Celebrating Women in Pharma Accomplishments for 2018
We have so much to celebrate for all the Women in Pharma accomplishments in 2018!
At the heart of every great team is a great leader. Thank you Georgia Keresty for your passion, commitment, and leadership of Women in Pharma in 2018. Georgia, you graciously accepted the role of Women in Pharma Chair from Fran Zipp. Fran, thank you for continuing to guide and mentor as you represent us on the ISPE Board of Directors.
Our volunteer community continues to grow from all corners of the world. Women and men eager to participate, organize, support, and collaborate in the mission of Women in Pharma. Committee members, volunteers, and ISPE staff are dedicated to providing members of the pharmaceutical industry professional training and education to foster mentorship and networking for women and ethnically diverse people, to drive their successful career progress. The spark that started in 2017 really ignited in 2018 with the help of all volunteers and the incredible staff at ISPE, with special thanks to John Bournas, Mark Hernick, Ciara Durkan, Susan Obarski, Jessica Bleess, and Maria Robertson.
2018 was a year of great growth for the Women in Pharma at ISPE. One of our signature events is the Women in Pharma Networking Dinners held at the ISPE Annual Meetings. These dinners offer an opportunity to facilitate impactful career and professional discussions in small groups at top-tier restaurants. The dinners are graciously hosted by individuals and companies, making it free to attend by ISPE conference attendees! Due to the popularity of this event, the Women in Pharma doubled the number of networking dinners to 14 in 2018 and attracted a diverse group of participants; established professionals, young professionals, women, men, and members from around the globe.
In addition to our success at the 2018 ISPE Annual Meeting & Expo, numerous Women in Pharma events were held around the world in 2018. We ended on a high note in December at the 2018 ISPE Biopharmaceutical Manufacturing Conference in Huntington Beach, CA where Women in Pharma hosted round table breakfast discussion entitled “Define success on your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and build a life you’re proud to live.” The session was led by:
And six panel speakers which included the following distinguished leaders in our industry:
A special thank you to Jim Breen and Janette Buechler for your volunteer efforts to make this Women in Pharma event a huge success!
The Women in Pharma at ISPE members wrote 8 blogs to share with the ISPE community. These thought provoking and inspirational blogs were all written by Women in Pharma volunteers who graciously shared their insights and professional experience and advice on these great topics:
- “The Rewards of Mentoring” by Jeannine Hillmer
- “Power of Your Personal Brand” by Stephanie Thatcher
- “Right versus Left Brain - Is There a Difference for Pharma Engineers?” by Susan Stipa
- “Productivity & Innovation - Women in Pharma Ireland Affiliate Roundtable” by Liz M. Dooley
- “Saying "Yes" to Opportunity - Women in Pharma” by Kerren Bergman
- “The Secret to Success for Women in Pharmaceuticals” by Christa B. Myers
- “Didn't You Know, You Are Your Greatest Asset?” by Jennifer Lauria Clark
- “When in Rome - Women in Pharma at 2018 Europe Annual Conference” by Kelly M. Keen
The Women in Pharma Toolkit was created by our Women in Pharma Marketing Sub-committee, Alayna Russell and Stephanie Thatcher. This toolkit was developed to guide Affiliates and Chapters in hosting their own Women in Pharma events. This toolkit is available on the Affiliate and Chapter Resources page (login required). The Women in Pharma Toolkit provides a complete checklist, samples, and templates. This is a great resource for the ISPE community and has already been utilized to facilitate Women in Pharma events across the United States, Ireland, and Singapore.
The Women in Pharma buttons were created in 2017. The sales generated by these buttons are now directly tied to the ISPE Foundation. In addition, direct donations of any amount for Women in Pharma at ISPE can be made through the ISPE Foundation. Approximately $4,500 of donations were contributed in 2018 as a result of Women in Pharma activities! Every dollar donated directly or through button sales contributes to a scholarship fund or to support future opportunities for women in the pharma industry. In 2018, we had two scholarship recipients and we provided two travel grants to attend the 2018 ISPE Annual Meeting & Expo. The University of Georgia continued our original scholarship from 2017 and gave another one in 2018. Our generosity created more generosity and support to women pursuing their dreams.
Thank you to all who contributed to the success of Women in Pharma in 2018!
2019 promises to be a great year. Get involved and become a part of the success!
