Different disciplines
Soon-Shiong says one of the best ways to make criticism constructive is to approach it through different angles.He believes in bringing different perspectives to the table when reviewing a new idea. He calls the groups a “convergent of multidisciplines,” and says that you should strive to build a work force that has diverse backgrounds,with each person bringing something unique to the larger organization.
“You need smart people with diverse backgrounds,” he says. “For instance, we have regulatory scientists with very extensive clinical trial management backgrounds and regulatory scientists with global experience. Our basic scientists extend between mathematicians, computations scientists and physicists.”
The need for multiple perspectives is something Soon-Shiong has learned through his own professional experiences.
“I have had a 360-degree exposure to my industry,” he says. “I was a surgeon at UCLA and understood the needs ofpatients with life-threatening diseases. I was a basic scientist and started working with nanoparticles and stem cells veryearly on in my career. Then, I’ve also been exposed to the commercial side, where I’ve been involved in building a pharmaceutical company and directly involved with the manufacturing process and all the challenges that go with it.”
He says if you want your organization to have a wide view on innovation that encompasses multiple perspectives andhave leadership that seeks multiple sources of input on creative projects, you need to create an organization that does-n’t have layer upon layer of management hierarchy.
At Abraxis, Soon-Shiong has structured an organization in which he can reach down several levels to address lower-rung employees, and those employees can address him.
It goes back to having accessible management and tirelessly communicating an open-door policy. But it gets more difficult the larger your company gets.
Abraxis has ex
pe
rienced rapid growth in recent years. In 1996, the company employed fewer than 50 people. By 1998,that had sprouted to 500, and by 2006 had increased to just over 2,000. “Keeping a flat organization is certainly a challenge as you grow bigger,” he says. “It’s easy when you are 500 people,and it might still be relatively easy when you are at 2,000. But as you start growing to 5,000 or 10,000, it has to beaddressed from the top down on a daily basis.”
As you grow, keeping lines of communication open and your messages consistent becomes more and more important.There is no secret to it, Soon-Shiong says, other than to make sure you and your senior management team remain vigilant about communication and actively seek feedback from all areas of your company.