Crossposted from Nature’s news blog on behalf of Heidi Ledford

Two months after it was bought out by French pharma giant Sanofi, changes are afoot at Genzyme. The Boston Globe broke the news on Wednesday that several divisions of the Cambridge, Massachusetts biotech — specifically its oncology, renal, and biosurgery operations — will now report directly to Sanofi. The biotech’s core programs in multiple sclerosis and personalized genetic health, including rare diseases, will remain a part of the Genzyme division.

No layoffs have been announced, but the news is certain to make some employees antsy. “Every time the CEO makes comments like that, it makes people nervous,” says Neil Solomon of the Neil Michael Group, a New York-based agency that recruits senior executives for life-sciences firms. “It’s impossible to tell where their careers are going to be down the road.”

Thirty years old and employing 10,000 workers, Genzyme was hardly a spry young biotech when Sanofi snatched it up. But employees say the culture did retain traces of the entrepreneurial spirit that grew the company from its origins in a tiny lab over a discount women’s clothing store into a gleaming rare diseases powerhouse. The sale prompted concerns over how that culture would meld into the staid world of big pharma.

Genzyme employees have already been grumbling that decision-making within the company has slowed since the takeover. Solomon says it is too early to expect workers to flee the company en masse – some have stock options and retention bonuses to entice them to stay during the transition. But Solomon is in discussions with five executives who are weighing their options, and he is optimistic that he’ll lure at least one away in the coming month. “The reigns are loosening,” says Solomon. “In the end, you’ll see plenty of employees jumping.”

Continue reading on Nature’s news blog.

Image: Genzyme’s Allston manufacturing plant via EandJsFilmCrew at Flickr