Database Heroes

What's in a pill? A lot of time, effort and technical know-how. If you think of drug research and development at all, you probably think of the scientists who create a drug or the sales professionals who raise awareness of it when it's ready for release. But there's an underground of IT professionals who collect, manage and maintain the information related to the drug product. They are the unsung heroes of the pharmaceutical industry: the database administrators (DBAs).

Not exactly the first person you thought of when you popped that pill into your mouth this morning? It's understandable. Most people don't even know what DBAs do, but without them, the pharmaceutical and biotech world might well come to a grinding halt. They are the IT professionals in pharmaceutical and biotech organizations who support functions from research and development to critical auditing and compliance. Often responsible for defining, implementing, monitoring and supporting systems-level hardware as well as software infrastructures, they are expected to understand a variety of pharmaceutical processes and document multiple processes and activities in the organization.

High-level database architecture and administration skills are crucial in these roles. As perhaps one of the most highly regulated industries in the United States, an immense level of accountability and transparency is required in every step of the pharmaceutical process. No matter what product is produced, DBAs must have an intimate knowledge of the pharmaceutical industry along with the skills to adapt large-scale data warehouses to multiple functionalities within the organization. Plus, DBAs must be proficient in auditing and compliance to ensure that the organization stays in line with governmental regulations.

It's a tough job, and the skills to administer large-scale database architecture projects are growing in demand. Regardless of economic fallout, the trend toward greater accountability and transparency means these skills will continue to be valuable.

To learn about organizations that can use your DBA skills, contact Vinay Singh, biotech staffing specialist at The Connors Group, at 201-537-0032 or by email at vinay@theconnorsgroup.com.