I have been passionate about pharmaceuticals since a very young age, as my father owned a community pharmacy and taught me how medications can have profound effects on individual lives. I learned the importance of taking care of people and doing your best at everything you do. I intended to follow in my father’s footsteps, but took advantage of an internship opportunity at Merck during my combined pharmacy/ MBA program.
I was enthralled with what I saw happening at Merck—employees were absolutely committed to Merck’s mission of “medicine is for the people” and to developing breakthrough therapies that could impact millions of lives. I joined Merck because it gave me the best opportunity to help the most people. I’ve never focused on moving ahead here, but rather on doing my best in every job and striving to help achieve Merck’s mission.
I’ve been open to taking on new opportunities, and after a fairly traditional early career in sales and marketing, have taken roles in various Merck business areas: managed care; pharmacy benefit management; global marketing; the U.S. hospital and specialty business; and now the global vaccine business. I look forward to leveraging all of my prior experience to successfully bring to market several important vaccines in the next few years, and to assure they have the positive impact on people’s lives they are capable of delivering.
My approach to leading an organization to success is to have a diverse team of talented, committed individuals who bring different perspectives to the table, and to coach them to help each individual and the organization perform to their fullest potential. I set a high standard for myself and others, and always strive to do the right things in the right way.
I also try to be a role model on balance and flexibility. I’ve always believed that if you set the right priorities and always deliver, you earn the flexibility you need to achieve balance. In terms of my own balancing act, I try to follow the approach taught by Stephen Covey: “Define the important roles you play in life and establish goals and priorities for each one. Then …have the discipline and courage to stick to these priorities.” I intend to succeed in every role I play by working hard and focusing on helping people.
