Over the past several years, the conversation around onshoring has moved from theory to action.
Across the United States, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are breaking ground on new manufacturing facilities, expanding domestic supply chains, and rethinking how medicines are produced. From North Carolina to Texas to the Midwest, billions of dollars are being invested in infrastructure designed to bring critical drug development and manufacturing capabilities closer to home.
But while headlines often focus on facilities and capital investment, the real story behind onshoring is talent.
In our work with life sciences organizations across development, technical operations, and manufacturing, we’re seeing that the companies best positioned to capitalize on this shift are those thinking strategically about the people who will design, build, and run these next-generation operations.
And demand for that talent is accelerating.
Why Onshoring Is Happening Now
The current onshoring movement is largely driven by two macro forces.
First, the COVID-19 pandemic exposed vulnerabilities in global supply chains. Governments and healthcare systems realized how dependent they were on foreign manufacturing for critical medicines and raw materials. Ensuring a reliable domestic supply of pharmaceuticals has since become a national priority.
Second, policy and economic incentives are accelerating the trend. Federal and state initiatives are encouraging companies to invest in domestic manufacturing capacity through tax incentives and infrastructure support.
For decades, many organizations relied heavily on lower-cost global manufacturing resources. Today, rather than a full pullback, we’re seeing a more deliberate geographic diversification of manufacturing, with companies aligning production closer to end markets. In practical terms, that often looks like “U.S. for U.S.” and “ex-U.S. for ex-U.S.” strategies.
Even among large organizations making high-profile domestic investments, there is continued, if quieter, expansion outside the U.S. as well. The shift is less about retreating from globalization and more about building resilience through a more balanced, regionally aligned manufacturing footprint.
The result is a wave of investment reshaping the life sciences manufacturing landscape.
A New Generation of Facilities
While onshoring does not fundamentally change the operating model of pharmaceutical and biotech companies, it does influence how new facilities are designed and run.
Building and staffing modern manufacturing plants is extraordinarily expensive. To offset those costs, organizations are increasingly building facilities that are more automated, digitally enabled, and technologically advanced than their predecessors.
Manufacturing operations are becoming:
- More automated
- More data-driven
- More reliant on digital infrastructure
This evolution is reshaping the types of leaders and skillsets companies need to succeed.
The Talent Behind the Onshoring Boom
In practical terms, onshoring has created demand across three major categories of talent.
The Builders
These are the engineers and technical experts responsible for constructing facilities and validating complex manufacturing environments.
They bring expertise in:
- Facility design and engineering
- Commissioning and validation
- Large-scale infrastructure projects
Without these professionals, the onshoring movement cannot get off the ground.
The Digital Operators
Modern manufacturing facilities increasingly rely on advanced digital tools, automation, and AI-driven systems. Organizations therefore need talent capable of implementing and managing these technologies.
This includes professionals who understand:
- MFG Execution Systems – MES
- Digital infrastructure
- Data architecture and analytics
This is also where we are seeing some of the most significant leadership gaps.
The Production Leaders
Once a facility is operational, organizations need experienced leaders to run day-to-day manufacturing processes efficiently, compliantly, and at scale.
These professionals oversee:
- Technical operations
- Manufacturing science and technology (MSAT)
- Supply chain management
- Production teams
- Quality and compliance functions
Quality is becoming increasingly central to modern manufacturing operations. As facilities adopt more advanced digital and AI-enabled systems, Quality organizations are often at the forefront, leveraging new tools to streamline documentation, enhance deviation management, and automate workflows.
This shift is elevating the role of Quality leaders from oversight to strategic enablement, making them critical to both operational efficiency and long-term scalability.
New Manufacturing Hubs Are Emerging
One of the most interesting dynamics of onshoring is where new manufacturing hubs are forming.
Some traditional life sciences regions continue to expand their manufacturing footprint. North Carolina’s Research Triangle, for example, has experienced explosive growth. What began 30 years ago as isolated facilities has evolved into a thriving life sciences ecosystem with significant manufacturing capacity.
But we’re also seeing new hubs emerge in areas that offer advantages such as:
- Lower cost of land and development
- Favorable tax incentives
- Strong workforce development programs
- Proximity to metropolitan areas
States like Texas, Virginia, Indiana, Ohio, and Alabama are seeing significant investment. Even regions near established biotech centers, such as the Philadelphia area, are experiencing new development, including major cell therapy manufacturing projects.
The common thread is strategic location selection that balances cost, infrastructure, and access to talent.
The Talent Mobility Challenge
Despite the geographic expansion, one factor consistently shapes site selection decisions: talent mobility.
One factor is the “mortgage lock-in effect.” Many professionals secured low-interest mortgages during the pandemic and are reluctant to relocate in today’s higher-rate environment.
At the same time, the shift toward remote work has changed employee expectations, even though manufacturing roles inherently require onsite presence.
As a result, companies launching new facilities increasingly prefer local leadership hires.
Local leaders bring more than technical expertise. They often bring followership — the ability to attract trusted colleagues and teams from their networks, helping organizations quickly scale their workforce.
Where Companies Are Most Likely To Misstep
Onshoring initiatives are complex, multi-year projects. Even with careful planning, timelines and costs can shift.
Two areas frequently create challenges for organizations.
Understanding Talent Needs
Hiring conservatively can feel financially prudent during early facility development. But understaffing can delay commissioning, validation, and operational readiness.
Balancing cost management with proactive hiring is critical.
Overlooking Digital Leadership
The most common leadership gap we see today is in the digital and AI-enabled manufacturing space.
Many companies have strong expertise in engineering, supply chain, and operations. But integrating digital infrastructure, from automation systems to advanced analytics, requires a different type of leadership.
Organizations that invest early in digitally savvy leaders will be better positioned to run efficient, future-ready facilities.
A Structural Shift, Not A Short-Term Trend
From our perspective, onshoring is not a temporary response to recent events.
The scale of investment already underway — in facilities, infrastructure, and workforce development — makes it unlikely the trend will reverse.
However, the full impact will take time to materialize.
Building advanced manufacturing facilities takes several years. While investment and hiring are happening now, the steady-state output of domestically produced medicines will likely emerge over the next three to five years.
We are still early in that cycle.
Why Talent Strategy Will Define The Winners
The onshoring movement represents one of the most significant structural shifts in life sciences manufacturing in decades.
But facilities and technology are only part of the equation.
The organizations that succeed will be those that secure the right leadership early — leaders who can build teams, implement advanced technologies, and bring new manufacturing operations online efficiently.
The real competitive advantage won’t be where companies build.
It will be who they hire to lead it.
Partnering For The Future Of Life Sciences Manufacturing
At Klein Hersh, we partner with life sciences organizations to identify and recruit the leaders who build and scale world-class development, technical operations, and manufacturing capabilities.
As the onshoring movement accelerates, the competition for experienced talent will only intensify.
If your organization is evaluating new manufacturing investments, expanding domestic operations, or building leadership teams for next-generation facilities, our team would welcome the opportunity to share insights from across the market.
Connect with Klein Hersh to start the conversation.
