​I’m delighted to announce that RBW is heading to the North East, having been formally accepted into The Catalyst, a stunning innovation hub within the £350 million Helix centre in Newcastle and home to the National Innovation Centres for both Ageing and Data. This new hub supports our ambitious expansion strategy and follows swiftly on the back of news of our opening in San Diego.

While the office itself will officially open early in the New Year, the recruitment drive is well underway. We’re hoping to attract around 10 new members of the team between now and January, comprising a couple of experienced recruiters with strong knowledge of the life sciences sector, alongside new members of our Academy, which is open to recent graduates, current recruiters wishing to switch into the life science sector or those wishing to switch careers entirely. If you are ambitious, intelligent and our purpose and ethos resonates with you, we want to hear from you. We expect the office to eventually become home to around 25 people, supported by existing members of the leadership team, who will also be spending time there.

Why Newcastle and why The Catalyst?  

Newcastle’s reputation as a centre of excellence for science and innovation is second to none. According to Invest Newcastle its life science and medical ecosystem is worth around £1.1bn, employing roughly 7,000 professionals in around 200 companies. Its NHS Trust provides more nationally accredited specialist services than any other and has a range of dedicated facilities that support clinical trials from bench to bedside, through phases one to four. As well as an integral part of the Northern Powerhouse, it also boasts a perfect mix of nightlife and countryside and with great transport links, makes it an ideal place to live and work. On a more personal note, it’s also a city I am proud to call my hometown. Having been born there, I left at a young age, before returning to study Medical Microbiology and Immunology at the world-class medical school at Newcastle Uni. I’ve always had close ties through family, but I’ve also seen first-hand the depth and breadth of the talent pool this city provides.

The Catalyst also feels like a natural place for us to base ourselves and we hope to become a valuable part of its impressive ecosystem. Both the National Innovation Centres for Ageing and Data are funded by Newcastle University, in partnership with the UK Government and we relish the opportunity to forge close ties with them and all our neighbours – offering support through access to the talent they need and by becoming a conduit through which they can find potential partners and vendors to help make a success of their ideas in the real world.

In summary, the cultural fit with Newcastle, the fact that the Catalyst reflects our own purpose-driven ambitions, and the state of the art facilitates it provides means we are able to offer recruiters in the North East a new and exciting opportunity to join a truly international Life Science search business, and build a first-class career. Once we’d decided to expand our UK catchment beyond Sussex, nowhere else really came close.

We’ll ensure we keep you updated on developments as we head towards the official opening, but in the meantime, if you want to find out more or better still, apply to become part of the team, please get in contact – we’d love to hear from you.