BioTalent insights report: My race in science

Built with fresh thoughts from some of the most brilliant minds in the industry today, our latest insights report examines the critical role of diversity in the life sciences space, and what the topic means for employees entering the field in the future.

The life sciences thrive on the joy of collaboration between individuals from all walks of life. As an industry devoted to the preservation and progression of a global humanity, the life sciences should not be inhibited by discrimination, underrepresentation, or inequality, yet still, these ever-present factors continue to put up barriers in today’s world.

We created this report to help raise awareness for professionals operating within the life sciences, and to act as a catalyst for inspiring meaningful conversation.

Opening an honest dialogue has never been so important

In 2020, the murder of George Floyd reverberated around the world, manifesting in acts of widespread protest that transcended borders, launching the issue of racial inequality into headlines everywhere.

Allison Jack, Executive Director and Head of PV & Lifecycle Management Quality at a multinational pharmaceutical company, told us that opening up a conversation about race has helped everyone better reflect on what these events meant for the wider world: “Have the conversations. A lot of the time, it’s just about the talking, and not being afraid to talk about race.”

Allison also spoke about the value of initiatives like reverse mentoring, a process that enables junior-level employees of different ethnic backgrounds to educate their senior colleagues on the subject of race, acting as a tool for both employee engagement and leadership development.

There’s a shortage of role models

There are 10,560 white science professors working in the UK, compared to just 65 Black professors (The Guardian, 2021), a major lack of representation relative to the general population.

When we asked Corryn Gardiner, Director of a pharmaceutical consultancy company, if she had a role model on her journey in science, she spoke about the challenge of discovering role models within the space: “What I’ve had to do over the years is educate and inform myself about my history, about the people around me and my industry, so that I can continue to grow as a person.”

Make roles visible: representation at every level

Dipesh Mistry-Dhillon, the Regulatory Affairs Manager at a multinational biotech company, told us: “There is still more to be done in terms of visible diversity. If you see it, you feel more comfortable being part of that organisation.”

Inclusive environments enable authenticity. As a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Dipesh wouldn’t feel comfortable disclosing his sexuality within the work profession until discovering a D&I initiative at one of his previous companies: “Before that, I was always closeted. I never really told anyone about my sexuality.”

A 2021 study of 25,324 scientists in the United States found that LGBTQIA+ STEM professionals were more likely to experience career limitations, including harassment and professional devaluation, than their non-LGBTQIA+ peers.

Allyship is always possible, always vital

The gap between intention and action must be closed. Active allyship is always possible, and always vital — you don’t have to have personally experienced oppression to empathise with another individual.

Yogesh Krishan Davé, Managing Director of a Pharmaceutical Quality Assurance consultancy, told us that operating in a global supply chain market means interacting with individuals and groups from a vast array of different backgrounds, and that the key to optimising growth potential is learning to understand one another: “The people who really understand the business in their local areas are local people, they understand the nuances.”

Brexit caused a resurgence of discriminatory values, particularly within white British culture, with England and Wales witnessing a 15–25% rise in race and religious hate crime following the Brexit vote. Yogesh recalls changing his name to a more “English-sounding” one on his CV in the late 1980s, prompting an influx of interview offers, including one from the same company that had previously rejected his CV under his real name.

Advice for your younger self

We asked our expert interviewees if they had any advice for their younger selves, and the overall consensus was that staying true to yourself often has the best outcome.

“We all belong to the same species. We’re all Homo sapiens, real citizens of this world, and we should live like that, and appreciate people with that respect.” — Yogesh Krishan Davé

If you’d like to listen to our full catalogue of podcasts from the My Race in Science series, along with a host of other shows from the BioTalent team, please subscribe on Spotify.