In the Pharmaceutical industry, consultants can be very useful in many areas. They can be used for auditing, implementing new technologies, training, or even setting up new systems and software. However, the extent of consultant work can reach far beyond those boundaries.
If you have a project with a tight time-line, or a short-term project, a consultant can certainly help. Many can dedicate several hours in a day to a specific project. This dedicated focus means that work will be completed in a more thorough manner and this may even shorten the length of time it takes to complete the task.
If your company is starting a new project where training is needed, a consultant can come in and provide training for your specific needs. It’s not always an option to hire a full-time expert in a new technology space, but an experienced consultant may be a viable option. He/She can come in and train existing employees, even working side by side in a laboratory setting to help your company succeed.
Consultants can act as project managers or team leaders when no one else has time. Having acted in this capacity, I noted it was helpful to the client to have someone dedicated to tracking documents and making sure time-lines were being met. They can also lead meetings, communicate with outside vendors or CMO’s, trouble shoot and even investigate issues as needed.
Consultants can do research for your company. Science companies are always looking for articles, researching FDA guidelines and guidances, and trying to stay alert of the newest technologies. Consultants can do this research for your company and will be able to find information you don’t have time to.
For the Pharmaceutical industry, it is helpful to have a consultant already on retainer for overflow work. If a consultant is already trained on SOP’s and has a non-disclosure agreement in place, they can go ahead and work in the GMP environment. This way, your consultant is just a phone call or e-mail away from beginning any work that you have for them. Biotech companies often find themselves in situations where projects grow faster than their headcount. When this is the case a consultant can be very useful. He/She can step in when needed and review release and stability data, help with SOP writing and review any other tasks of this nature.
Consultants are happy to work when a company has work for them, and understand when they do not. Unlike hiring a full time or part time employee, they can be used as needed. There is no commitment from the company to keep going beyond the contracted work. This benefits companies who sporadically have overflow work or short term projects that they do not want to hire for.
As a consultant, I have helped with everything from data review, qualification and validation packages, SOP writing, data trending, auditing, project management, method development, trouble shooting and a plethora of other activities. I have enjoyed all the work I have done as a consultant, and if you do not have consultant and are in need, you would enjoy having one!!