Based on her research of 800 biotechnology companies and 3,200 biotechnology executives, Harvard Business School professor Monica Higgins discovered that one firm--Baxter--was the breeding ground for today's most successful biotechnology ventures. This phenomena of one organization spawning an industry has also been seen in the high-tech (Hewlett-Packard) and semiconductor (Fairchild) industries . However, until now there has been no suitable explanation of why and how these organizations were able to create the next generation of industry leaders.
Career Imprints shows why Baxter was so successful in spawning senior executives and offers an understanding of what it takes for an organization to produce leaders that will dominate an industry for years to come. In this important book, Higgins shows that an organization's "career imprint"--the result of company systems, structure, strategy, and culture--that employees take with them throughout their careers is the key to creating great leaders. By understanding these factors, staff, human resource executives, and CEOs can analyze their own organization's career imprint and develop leaders.

The book is filled with the compelling stories from the "Baxter Boys" alumni. These stories of their individual career paths provide a behind-the-scenes look at the processes and effects of career imprinting. Higgins illustrates different types of organizational career imprints by juxtaposing Baxter's entrepreneurial career imprint with the career imprints of other healthcare organizations--Merck, Johnson and Johnson, and Abbott.

Higgins focuses on the consequences of career imprints for industries, organizations, and individuals. She offers insight into the opportunities and pitfalls that open up to industries, organizations, and individuals with an understanding of career imprints.