Meet our employees
Be inspired by the people at Ferring who are leading with science to make a difference to lives.
We are Ferring
We are proud of who we are, what we do, and how we do it.
Our business success is largely attributable to the knowledge, skills and passion of our employees – and to the collaborations and partnerships we forge.
Driving Ferring forward are our dedicated scientists and their ability to innovate and their willingness to embrace continuous professional and self-development. Our philosophy of putting people first is reflected in our branding.
It underlines that our employees are our greatest asset.
Underpinning our drug discovery and early clinical development work is all of this:
- An entrepreneurial mindset for turning ideas into reality
- A diverse employee structure based upon honest and trustworthy relationships
- A supportive company culture to empower us to achieve excellence together
But what is most important to us? It’s this: our passion for making a difference to people’s health and quality of life.
Inspirational Ferring employees
Meet some of our employees and explore the Ferring culture

Role: Research Scientist – Bioanalysis
Based: Copenhagen, Denmark
Joined Ferring: 2008
Career path: 2003 – 2008: Biotechnology, Molecular Biotechnology, MS
“Each new challenge – be it logistical or scientific – that comes with each new project is what inspires me.”
What makes Ferring special to you?
Ferring is a middle-sized pharma company where you really feel that your work makes a difference – probably more so than you would feel in a much larger company.
I’m part of several cross-functional teams in different projects ranging from discovery to clinical phase, with members from all over the world, all with different backgrounds and expertise.
For me, the philosophy “People come first at Ferring” really holds true. There’s a real team spirit within the company, where we support each other, both within my own department, and across the different functions.
What has been your biggest challenge so far?
That would be the establishing of our internal processes and the scientific knowledge for immunogenicity testing of biologics in-house on joining in 2008.
This field was new to us and also rather new to the entire pharmaceutical industry at the time.
Guidance documents from regulatory agencies didn’t exist then but we’ve now been supporting both non-clinical and clinical studies with immunogenicity data for over 12 years.
Right now, I’m working on a new and exciting challenge related to the new Global Drug Discovery organization to provide bioanalytical support to projects at a much earlier stage. One of the changes that’s being implemented soon is the decommissioning of the GLP license to free up resources and increase flexibility so that we can support our Discovery projects better.
What drives you?
Each new challenge that comes with each new project! It keeps the work interesting and varied.
It could be logistical challenges for sample shipments in the later clinical trials to more scientific challenges due to the features of a new analyte that we have no previous experience of.
Or it could be validating a new computerized system to establish the optimal process for ensuring data integrity.
The urge to overcome challenges and then become a little wiser in the process is a big driver for me.
How have you grown as a scientist at Ferring?
Before I joined Ferring, all in-house work within the Department of Bioanalysis was focused on small molecules and peptides. Large molecule projects were outsourced. When I started, I was part of a team that introduced ligand-binding assays to our in-house portfolio. In the beginning, I was responsible for the development of most of our bioanalytical methods that supported the large molecule projects.
Latterly my focus has shifted more towards responsibility for bioanalysis from explorative non-clinical studies to clinical phase III trials.
During my years at Ferring, I’ve also developed my knowledge of computerized systems and I’m responsible for all the systems within the department used for the ligand-binding and cell-based assays.
What is wonderful is that Ferring provides so many possibilities to develop yourself within the company, both in terms of internal courses and programs, but also by encouraging you to attend external courses, conferences and symposiums.

Name: Walter
Role: Scientist, Discovery Chemistry
Based: San Diego, US
Joined Ferring: 2019
Career path: 2016 – 2019: Postdoctoral Fellow, Harvard Medical School
“Coming to work and knowing that today could be the day that a new compound could become the tractable lead molecule to solve a need in a potential disease that I’m working on is what inspires me.”
What makes Ferring special to you?
Ferring does a great job on leading by its philosophy “People come first”.
They focus highly on personal and professional development, work-life balance, and performing high quality science.
It’s telling that I feel as comfortable talking to my junior peers as I do to my senior colleagues.
I’d say it’s more of a horizontal-led culture than a vertical one with hierarchies.
Ferring encourages collaboration, transparency, and scientific excellence, without losing sight that the ultimate goal is to make new medicines for patients.
What are you working on?
I currently work in two main projects.
The first is focused on Reproductive Medicine and Maternal Health. I’m the chemist who leads the CRO efforts into making new analogues in our lead series to delay spontaneous preterm labor to improve neonatal outcome.
The second involves the field of Inflammatory Bowel Disease. I’m working on identifying a lead series from a hit-to-lead screening effort and managing the CRO efforts there as well.
What inspires you?
From an early age, I was always mesmerized by how different tablets or pills that looked the same could treat different diseases!
As I learned that the basis for medicines is molecular entities, I became enthralled with understanding molecular design.
My inspiration comes from knowing the potential that tablet or pill has for improving people’s quality of life.
What is the best part of your job?
That, by far, is coming to work in the knowledge that I will be learning something new from my colleagues and that today could be the day that a new compound or idea could become the tractable lead molecule to solve a need in a potential disease that I’m working on.

Role: Principal Scientist – Biotherapeutic Screening
Based: Copenhagen
Joined Ferring: 2021
Career path: 2016 – 2021 Specialist Scientist, Novo Nordisk
“Designing novel antibodies and using screening assays to identify the best future therapeutic antibodies for future medicines for me is totally rewarding on both a personal and professional level.”
What makes Ferring special to you?
Working at Ferring is a gift to me as a scientist. It’s all about developing new medicines that, on all parameters, are significantly better than existing ones. Knowing that these medicines will improve the lives of patients is what drives me within drug discovery.
What is it like to work in Discovery Biotherapeutics?
Being empowered to work closely together with the Discovery Biology team on research projects in both designing novel antibodies and using screening assays to identify the best future therapeutic antibodies for future medicines is so rewarding, on both a personal and professional level.
What drives you?
Working with new challenges and breaking new ground is what drives my curiosity. I love to try new technologies, both in the laboratory and in silico. Having the potential to combine wet-lab data with machine learning data is exciting and fascinating in equal measure.
What is it like to work in a global drug discovery organization?
I thrive in a global setting. I’ve always welcomed diversity – and people with different backgrounds, skills and opinions have built Ferring from the bottom up.

Role: Senior Scientist, Discovery Biotherapeutics
Based: Be’er Tuvia, Israel
Joined Ferring: 2016
Career path: 2018 – 2021: Senior Scientist, Protein Engineering | 2016 – 2018: Research Scientist, Manufacturing Technology Support
“The understanding that I’m in a place that can help me achieve my goal – to contribute to the development of new medications for the people who need them – keeps me motivated.”
What makes Ferring special to you?
I joined Ferring in 2016 immediately after I graduated from my PhD studies. Ferring has taught me everything I know about the pharmaceutical industry and it’s a really good school.
What is it like to work in a global research organization?
I belong to a team composed of people from several countries. It’s always interesting and a learning experience to hear what my teammates have to say, professionally and personally. It’s enriching to have so many people that you can learn from and consult with.
What drives you?
I think that every scientist dreams of making a difference. The understanding that I’m in a place that can help me achieve my goal – to contribute to the development of new medications for the people who need them – keeps me motivated.
How was the switch from academia to Ferring for you?
I was a bit concerned at first. I knew that in the industry there is less flexibility than in academia. However, I soon learned that the work within the industry is not necessarily less flexible and it definitely grounds you and focuses you toward the applicable science.

Role: Associate Director, Bioinformatics
Based: San Diego
Joined Ferring: 2021
Career path: 2019 – 2021: Director, Bioinformatics at Sanford Burham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute | 2015 – 2019: Senior Scientist, Computational Biology at Amgen | 2012 – 2015: Postdoctoral Associate, Yale University
“We scientists at FRI are always science-based, with keen eyes at the forefront of therapeutic development, and dedicated to developing novel, efficient therapies for patients.”
What makes Ferring special to you?
As a world leader in reproductive science, Ferring has provided therapeutic solutions to millions of patients in the world. It brings hope to patients who want to start a family and long to be parents. I’m proud to be part of the drug development team and to change patients’ lives and discover new therapeutic targets for infertility, gastrointestinal disorders, and other therapeutic areas affecting human health.
What are you working on?
I’m part of the Computational Biology and Data Science team at Ferring, specializing in providing bioinformatics solutions for therapeutic target discovery, biomarker identification, toxicogenomics, and drug mechanism of action profiling.
We use cutting-edge genomics technologies to study gene expression, regulation, and interaction at the whole genome or transcriptome levels and deeply into single cells from the different tissues.
We are developing and applying statistical and machine learning models to decipher the large-scale data sets, incorporate patient metadata, and provide insights for target biology. To address the high computational needs, we have fully used the Amazon Web Service (AWS) Cloud Computing platform to establish a high-performance computing environment and machine learning algorithms to assist drug development.
What inspires you?
The people at Ferring. Drug discovery is a challenging task and needs an efficient team of experts from different disciplines. It is my honor and pleasure to work with so many talented, hardworking, and collaborative colleagues. Everyone contributes their expertise to work really hard to address the unmet needs in healthcare, search for new therapeutic options, and promote healthcare for the patients.
How would you describe the culture at FRI?
As the world leader in reproductive science, Ferring never stops seeking to excel in order to find better therapeutic solutions for patients. We scientists at FRI are always science-based, with keen eyes at the forefront of therapeutic development, and dedicated to developing novel, efficient therapies for patients.

Role: Scientist, Immunology
Based: Copenhagen
Joined Ferring: 2021
Career path: 2018 – 2020, Researcher, University of Oxford | 2017, Postdoctoral Scientist, Oslo University Hospital
“I can apply my expertise in cellular immunology every day to contribute to multiple projects at different stages.”
Tell us about your work
I work as a scientist in the Discovery Immunology group at IPC Copenhagen. Discovery Immunology is a relatively new function in GDDEI and is deeply involved in the early research portfolio where immunology can be applied.
My specific tasks as a scientist in the team include generating new target ideas, evaluating external opportunities, and designing and analyzing experiments for various projects. I have also been involved in setting up laboratory capabilities in the current building as well as building our state-of-the-art laboratory at our new office in Copenhagen.
Describe a typical day
How my work day looks varies from day to day ranging from participating in various meetings to designing/analyzing experimental works. In departmental meetings, we discuss the latest research in the immunology field and brainstorm new target ideas as a team. Since we work on projects together with our colleagues at FRI San Diego, we meet regularly online to follow up on the progress of different projects.
My career path
After finishing my basic education in Hong Kong and in Beijing, I moved to Stockholm for my Masters studies at Karolinska Institutet where I developed a strong interest in immunology. I stayed in Stockholm and pursued my PhD studies in the same lab at Karolinksa Institutet where I studied the role of resident T cells in human skin in skin diseases. After my PhD, I worked in the immune-oncology field and immunodeficiency in the University Hospital in Oslo, Norway and University of Oxford, United Kingdom as a postdoctoral scientist, before joining Ferring. So this is my first job outside academia.
The best thing about my job
I can apply my expertise in cellular immunology every day to contribute to multiple projects at different stages. In addition, I feel that I could make an impact in the drug discovery projects and eventually contribute to better treatments for patients around the world.

Role: Associate Director, Structural Biology
Based: San Diego
Joined Ferring: October 2016
Career path: 2012 – 2016 Scientist, Dart Neuroscience | 2003 – 2012, Scientist, The Scripps Research Institute
“I help enable decision-making in Ferring’s drug discovery projects that benefit from a 3-D structural context.”
What I do
I lead the Structural Biology group within the Lead Generation and Pharmacology Department. Our role is to enable decision-making in all projects under consideration and prosecution in Ferring drug discovery that can benefit from 3D-structural context. We go from gene-to-structure, using crystallography, NMR, and (soon!) cryo-EM to understand biological mechanisms and binding properties of compounds that progress through our drug discovery process.
What drives me
I’m driven by a keen desire to empower the people in my sphere of influence to progress in their endeavors, to provide significant impact in those projects that I believe can benefit from my capabilities, and to do my bit, however small, to improve efficiency and economy in the company-at-large.
My advice
If you are looking for a great place to work and build your career, one that is intentionally people-centric, with big vision, backed by smart, collaborative people and matching resources – consider Ferring!
Fun fact
Though I spent half my life in India, and have lived on three different continents, I am still (sadly) monolingual.

Name: Christopher
Role: Scientist I, Gastroenterology
Based: San Diego, US
Joined Ferring: January 2021
“Contributing to research leading to the development of novel therapeutics for IBD is incredibly inspiring.”
Career path
I studied for my PhD Immunology at Cardiff University, UK, in the lab of Dr. Matthias Eberl and Prof. Bernhard Moser, where I became interested in the interactions of immune cells in the intestine during inflammation in IBD. Upon completion of my PhD studies, I moved to the University of California, San Diego, as a postdoctoral scientist in Prof. Jesus Rivera-Nieves’ lab, to continue research into the pathogenesis of IBD. Subsequently I transitioned to an industry position at Ferring Pharmaceuticals’ San Diego site, as part of the Gastroenterology TA team.
What makes Ferring special to you?
The people that I work with at Ferring are what makes this company special to me. There is a great collaborative environment here, and in my short time at Ferring I have been exposed to many novel areas of scientific research and drug discovery that I had not experienced before, as well as new ways of thinking about science.
What kind of projects are you working on:
I am currently working on a number of projects at the early stages of the drug discovery process. A couple of projects are at the beginning target validation stage, where I am contributing to the understanding the biology of identified targets in IBD. Other projects are at the hit-to-lead stage, where my contributions involve designing and running assays to evaluate the efficacy of selected compounds.
What inspires you?
The thought of contributing to research which is leading to the development of novel therapeutics for IBD, and that these may make it to the clinic and help patients with IBD is incredibly inspiring, and gives the day to day work a much greater meaning.
What is it like to work in a global drug discovery organization?
This is my first position in industry research, so I have been exposed to multiple areas of the drug discovery process which I had not had to consider before. Being a part of Ferring, which is responsible for taking therapeutic targets all the way from target validation through to the clinic, is an exciting process to be a part of. The global nature of Ferring means we get to work with team members with diverse expertise all over the globe.

Name: Christella
Title: Scientific Writer/Auditor
Based: San Diego
Joined Ferring: August 2021
“Supporting others and helping their projects succeed motivates me.”
What I do
I review data for quality assurance and help scientists prepare for the filing of patents, publications, and research reports. I train scientists on data management and electronic lab notebook usage.
What drives me
Supporting others and helping their projects succeed motivates me. I enjoy helping scientists get organized, so they can perform to the best of their abilities and report data with confidence.
My advice
I advise young scientists to take care of their relationships with their friends and family and maintain a balanced life to keep their brains healthy and excited.
Fun fact
I co-hosted a podcast for 3 years. I have a cat. I enjoy strength training in my home gym and hiking in the rocky and sunny San Diego hiking trails. I listen to music in album format. I like concerts.

Role: Regional Lead, Asia Pacific, External Innovation & Scientific Licensing
Based: Singapore
Joined Ferring: June 2017
Career path: 2011 – 2016 Held managerial and research consulting roles within the biomedical and bioimaging fields
“I love being in a role that enables me to learn and build my knowledge continuously. It keeps work fresh and never mundane.”
What does your role involve?
As part of the External Innovation & Scientific Licensing team, my role is to seek out early-stage innovative opportunities relevant to our therapeutic areas of focus for partnering.
Describe what drives and inspires you
The first is the meaningful work I feel I can do at Ferring. As mother to two young boys, I experienced some fertility scares when trying to conceive. That personal experience means that Ferring’s commitment to, and focus on, reproductive medicine and maternal health resonates strongly with me.
But above all, I love being in a role that enables me to learn and build my knowledge continuously. It keeps work fresh and never mundane.
My advice to applicants
Ferring hired me when I had just found out I was expecting. I don’t think many companies (certainly in Singapore but perhaps elsewhere too) would have responded so positively. It demonstrated to me Ferring’s support for people and families. In my current role in the GDDEI organization, I especially value the work-life integration I now enjoy and the support I have had to grow myself professionally. Ferring’s ethos for recognition by managers and colleagues for our work efforts is also very motivating.
Fun fact
I binge watch K-dramas on Netflix in my spare time!