Cytiva Associate Stories - Part 2

Welcome back to our associate stories blog.

In this post, you’ll meet three unique members of the Cytiva team:  John Ware Jnr, Jonathan Atkin, and Bethany Armitt-Brewster.

From getting that first start in the workplace, to living by your personal values, to even making a major career change. Discover how these three valued colleagues found themselves at Cytiva and why they stay.

Assisting others: How I live by my values at Cytiva

Published on December 6, 2021– by John Ware Jnr.

Assisting others is what motivates me most. I’ve always favored the approach of leading through community. I come from a place where we support others even when we could use the support ourselves—and in times like these, we could all use some help from time to time. In college, I made it a point to put in the work to assist others —from raising over $150,000 for children’s cancer research to speaking out against social injustices across the United States—so having a career where I could continue to encourage others is important to me.

That’s why I had to make a tough choice when Danaher acquired Cytiva, which used to be GE Healthcare Life Sciences. I could either stay with GE or become part of Cytiva. I had a lot of great memories from my time at GE with some incredible people—but GE Healthcare works mostly on diagnostics, and I wanted to provide solutions by helping researchers find cures for diseases like cancer. So I knew my passion lay with Cytiva. I look at our customers as true superheroes; they’re creating magic and saving lives around the world. And I get to be a part of that magic by showing them the breadth of Cytiva’s capabilities to help create life-saving therapies.

I’m very interested in understanding the science of biopharmaceuticals. I chose Life Sciences as my specialization when I was part of GE’s Commercial Leadership Program, and Cytiva has continued to support my growth: They set me up with several excellent mentors and empowered me to become a thought partner, challenging thinking within the biotechnology community in Los Angeles. People here are always willing to help each other. My mentors assure me there are no stupid questions and encourage my curiosity while instilling me with confidence. And my colleagues trust that I can do the work.

And as much as I care about helping the world through our products and services, I also care about helping make Cytiva an even better place to work. In the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder, I spoke with my colleagues and sensed a renewed hunger for more inclusion and diversity (I&D) within the company. So I actually FaceTimed our CEO, Emmanuel Ligner, to get his thoughts on how our I&D goals can work better in a global company like ours. It’s a tricky thing; issues of diversity vary in different countries and cultures, but Cytiva welcomed the chance to improve our I&D goals.

Cytiva has an I&D council and a head of Global Inclusion and Diversity, Michael Santiago. I’m proud to be part of the council as well as the I&D outreach program and networks. Inclusion and diversity of thought are certainly how you create better innovation—and learning different perspectives is how you truly understand other people.

Understanding and working with diverse people globally is another great part of my job, and that became especially clear during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thanks to good leadership and transparent communication, I felt confident our company was doing the work needed to fight the pandemic, and I could convey that to my customers.

I’m excited to continue assisting researchers combat diseases, and whilst I do so, Cytiva is continuing to support me by sending me to different training and educational programs so I can build on my degree in biomedical engineering. My current interest, cell and gene therapy, gives me hope for the future. Right now, I’m focusing on being the best account manager I can be, but I know at Cytiva I can continue my goal of assisting others —here and around the world.

From Salon owner to Lab Team Leader: how I advanced my career at Cytiva.

Published on January 11, 2022 – by Jonathan Atkin

It may not sound natural, going from the hairdressing industry to managing a lab, but to me it makes sense. I successfully co-owned a hairdressing salon for more than 20 years, working as both manager and technician. Before that I worked at the salon, I ran a small bookshop, and before that, I studied chemistry. So, when my business partner at the salon retired I reached a crossroads. I decided to make a complete career change and return to my science roots.

I started working at Cytiva in September 2019, in Large Scale Formulation. This lab predominantly makes DNA and protein separation columns and Western Blotting reagents for research labs. Having been self-employed I was used to making decisions and acting right away, but when you come to a big company, there’s a lot more discussion and support. My team leader made sure I knew everyone was here to help each other. There was a supportive camaraderie I hadn’t experienced before.

Whilst always enjoyable, I found the work in the lab quite repetitive, as I was doing the same formulations all the time. So, when a job came up running different machines, about a month after I was here, I applied. I didn’t get it, but I think I did well in the interview. I’m always very accurate with my paperwork, and I believe team leaders noticed that.   

When COVID-19 arrived, it changed the ballgame completely. Demand dropped for the products we made in our lab; upstairs however we make a different product that goes into the PCR molecular diagnostic tests, so demand for that naturally increased. The team leaders decided I should work in that lab instead. This was the real start of my career progression at Cytiva.

Despite being a little more complex, the work upstairs was also quite repetitive, which meant I could easily do other tasks alongside it - IT work, problem solving, troubleshooting, training other associates and more. It became a self-fulfilling prophecy: The more I did, the more I was noticed, and the more I was noticed, the more I was given to do.

Then the team leader in the area that I’d started in retired, but I’d only been permanent in my role for six months, so I didn’t apply. Four months later though the position was still unfilled and, in this time, I’d learned so much more. I felt ready, applied, and was promoted.

Now I manage a team of seven people. My job is to look after everyone, ensure their wellbeing, schedule all the work for the area, provide performance reviews, and much more. I feel more comfortable in my managerial role since I’ve run small businesses and have so much experience overseeing people.

As a team leader you’ve got to be firm, friendly, and fair. It’s important to listen to the team’s wants and needs alongside the needs of the company and try to take a balanced approach. After all, a company is the sum of its people; if you’ve got unhappy people, you’re not going to be productive.

I know I’ve still got lots to learn in this role - there are so many more layers to delve into. I’m sure I’ll pursue this career path for years, which is exactly what I wanted. If you want to be here, and you enjoy working for Cytiva like I do, the management will notice and nurture you.

My first career step: Why I said YES to an internship at Cytiva

Published on – by Bethany Armitt-Brewster

I had just submitted my BA History and Politics dissertation when I got the email.

As a fresh graduate from university, I had other job offers from large organizations, all of which were experiencing exciting times of significant business change, before receiving the Cytiva internship offer. My now boss Andrea Kilin reached out to me for my interest in becoming the Podcast Planner Intern. After reading the job description and speaking with Andrea I felt immediately that the role was a perfect fit; but I needed to know more about Cytiva. I had a tough decision to make about which job I would accept. During my deliberations a family member made a passing comment that I should look into the eco-friendly aspect of each company, a cause that is incredibly close to my heart and personal values, and so I did.

I was instantly impressed reading the extent of Cytiva’s commitments to sustainability, from reducing energy impacts in offices to rethinking R&D plastic and packaging. I researched the company’s promises for a healthier planet and people, and it became very apparent to me that associates support the business to lead sustainability.

Cytiva’s real world impact was another contributing factor for accepting an internship here. From the involvement in fighting the pandemic by supporting customers with vaccine development, to being one of the key manufactures in insulin production, it was clear that the diversity of Cytiva’s products has a huge impact on human health across the world, and I was sure that I would feel a part of that impact in joining Cytiva.

And I do! Stereotypically when someone imagines an intern role, they think of having very little involvement in the business, projects or the team, but here it is completely different. I was immediately given responsibility looking after the Discovery Matters podcast. I am treated as a valuable contributor, encouraged to share my input in everything we do and, in doing so, continue to learn and extend my knowledge. On a weekly basis I have two key responsibilities. I plan the podcast, align with audience preferences around new research, collaborate with our podcast hosts Conor McKechnie and Dodi Axelson and prepare it for our numerous social media channels.

Secondly, I create content for the Medium channel. I publish communications on topics such as professional development, diversity and inclusion, innovation, business and tech and much more, to inform people on pharmaceutical discoveries and the future of biotech. I love the creative license that I have. I work on making science accessible, even for those that don’t believe they are ‘science-minded’, I work to make it less complex so everyone can understand these subjects. 

Every day I see how Cytiva pushes for its mission and vision. I have had recent in-depth discussions about the vaccine disparity facing the world and our business involvement in tackling this. As an associate it is clear we all care about making the world a healthier place and the business reflects our values, bringing global access to pharmaceuticals.

Any company can make a promise, but Cytiva actually delivers. It is not just a promise for us, it is something we are undoubtedly committed to. That’s what makes me proud to have accepted my internship. And if, like me, you appreciate a company acting on their values, you may want to check out starting a career here too. 

Impressive? Exciting? Inspirational? We think they are too.

If a career at Cytiva appeals to you, take a look at our career website. You could be joining our team of passionate people working on things that really matter for global health. You can meet some more of the Cytiva team in our blog.