CSL chief blames work-from-home culture for Melbourne lab failures
Australia's largest biotech firm has joined a growing chorus of business leaders slamming a growing work-from-home culture amid plummeting productivity.
The chairman of biotech giant CSL has blamed Victoria’s deeply ingrained working-from-home culture as partly contributing to research and development failures at its Melbourne laboratories.
Chairman Brian McNamee revealed there was “something fundamentally wrong” with how the global company functions in the state, highlighting the inability of its Melbourne-based research team to turn scientific breakthroughs into medical treatments for patients.
It follows Premier Jacinta Allan’s recent announcement of plans to enshrine the right to work from home two days a week – a move that has garnered fierce backlash from business leaders who warn it would reinforce Victoria’s image as “anti-business.”
The state’s business climate has recently come under scrutiny, amid rising payroll and property taxes, the enduring economic fallout from pandemic lockdowns, and a struggling Melbourne CBD marked by diminished foot traffic.
“A lot of our inability to translate early stage molecular targets into the clinic and through the clinic comes from our Australian research group, so there is something fundamentally wrong with how we are operating here in Victoria,” Mr McNamee told The Australian Financial Review.
The Chairman said working-from-home was “certainly a factor but not the only factor”.
“It is hard to put your finger on why but productivity from an innovation and CSL perspective here in Victoria has not been good,” he said.
A CSL spokesman told News Corp that collaboration was “one of (the company’s) core values”.
“At CSL, we believe in-person working is critical for innovation, whether that’s in the office or the lab,” he said.
“We want vibrant, collaborative work environments across all our sites and have launched a push to get people back working together.”
They also added that CSL’s breakthrough new treatment for hereditary angioedema, a rare, potentially life-threatening genetic disorder, called Andembry, was developed in Melbourne labs.
CSL, known for specialising in bloods, vaccines and plasma products, previously announced last week its decision to slash about 3000 staff, or about 15 per cent, after experiencing setbacks in major therapies and trials last year.
In an announcement on the ASX, the company noted changing business conditions put pressure on it to restructure its operations.
It outlined an approach to “driving growth, simplification and shareholder returns” which includes cost-cutting measures and merging its blood plasma and iron deficiency departments.
A CSL spokesman said the company announced changes to the way they conduct research and development to “simplify (their) operating model and become more efficient at delivering the best programs faster”.
“This includes consolidating our research and development operations around global biotech hubs, including Melbourne, where CSL can have the most impact and partner on exciting innovation,” he said.
Mr McNamee’s comments come after the boss of plumbing giant, Reece, said the seismic shift towards working-from-home had stifled innovation and flushed profits for the foreseeable future – particularly in its home city of Melbourne.
The company revealed it had cut dividends and that FY25 profit had fallen 24 per cent to $317m – lower than the $325.1m expected – sending its share price down to 2020 levels.
Chief executive and chairman Peter Wilson said Reece was weathering “a perfect storm”, that laid bare the ongoing toll of the pandemic on Victorian businesses.
“Through a huge period of lockdown, we are really struggling to uncouple innovation and productivity. We have struggled to get people to come into the office,” he said.
“If we, in the next period, can’t come to grips with that, then we will be pivoting and everything will be on the table.”
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