiyun Bio. In the current overall environment of sluggishness and investors' tendency to be conservative, this is already a remarkable performance.
In the field of treatment, oncology is the main research field of cell and gene therapy, but more and more studies are also expanding to other fields, such as autoimmune diseases, musculoskeletal diseases, cardiovascular diseases, etc. According to the "2024 Global Cell and Gene Therapy Market Report" released by BCC, the valuation of this market was $5.8 billion in 2022, and it is expected to grow to $23.33 billion by 2028, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.4%.
From the laboratory to the clinic, CGT is the youngest field in the Chinese biomedical field and the closest to international standards, and it is currently in a parallel-running state with the United States. To achieve a leading position on the basis of parallel running, the key lies in original innovation, not just relying on imitation, and must have independent intellectual property rights.
A large number of talents are needed behind this. Under the background of the overall pressure in the industry, the early research stage still needs high-level management talents and technical experts; the CMC and production stage urgently needs positions such as CMC Head and Innovative Preparation Development; the clinical stage maintains a high degree of attention to positions such as Biostatistical Scientist, Clinical Pharmacology and Quantitative Pharmacology.
In the recruitment requirements of a technician in a domestic cell and gene therapy research center, there are two clear requirements:
First, obtain a master's degree or above in a biology or biomedical-related major, such as biology, medicine, pharmacy, etc.;
Second, be familiar with experimental techniques such as molecular/cellular biology, cell culture, flow cytometry, and mouse operation.
Similar to Biotech, at present, the salary growth in the industry is tending to be flat. A large number of candidates choose to change jobs to foreign-funded or domestic large platforms with the same salary or a lower salary in order to achieve stable employment. From the perspective of salary increase after job hopping, most are concentrated between 10% and 30%, while the demand and budget for senior positions have significantly weakened.
Traditional Chinese Medicine: Compound TCM talents are more popular
At present, the golden development period of the traditional Chinese medicine industry is already evident. Recently, in the 2024 National Medical Insurance Negotiation, Chinese patent medicines have achieved significant results. A total of 11 Chinese patent medicines have successfully negotiated or bid, indicating the encouragement of all parties for the traditional Chinese medicine industry (especially the research and development of traditional Chinese medicine).
Sorting out the traditional Chinese medicine industry chain, the upstream mainly includes the supply of Chinese medicinal materials, including the early mineral collection, animal breeding, and Chinese medicinal material planting; the midstream includes the processing of Chinese herbal slices and Chinese patent medicines; the downstream is widely used in hospitals, pharmacies, e-commerce, etc.
"Workplace Bonus" (ID: ZhiChangHongLi)
Since 2021, the country has continuously issued relevant policies to accelerate the characteristic development of traditional Chinese medicine and the revitalization of traditional Chinese medicine. The aging population has brought about an increase in the demand for traditional Chinese medicine. Traditional Chinese medicine assets have also ushered in a Mergers and Acquisitions Wave. Many traditional Chinese medicine companies develop both drugs and consumer products. For example, Yunnan Baiyao produces drugs and toothpaste; Dong'e Ejiao produces drugs, pastries, and can also jointly produce milk tea with other brands.
From the regional distribution of listed companies in the traditional Chinese medicine industry, the number of listed enterprises in the traditional Chinese medicine industry in Guangdong and Hunan is the largest. In Guangdong, there are Baiyunshan, China Resources Sanjiu, Xiangxue Pharmaceutical, Zhongsheng Pharmaceutical, etc.; in Hunan, there are Qianjin Pharmaceutical, Qidi Pharmaceutical, Jiuzhitang, Lao Bai Xing Pharmacy and other enterprises. In addition, the number of listed enterprises in Zhejiang, Yunnan, Shandong and other places is also relatively large. In Zhejiang Province, there are Shouxian Gu, Conba and other enterprises, and in Yunnan, there are Kunming Pharmaceutical Group, Yunnan Baiyao, etc.
China Resources Sanjiu has performed well. After the consolidation of Kunming Pharmaceutical Group, the profitability of China Resources Sanjiu has further improved. The financial report of Pien Tze Huang for the first three quarters of 2024 shows that the company achieved an operating income of 8.45 billion yuan, an increase of 11.19% year-on-year. It is reported that while laying out the domestic market, Pien Tze Huang is also exploring going overseas and contacting potential partners of Pien Tze Huang in Cambodia, Vietnam, Singapore, Argentina and other countries and regions. This urgently requires compound talents who master both practical TCM techniques and foreign languages.
At present, There are already more than one million TCM talents, but it is still far from enough. Most of them are concentrated in large hospitals in cities, but in grassroots medical institutions, such as township health centers and community health service centers, TCM talents are still very scarce.
With the arrival of the silver-haired era, more and more people pay attention to health preservation and health care. Consumers pay more attention to the professionalism and effectiveness of services. TCM talents with solid TCM theoretical knowledge and proficient operational skills are more favored.
Elderly Care Services: Undergraduates are "snatched up", and there is a shortage of elderly care talents
In December this year, the topic of "The first batch of elderly care undergraduates being frantically snatched up" has sparked heated discussions among netizens. Health and wellness service talents closely related to the elderly care industry have also begun to become the "highly sought-after" in the market.
According to statistics, the elderly population aged 60 and above in China has exceeded 250 million, accounting for nearly 18% of the total population, and this proportion is still rising. It is estimated that by 2050, the elderly population in China will reach 480 million.
14 provinces including Hainan, Henan, Heilongjiang have long required promoting the development of the silver-haired economy. Fujian proposed to cultivate more silver-haired economy enterprises. Jiangsu supports the development of the health and wellness industry. Shanghai, Guangdong, Shandong encourage the development of elderly products such as life care, health and wellness recuperation. Sichuan requires increasing the supply of elderly care service products in response to the problem of population aging.
The investment enthusiasm in the elderly care industry continues to rise. Currently, various places encourage qualified localities to explore the construction of "Smart Elderly Care Homes", equipped with intelligent devices such as life care, rehabilitation care, health management, remote security, and activity early warning. Support the development of community "Virtual Elderly Care Homes" to provide online and offline elderly care services for the elderly at home.
In China's elderly care and nursing, there has always been a problem of shortage of talents and insufficient quantity. The elderly care service industry needs more highly educated and high-quality talents.
This year, the Ministry of Education agreed to establish the Civil Affairs Vocational University based on Beijing College of Social Administration. Civil Affairs Vocational University is the only undergraduate-level institution directly under the Ministry of Civil Affairs and also the first undergraduate-level institution in the field of civil affairs in China. It belongs to the orientation of a vocational undergraduate university. The first batch of vocational undergraduate majors set up by this school includes the Smart Health and Elderly Care Management major.
As early as October 2019, the Ministry of Education and other seven departments jointly issued a document, encouraging and guiding ordinary undergraduate colleges and universities to set up elderly care-related majors such as home economics and geriatric medicine. In September 2020, Shanghai University of Engineering Science and Shandong Women's University became the first batch of undergraduate colleges and universities in the country to set up the Elderly Care Service Management major and recruit students in the same year.