Business for a Better World: Horizon Therapeutics
Horizon Therapeutics
1 Horizon Way, Deerfield, IL 60015
(866) 479-6742
www.horizontherapeutics.com
Industry: Biotechnology
Annual revenue: Total net sales of $3.2 billion in 2021
Number of employees: 2,000
Q: Describe your company.
A: Horizon is a global biotechnology company dedicated to delivering breakthrough medicines to those around the world who are living with rare, autoimmune and severe inflammatory diseases. At Horizon, we uniquely understand the patient journey.
Led by CEO Tim Walbert, who lives with both a rare disease and an autoimmune disease, many of us at Horizon know a patient, are a patient ourselves or have been deeply moved to action by a patient's story. This awareness fuels every decision we make and shapes who we are, from the medicines we develop to the communities we support.
Horizon has about 2,000 employees globally and 10 locations worldwide on four continents, with regional hubs in Brazil, Japan and Switzerland. Our portfolio includes more than 20 pipeline programs, and we have clinical trials ongoing in more than 30 countries.
Q: Do you plan to hire any additional staff or make any significant capital investments in your company in the next year?
A: Horizon announced in January it is having a new, 192,000-square-foot facility in Rockville, Maryland, built. When complete, this state-of-the-art facility will support more than 200 of our scientists and serve as the company's primary East Coast hub for research and development and technical operations. Hiring is ongoing across all our teams.
Q: What does your company do to reduce the effects of climate change?
A: We seek to conduct our business in a responsible way that minimizes environmental impacts. A few points of pride for us are our refurbished Deerfield buildings and our new corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, which are LEED Gold certified.
Q: What does your company do regarding DE&I (diversity, equity and inclusion)?
A: Horizon is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion and allyship (DEIA), which is vital to unlocking and harnessing the transformative thinking that leads to the kind of innovation needed to change and save lives. Stepping outside ourselves, to stand by and for others in true allyship, is how we achieve it.
We put our vision to action through our "approach to DEIA," calling on all members and allies of various diverse communities to help us act together, collaborating to enhance our inclusive culture, close the opportunity gap and drive innovation and bold solutions forward to meet the needs of the patients and communities we support.
We prioritize mentoring and development programs aimed at younger and minority employees, ensuring that all employees have a voice in how the company's culture evolves - and that sharp talent is identified and developed.
And as a key part of this commitment, pay equity is core to our values, culture and business. Analyses in 2019 and 2021 showed that across all genders and ethnicities, employees at Horizon receive equal pay for equal work. This March, CEO Tim Walbert formalized the company's commitment to pay equity in a public statement. Horizon's R&D leadership is more than 70% women and 40% of the company's director and above levels are women, surpassing industry norms.
We recognize that true change will only come when we do more than speak - we must act and invest in long-term, sustainable initiatives.
To that end, we're part of CEO Action for Racial Equity, a coalition focused on advancing racial equity through public policy change - and specifically aimed at improving the lives of more than 47 million Black people in America.
We also have joined more than 100 companies in signing the CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion pledge. As a part of this initiative, we identify Horizon employees to join their fellowship program.
Horizon has fostered relationships with historically Black colleges and universities to help the company nurture and tap into diverse talent pools. The Horizon Scholars program was launched in 2019 to help talented, economically disadvantaged students with full scholarships or by covering the gap between a student's financial aid and their personal ability to pay for higher education.
Q: Does your company donate time or money to any philanthropic causes? If so, what causes?
A: Horizon embraces the symbiotic relationship between business, community and nonprofit organizations.
We engage in purposeful giving through employee service, corporate sponsorships and collaborations, events, grants and other forms of critical support focused on four main pillars of giving - health care, STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics), environmental sustainability and innovation - with additional prioritization to supporting women and communities of color.
We currently work with Perspectives/IIT Math & Science Academy (MSA) in Chicago, helping to provide quality STEAM education for students. For example, as the academy prepared for remote learning amid the pandemic, Horizon covered the cost of new laptops and Wi-Fi hot spots for all 526 MSA students. We also funded construction and staffing for a peace and meditation room to help the students learn healthy coping and de-escalation skills to improve their mental health. After the room was introduced, the school's suspension rate decreased dramatically.
Horizon also donated $100,000 to support community engagement around the Till-Mobley Great Migration House Museum, Theatre & Garden, a renovation and repurposing of the childhood home of Emmett Till in Chicago. And we provide the financial resources to the National Urban League for their health equity fellow at the Chicago chapter to help the national network to create a health equity plan, weaving in the impact of the social determinants of health.
We have placed multiple employees on the board of Lake County Haven - a social service agency that supports women and children - through Boards+, Horizon's innovative nonprofit board-matching program.
And in addition to a partnership with the Chicago Bulls supporting the franchise's youth-empowerment programs, we also partner with the Chicago Cubs and the nonprofit organization Science of Sport to hold an annual STEAM fair that encourages Chicago-area middle and high school students to explore the connection between science and baseball. Recently Horizon also launched a partnership with the Chicago Sky to support its basketball academy and social justice program.
Q: Does your company do anything else to make your community better?
A: Horizon embeds corporate social responsibility right at the company's foundation and maintains a companywide drive to support community partnerships.
The program was built to be agile, providing the ability to act when crises arise. For instance, in response to the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Horizon doubled its annual giving budget to focus on supporting diverse communities and students, vaccine clinics and health care workers.
Q: What do you do to make your business a good place to work for your employees?
A: Horizon invests extensively in its employees. We have very competitive pay and benefits (the cost of our medical plans has not increased in more than three years), and equity is a driving force in how we design our programs.
These include generous and equal parental leave policies for both mothers and fathers, an on-site day-care center, mentoring programs, inclusion networks and unconscious bias trainings to help create a more open and transparent workplace. Horizon also provides annual stock grants to all employees, regardless of level.
Horizon also offers every employee a "Make It Personal" account with funds to be used in a way that is special to them. And we give every employee an annual "Make It Personal Day" to volunteer for a cause that's personal to them as an individual.
We're proud to be known not just for how we respond to patients and support our communities, but how we care for our employees. The company was recognized as the top biotech among Fortune's 100 Best Places to Work in April. It also has been named one of PEOPLE's Companies that Care and, in 2021, was voted one of the Best Workplaces for Millennials by Fortune, as well as one of the Chicago Tribune's Top Workplaces.
Q: What is one interesting fact about your company that most people may not know?
A: Our CEO, Tim Walbert, is both a patient and a caregiver. He and his son live with the same autoimmune condition. Indeed, the founding of the company is based on a deep understanding of the daily challenges those living with a rare disease face. Tim leads with compassion and innovation while fostering a work environment that allows every employee - some of whom live with a rare disease or serve as a caregiver to a loved one - to thrive.
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Horizon Therapeutics
1 Horizon Way, Deerfield, IL 60015
(866) 479-6742
www.horizontherapeutics.com
Industry: Biotechnology
Annual revenue: Total net sales of $3.2 billion in 2021
Number of employees: 2,000