Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | April 4, 2022 | Worcester Business Journal 17 M A N U F A C T U R I N G E X C E L L E N C E A W A R D S F O C U S Bristol Myers Squibb is building a workforce for cutting-edge drugmaking B ristol Myers Squibb is growing. It's in the process of expanding its Devens facility to handle new, cutting-edge manufacturing, including personalized cell therapy for patients with cancer. e work is so specialized employees need a lot of preparation they can't always get in a typical classroom. So the company has been launching new programs with educational institutions around the region to get workers ready. In 2020, Bristol Myers Squibb gave the Massachusetts Biotechnology Education Foundation a grant to help it launch a new life sciences apprenticeship program. Since then, the foundation has been working with the company and other life sciences firms operating in the state to bring in new candidates. Participants study biology, chemistry, and math, as well as soer skills like communica- tion and team management at Northeastern University in Boston. ey spend a year as paid workers at the companies, getting on-the- job training. e program puts a particular emphasis on recruiting people of color, women, veterans, and other groups now underrepresented in the industry. "It's a really interesting program be- cause it provides a win-win situation for the students as well as the employers," said Odile Smith, vice president and head of the Devens manufacturing site for Bristol Myers Squibb. In its first year in 2021, the appren- ticeship program trained 30 people, with nine of them placed with Bristol Myers Squibb. is year, it's growing to 100 apprenticeships. Participants can train either as bioprocessing technicians, running bioreactors to fabricate complex pharmaceuticals, or as clinical trial associates, coordinating testing of new medicines with doctors and laboratories. At the same time, the company has created a learn-and-earn program in partnership with Middlesex Community College in Lowell. e two-year asso- ciate degree program lets students start working at the company while they earn their degree on a flexible schedule. "Last year we hired over 300 people, so of course it's really putting efforts where we see needs," Smith said. e focus on scientific education is particularly important for Bristol Myers Squibb because of the advanced nature of its manufacturing. Its expanding cell therapy manufacturing work involves using a patient's own T cells to engineer therapeutic cells, which are then infused back into the same person. e company also works to help its current bioprocessing technicians gain an advanced understanding of its science. It partnered with Worcester Polytechnic Institute to develop courses. BY LIVIA GERSHON Special to WBJ Bristol Myers Squibb does CAR-T therapy work in Devens Workforce Development Award B r i s t o l M y e r s S q u i b b Location: Devens Industry subsector: Global biopharmaceutical company Founded: 1887 Employees: 32,200 globally, 1,100 locally, 1,550 statewide in Massachusetts Top executive: Chairman & CEO Dr. Giovanni Caforio Primary product: Medicines for patients with serious diseases, including oncology, hematology, immunology, cardiovascular, fibrosis, and neuroscience. W

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