Novartis heads west to be the best

Whilst in isolation I am catching up on some reading. In doing so I came across an amazing interview with the UK Managing Director of Novartis, Haseeb Ahmed.  In it, he discusses the company’s recent UK HQ relocation from Surrey to White City Place in West London. It is a perfect example of two factors central to our latest research on the UK Life Sciences Sector; first, how the transformation of this dynamic sector is driving occupancy decisions, and second, the attractiveness of knowledge clusters to life science companies. 

Novartis is rapidly changing shape.  It is undergoing a transformation from a conventional pharma company to, in the words of Mr Ahmed, “a leading research intensive medicines company powered by advanced therapy platforms and data science”.  Operationally this means a new business structure, fresh ways of working, revised talent requirements and cultural change. The new workplace at White City will be a crucial element in this  business transformation agenda.  

Mr Ahmed goes on to explain how the company is using artificial intelligence (AI) and data science to fuel organisational transformation. This shift is so fundamental that their CEO goes as far as to describe the business as a data science company. An example of this in practice is Novartis’ recent collaboration with Microsoft to bolster their AI capabilities.  

This is significant in the context of London.  London is a global hub for AI. It is home to more than double the amount of AI companies than those in Paris and Berlin combined. The new location puts them at the very heart of this AI ecosystem. To ensure this, the new workplace at White City is able to accommodate external health tech start-ups in order to incubate new ideas.  

The relocation will also help the company attract and retain specialist talent. The White City Place Campus is replete with the essentials of place that are so crucial to the attraction and retention of talent, be that places to gather, unwind, eat or drink.   A regular, curated events programme, including health & fitness classes and the summer big screen, add to this sense of place. A games room is also available year round for occupiers of the scheme. 

One of the key aspects of Novartis’s cultural change is “unbossed”. In essence, this is about allowing employees at all levels to contribute to decision making by removing hierarchy, encouraging staff to come up with new ideas, fully apply their talent and be curious. This is reflected in the workspace in the Westworks building, which  provide a range of workplace settings and collaborative workspaces that serve to cultivate and embed such behaviours. 

Finally, Novartis’ transition to a research intensive medicines company is only achievable via open innovation. This is the key appeal of knowledge clusters like White City Place which place life sciences occupiers closer to academia, healthcare providers and start-ups driving R&D forward.  Indeed, in short order, the development has cemented itself as a crucial part of the west London life sciences cluster. In addition to Novartis, it has attracted other life sciences occupiers including Autolus, Gamma Delta and Synthace. Of particular benefit has been the sites adjacency to Imperial College’s new campus, which includes the molecular science research hub (hosting a team of nearly 800 scientists, clinicians, engineers and business partners) and Scale Space (specifically designed to help start-ups grow). In addition, the development is minutes from Hammersmith Hospital, world-renowned for its kidney and heart treatments and a key location for Imperial College medical research. As Mr Ahmed notes in relation to fuelling closer relations with the NHS and regulators, “It’s a lot easier to partner if you’re in the same town”. 

Novartis is a perfect example of how the forces of change in the UK life sciences sector are driving occupancy decisions.  But they are unlikely to be an isolated case. The life sciences company of today will not be the same in five years’ time. They will need to be more agile, focused and tech-led. They will be networked enterprises working collaboratively within a broad ecosystem to jointly solve problems and develop the next big breakthrough. They will be a fundamentally different proposition.  They will require fundamentally different real estate solutions.

Further reading:

Case study on White City Place, featured in our latest London report. https://www.knightfrank.co.uk/research/london-report/2020-02-05-case-study-go-west-to-white-city

Interview featured in the Evening Standard.

https://www.standard.co.uk/business/interview-novartis-haseeb-ahmad-working-with-the-nhs-will-develop-more-cures-than-we-have-ever-seen-a4375916.html