June 2023: From the Editor

The pandemic forced many companies in many industries around the world to rethink how to get work done with much less in-person interaction than ever before. For the few of us who already worked from home at least part time, it wasn’t quite business as usual — but only because the circumstances brought technological and procedural improvements in how we work remotely. For most of our colleagues, however, it was a bit like getting tossed into the deep end of the pool with only a pair of inflatable armbands to help keep them afloat. I suspect that some of you can relate.

Many companies (our own Informa among them) have reassessed the situation, however, as vaccines have become more widely available over the past year or so. Wiser leaders have sought not a return to the old normal, but rather establishment of a new one that could be more sustainable over the long term. In many cases the solution has included what our company calls “balanced working,” with colleagues spending some time at home and some time together in a centralized office space.

Informa’s business is built on sharing information, and one thing we’re proud of as we emerge from the pandemic — and the World Health Organization did downgrade that status finally in May of this year — is an array of new and creative ways to help people in different industries meet, interact, collaborate, and communicate for mutual benefit. Our life-sciences division of Informa Connect, for example, developed a virtual-attendance option for conferences, expanded the Digital Week series, and created the Streamly platform for videos (https://streamly.video). But just as most companies are choosing a “hybrid” approach to working arrangements, so too are we all finding that no one way of communicating with one another works in all cases. BPI is at its core a publication, but you’ll also recognize our name on conferences, eBooks, webcasts and custom publishing, “featured report” supplements, an online news portal and newsletter series, and technical theaters at business-oriented events such as the BIO International Convention. Each option works best for a particular kind of content and audience.

Of course, we editors are most devoted to the publication itself, which after 20 years remains proudly in print (using paper from sustainable forestry practices) and is read by 80,000 people around the world. A publication has a measure of permanence. It can be archived and referred to indefinitely, skimmed easily for content of interest, and generally counted on to remain the same in perpetuity. That’s no small feat in these uncertain times. But without your contributions and participation, these pages would be blank. Language and communication are our stock in trade; knowledge is yours. We hope you’ll continue to think of us as an essential conduit for sharing it to the benefit of everyone.