Full Time Equivalent (FTE)

If you’re looking for a dedicated scientist or scientists to exclusively support your project over an allocated period of time, a full time equivalent (FTE) could be just what you’re looking for.

An FTE can offer a number of advantages, especially if your molecule is in the discovery or preclinical phase and you have a clear idea of the deliverables.

One dedicated SME with expertise in your chosen subject, located at one of our six sites for your chosen time period.

If you’re discovering gaps in your internal resource, whether that’s equipment, capacity, expertise or experience, a Sterling FTE can support your project’s success.

A scientific resource to support your project’s needs, within a discipline you require.

A Sterling FTE allows you to tap into external expertise, capacity and specialist equipment, whenever you need it, allowing you to achieve your goals more quickly.

Predefined task allocation, working as a partner with the customer.

Your FTE will become an extension of your team, communicating with them directly  enables flexibility and responsiveness to project changes. A collaborative approach fosters idea exchange, as well as openness and honesty, even when hurdles arise. Your Sterling FTE works exclusively on your project, making it as important to them as it is to you. They take ownership and accountability for the work that they do on your behalf, and care about your project’s outcome as much as you do.

Removes complexity and time inefficiencies associated with engaging in new proposal discussions or change orders for every piece of work.

A Sterling FTE guarantees an agreed level of resource, providing peace of mind that your project is taking priority and continuing to progress, regardless of other ongoing projects within your business. It’s a dedicated resource that has defined project goals, which align with your own, to prioritise your results. It can provide you with the flexibility to change direction quickly, investigate different approaches, take risks, “fail fast” and move onto the next molecule without the need to engage in additional paperwork. An FTE can offer a seamless transition into your next phase of work.

If you feel that your project might benefit from more than one scientist, one discipline and one site, Sterling’s Extended Bench™ model provides you with access to our global network of scientists, expertise and facilities whenever and wherever you might need it. Benefits of the model include allowing activities to run across different Sterling facilities, utilising various experts in parallel, accelerating your time to market. Does this sound like a better fit? Click here to explore Extended Bench™ further.

A full time equivalent (FTE) agreement is when a customer hires a dedicated scientist for an allocated time period, to work exclusively on an area of their project. This is different to a fee for service (FFS) arrangement, which is an agreed price for a delivered product.

An FTE can benefit your pharmaceutical project if you are seeking dedicated scientific resource to support you in achieving your deliverables.

A pharma FTE can provide you with additional outsourced scientific resource when you need it, and when you might not have the equipment, capacity, resource or expertise in house. A Sterling FTE offers advantages like expertise, flexibility, collaboration and speed, as outlined on our FTE page.

An FTE is a single dedicated resource, within one discipline at one location which is agreed upon at the commencement of the partnership. An FTE is best suited for those who have predefined tasks and need additional resource to support their completion.

Extended Bench™ offers flexible access to multiple experts across various disciplines and Sterling facilities, as and when it is needed during the lifetime of the partnership. Extended Bench™ is best suited for dynamic, evolving projects.

Click to see a full breakdown and comparison of our dedicated scientist models.