My time at Sinclair Pharma ended on an extremely negative note. I was put through what was described as a “proposed” head office closure with the “potential” for redundancies, but it didn’t feel genuine. My role – along with many others – was suddenly declared unnecessary, yet the responsibilities didn’t disappear; they were simply redistributed or ignored “until an auditor finds it”. It felt as though the outcome had been decided long before any consultation began.
The consultation meetings came across as formalities rather than meaningful discussions with C-suite members doing their best to fake concern and human emotion. Despite the representatives providing genuine and positive alternatives to redundancy, the efforts of those affected were disregarded in a demeaning and insensitive manner. Communication was vague, inconsistent, and avoided addressing the underlying reasons for the decisions being made. The lack of transparency made the entire process feel engineered rather than driven by clear business needs. Support functions that kept the business running were suddenly devalued, with talk of shifting expertise into local markets without a clear plan.
For a medical device company that promotes strong values and a necessary regulatory transparency, the way the situation was handled didn’t reflect those principles. The experience left me feeling that employee wellbeing and fairness are not remotely considered when the company wants to move people out.
I’m sharing this to help others understand what they may be walking into. Even in my relatively short time with Sinclair, there were four CEOs and constant staffing turnover at all levels, along with abrupt organisational changes that created instability and stress from day one.
Some individuals were asked to remain for a few additional months for a handover of tasks and during this transition period, staff were expected to continue as normal despite the organisation feeling directionless and chaotic. It was and is still difficult to see a coherent strategy or future for Sinclair once authorities and auditors start to scratch the surface.
Overall, I saw very little regard for the people who had invested their time and energy into the company. Office closures continued, and employees were left navigating uncertainty with minimal support.
