Challenge the Status Quo

• Helene Lerner


• 11 Nov 2015

In college, Nefertiti had no idea that she would be at the helm of a major pharmaceutical division—her career focus was pre-med, but that took several turns along the way—it changed to research, to overseeing clinical trials, and then to managing a business. This savvy leader is a people-person, whose goal is to make a difference in the lives of patients and their medical providers.

Here are some of her tips for pushing beyond limits.

Jump over the hurdles with support
I’ve never found a roadblock that couldn’t be overcome with tenacity. But it’s very difficult to be successful without mentorship. Make sure you have a network of leaders you trust who you can call on for advice.  Know there’s always help out there when you need it.

Take the job, then figure it out
I hear women say, “Oh I’m not qualified, I can’t do that job.” Don’t take yourself out of the game before you even try! I tell that to women I counsel and my children too. A school counselor once advised one of my kids to consider taking fewer advanced classes as it may be too difficult. I encouraged them to try the classes—they could step down later if they needed to. How do you know what you’re capable of, if you don’t give it a shot?

Step outside of your comfort zone
I was a biology/chemistry major in school, so at first I thought I would go into pre-med. But during an internship I found that I didn’t like being in a hospital environment, although I loved working with patients and making an impact. So I went into research and then was fortunate enough to have a female mentor who guided me in a different direction—she thought my personality was suited for commercial leadership. She helped me make the change to a commercial role which allowed me to continue helping patients and working in healthcare, but in a way that worked best for me.

Make smart priorities
I’m incredibly organized.  I leverage technology to keep myself disciplined time-wise. When my daughter was little, I coached her softball and lacrosse teams for many years. Being organized (and color coding our home calendar) allows me to go to important games and school events. I can’t make it to everything, but because I plan ahead, I can make it to a lot.

Focus on the end goal
It’s wonderful to be in an industry that is making a difference. Obviously as a business we need to drive results, but at the same time we can also provide value and benefits ultimately improving the lives of patients. On a personal level, it really hits home, because we all have friends and family affected by illness. When I was working in diabetes, my niece was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. She was only a year and a half old.