Beyond Traditional RPO: How DRO Supports Life Sciences Hiring
28 Oct, 2025
When a Life Sciences company prepares for a product launch or major expansion, it may need to hire dozens of people across functions and territories in a short period. Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) can provide the extra capacity and coordination to manage that volume. But hiring specialized talent also requires a way to reach experienced professionals who may never apply to a job posting.
BEC Search developed Direct Recruiting Outsourcing® (DRO) as a modernized version of RPO for Life Sciences and healthcare organizations. DRO combines the scale and organized process companies expect from an outsourced recruiting team with direct-target recruiting for each role. It is designed for companies that need to build a team, meet a timeline, and get the hiring decisions right.
Why Does Life Sciences Hiring Need More Than Recruiting Capacity?
A commercial launch can require Sales Leaders, Sales Representatives, Market Access and Reimbursement professionals, Patient Services teams, Medical Science Liaisons, and Commercial Operations talent. These roles support the same organizational goal, but they call for different backgrounds, candidate networks, and conversations.
An RPO provider may be well equipped to manage applications, interviews, and hiring activity at scale. When the available applicant pool does not contain enough people with the required experience, the recruiting plan must also include direct outreach. That is where the choice of partner and sourcing approach matters.
For a company evaluating Life Sciences RPO support, the useful question is: How will this team find the right candidates for our most specialized roles while keeping the full hiring project on track?
How BEC’s DRO Model Builds on RPO
DRO provides coordinated support for a large hiring initiative. BEC works with internal Talent Acquisition and hiring leaders to review priorities and timelines, advise on the recruiting approach, and agree on how to communicate progress. Then our recruiters identify and directly engage professionals whose experience fits each role, including people who are not actively seeking a new position.
The process includes:
- Strategy and hiring plan. We meet with Talent Acquisition and hiring leaders to review the roles, goals, and timelines, then help determine hiring priorities and agree on a cadence for updates.
- Direct-target recruiting. Our Life Sciences recruiters identify relevant companies and candidate backgrounds, then approach qualified professionals for each opportunity.
- Candidate assessment and interviews. We evaluate experience and alignment, present candidates with context, and coordinate interviews or hiring events.
- Offer and start-date support. We help manage candidate communication and offer discussions, then follow up through the transition to start date.
RPO and DRO: What Should You Compare?
RPO providers offer different services and sourcing methods. When evaluating a partner, ask how its proposed team will handle the needs of your specific project.
| Ask an RPO provider | BEC’s DRO approach |
|---|---|
| How will you find qualified people who are not applying to jobs? | We use direct-target recruiting to identify and engage experienced Life Sciences professionals beyond the applicant pool. |
| Who will recruit for our roles, and what Life Sciences experience do they bring? | Highly experienced Life Sciences recruiters work on the searches, with an understanding of the roles, therapeutic areas, and candidate markets involved. |
| Can you recruit across the functions our organization needs? | BEC supports hiring across Commercial, Medical Affairs, Market Access, Reimbursement, Patient Services, and Leadership through one coordinated partnership. |
| How will you work with our Talent Acquisition team and hiring leaders? | We work as an extension of the internal team, review priorities together, share progress, and stay engaged with candidates through their start dates. |
| What comparable results can you share? | We can share results from several Life Sciences team builds. One rare disease partnership involved 135 hires across multiple functions, with a reported 59-day time to fill for roles assigned in stages. |
DRO brings direct recruiting into a coordinated outsourcing model. It can support the volume of a large build while giving specialized positions a focused search strategy.
When Is DRO a Good Fit?
DRO is especially useful when hiring volume and specialization rise together. That may include a first commercial launch, a national sales expansion, a rare disease team build, or simultaneous hiring across Commercial, Market Access, Field Reimbursement, Patient Services, and Medical Affairs.
For example, a company preparing to launch a rare disease therapy may need several teams in place within the same period. A shared project plan keeps leaders aligned on timing and decisions. Direct recruiting helps each function reach professionals with the experience needed for its particular work.
A 135-Hire Rare Disease Team Build
In one rare disease partnership, BEC filled 135 roles across Commercial, Medical Affairs, Market Access and Reimbursement, Patient Education, and Leadership. The roles were assigned to BEC at different points during the engagement; BEC’s reported time to fill across the build was 59 days. The hires included Sales Representatives, Medical Science Liaisons, Strategic Account Managers, Field Reimbursement Managers, Patient Education Liaisons, and regional and national leaders.
Through DRO, BEC coordinated hiring across functions and territories while directly recruiting for the experience each role required. The project shows how one recruiting partnership can support a large, cross-functional Life Sciences expansion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is DRO a form of RPO?
Yes. BEC’s Direct Recruiting Outsourcing® is a modernized approach to recruitment process outsourcing, developed for the hiring needs of Life Sciences and healthcare organizations. It combines coordinated recruiting support with direct-target recruiting.
Can DRO support high-volume hiring?
Yes. DRO is designed to coordinate hiring across multiple positions, functions, and geographies. BEC works with the client to plan the overall build while tailoring sourcing and outreach to each role.
What makes DRO different from a traditional RPO engagement?
BEC places direct recruiting at the center of the engagement. Our recruiters identify and approach qualified professionals, including those who are not actively applying, while supporting the planning, interviews, offers, and communication required for a larger hiring project.
How does DRO support an internal Talent Acquisition team?
BEC’s recruiters work as an extension of the internal Talent Acquisition team, adding recruiting capacity and direct-target expertise for specialized roles. We align with the team on priorities, keep hiring leaders informed, coordinate candidate outreach and interviews, and stay engaged through each candidate’s start date.
Planning a Life Sciences Hiring Initiative?
If you are considering RPO for a product launch or expansion, explore BEC’s Direct Recruiting Outsourcing® service or contact our team. We can discuss the roles, timing, and recruiting approach your project requires.
