The top 4 reasons to take your pharmaceutical career to Germany

2020 was a challenging but triumphant year for Germany’s wider life sciences industry. Just like other countries around the world, Germany went into a strict lockdown, and life sciences companies had to rethink their strategies, operations and even consider M&A deals. Then in the final months of the year, German biotechnology startup, BioNTech, and Pfizer announced to the world that their Covid-19 vaccine was approved and ready for mass vaccination.

Meanwhile, Germany’s pharmaceutical industry continues to maintain its standing as one of the largest in the world - and the strongest in Europe. The latest figures show that the nation's pharma sales hit €46.4 billion in just one year . If that’s not reason enough to consider a career move, here are four more reasons to take your pharmaceutical career to Germany.

The working culture

Being a globally recognised market, it will come as no surprise that Germany’s pharmaceutical industry employs 120,000 people . There are hundreds of pharmaceutical companies spread across the nation, and like in other sectors, the majority of companies have a well-defined hierarchy. Each employee's responsibilities are made clear, and there is a noticeable distinction between roles.

The general ethos in German businesses is, 'If someone says they will something, they will do it'. Just as you can expect your coworkers to deliver on their promises, the same will be expected of you. This creates a cohesive working environment where everyone knows what they need to do to help the business thrive.

While Germany has some of the most progressive gender equality policies, there is still a lot of progress to be made, and the pharmaceutical market must strive for more women in leadership roles .

They are notorious for their drug development

To date, there are countless drugs that have radically changed our lives, such as penicillin and the contraceptive pill. But what about Aspirin? The development of this drug remains one of the greatest turning points in pharmaceutical history. Aspirin was developed by German pharmaceutical giant, Bayer, over 100 years ago, and they now produce around 40,000 metric tonnes of the pain relief drug every year.

Germany has a long history of developing pharma products, and it is known for its high-grade quality. It is home to other German pharma giants - Boehringer Ingelheim and Merck – and home to the regional headquarters of other multinational pharma companies.

They invest heavily in research

The 2020 EU industrial R&D investment scoreboard revealed that the health industries – pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, health providers, medical equipment and medical supplies – accounted for 20.5% of all R&D expenditure in Europe . This cements the pharmaceutical industry’s ranking as one of the most innovative industrial sectors.

Despite the country investing so much money back into the sector, there is still a skills gap in pharma and life sciences . And while this is a problem for the wider industry, this is good news for professionals looking for their next job. By checking what experience employers are in need of, pharmaceutical employees can identify what areas to upskill in.

The future looks bright

CPhI Worldwide is the world’s largest pharmaceutical event, and like the other industry experts, it has identified Germany as the rising star on the European pharmaceutical scene. Their research looked into various factors, including competitiveness, innovation and API manufacturing, but it was the countries growth potential that stood out from the rest. Taking an 11% increase in growth potential into account in 2018, CPhI Worldwide identified the growth potential in 2019/2020 as one to watch.

Join us on the journey to make a positive difference in patient health

If you want to build a career where you can make a difference, then IQVIA could be the place for you. We work with our healthcare clients to help them find better solutions for their patients and have colleagues in over 30 countries around the globe - from Germany and Ukraine to the UK and the USA. Still undecided on which career path to take? Find out which life sciences career will suit your skill set and get a glimpse into the huge array of different roles and subsectors.

Or view our jobs in Germany and browse our mix of roles.