“It hasn’t been an obvious linear path,” Morgan Biles says about the road that has led to her current position as a senior copywriter at Weber Shandwick.
After getting a degree in political science and communications from Boston College, Biles started her career leading marketing for Kured, a charcuterie startup. Freelance work, including in the healthcare space, helped to bring her to Weber Shandwick, which she joined as a copywriter focused on healthcare in July 2023. She was then promoted to senior copywriter in October 2024.
In a Q&A for Fierce Pharma Marketing’s new “Rising Stars” series, Biles discussed the importance of empathy in her work and her vision for a more all-encompassing depiction of the patient experience in pharma ads.
Responses have been lightly edited.
Fierce Pharma Marketing: What inspired you to pursue a career in pharma marketing, and what keeps you motivated?
Morgan Biles: When I took the job, I was just interested in copywriting in general and getting into the brand side of PR. And then, in a series of weird events in my first month, I was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disease. I joked to my boss, “This is a really intense form of new hire training if this what you put everyone through.” It was a 360-degree experience of what our healthcare system is like, with all its ups and downs. It gave me a ton of empathy for different patient populations.
When I think about this job and what I do as a storyteller, empathy is one of our most important tools. I’m not a scientist, and I’m not a doctor, but maybe this is the role that I’m able to play when it comes to helping people as they navigate their health journeys.
FPMK: What has been the most rewarding or challenging project you’ve worked on so far?
MB: Anytime you’re able to see a project from the beginning all the way to the end is rewarding. I was thinking about a recent PSA about heart health that I worked on for Edwards Lifesciences with the L.A. Rams, and having been there from the initial concept to script writing, and then even being there on shoot day, which is a dream for any junior creative. There wasn’t any room for imposter syndrome that day, and I had to trust that everything I’d learned was going to be there for me. It was great to get to see something from before it was even an idea to the point that it’s a PSA out in the world.
FPMK: If you could give one piece of advice to industry veterans who’ve been in pharma marketing for decades, what would it be?
MB: Pharma marketing and communications shouldn’t be all slow walks on the beach and frolicking in fields, which is something we tend to see. It’s important to be brave enough to set a different tone. Our campaigns can have different emotions, and they can be funny, angry, sexy, moody, playful…
In health, whether you’re healthy or unhealthy, you go through the whole spectrum of emotions. I think that our campaigns and our storytelling should reflect that as well.
FPMK: What do you like to do outside of work, say on a typical Saturday afternoon?
MB: I live in New York, so anytime I can be out with my friends, I try not to spend too much time in my apartment—despite how much I pay in rent. I’ve been trying to make little weekend trips to the beach and beyond the city. It’s about spending time with the people that I care about.