A common complaint among the various Novartis locations is how little the different divisions work with each other. NIBR is in one building, Vaccines and Diagnostics in another, Infectious disease in another, and there is no communication or cooperation between these groups. Each division will have its own molecular biology department, its own assay development group, its own protein research group, its own QA/QC and its own administration support. And there's no sharing of ideas or work between counterparts in other divisions, even though the science and type of work is the same!! My previous employer (which was acquired by Novartis) functioned differently. While we also had different business units, these existed only administratively. The departments at the company were organized by FUNCTION, and the departments served ALL the different business units. So, our molecular biology department did all the work for Vaccines, for Pharma, for Diagnostics...across all the business units. There was ONE protein biochemistry group that did all the work for the different business units. If one project in Vaccines was completed or canceled, we shifted resources and employees to other projects in Pharma or Diagnostics. No one was laid off. We had very little turnover and the different business units were served by very experienced people. This resulted in the work getting done quickly and milestones were met well ahead of schedule. We put more products in clinical trials than any company and we did it faster. And the best thing was that the various departments were grouped together in one location, so that we could share ideas and help each other solve problems. This created an unbeatable environment for innovation and creativity. The WHOLE of the company was GREATER than the sum of the parts.
At Novartis, the whole of the company is LESS than the sum of the parts. This is not the current management's fault. But current management could fix that. Joe Jimenez, you could fix that. Implement a reorganization program that breaks down these barriers, is more efficient, is more creative and more successful. And there would be no need to lay off people, which to me, is a crime against morality. My previous employer was located very close to your hometown, Joe. You can guess which company that was and you know how successful we were.
At Novartis, the whole of the company is LESS than the sum of the parts. This is not the current management's fault. But current management could fix that. Joe Jimenez, you could fix that. Implement a reorganization program that breaks down these barriers, is more efficient, is more creative and more successful. And there would be no need to lay off people, which to me, is a crime against morality. My previous employer was located very close to your hometown, Joe. You can guess which company that was and you know how successful we were.