Her Story
About Briana
I have been in the medical device industry for over 20 years, and it has been a really rewarding journey. I spent about 19-20 years working in quality before recently switching over to regulatory so I can be more well-rounded. I started my career in San Diego when I was working on a degree in communication and went to a staffing agency. I was lucky enough to get placed in document control for Stryker Communications, and it just started from there. Throughout my career, I have worked at Thoratec where we did the heart pump, and I've worked in spinal modulation and different areas of med device. I always look at it from the perspective of, is this device safe for my mom, my grandmother, my cousin, and am I proud to put my signature on these reports and documents and support it to get to market and be able to impact lives in an influential way. I have been part of probably over 80 to 100 audits, and I hold my CQA certification and am currently going for my RAC. In my current role, I manage our complaints for reportability assessments, determining if the complaint needs to be reported to any regulatory authorities, and I also manage our health hazard assessments for any regulatory assessments that need to be submitted to regulatory authorities depending on where that particular device is marketed.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Briana
01What do you attribute your success to?
I believe coaching would be my most notable achievement and what I find most rewarding - seeing either the colleagues that have been on my team grow and how they further their career, and how they have taken off in leadership as they have grown. That is probably the most rewarding for me. I also think about all the different ways that we impact people's lives. I've worked at Thoratec where we did the heart pump, I've worked in spinal modulation and different areas of med device, and I always look at it from the perspective of, is this device safe for my mom, my grandmother, my cousin, and am I proud to put my signature on these reports and documents and support it to get to market and be able to impact lives in an influential way.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I think we've all been grown up being told, like, if you have nothing nice to say, then don't say anything at all. And on the flip side, the best advice I would give is that when you have something nice to say, say it right away. I've rolled out employee recognition programs at my current position. We just rolled out a high-five recognition program, and it's centered around our organization's values, so partnership, innovation, team, quality. It just grew even bigger - we're now using a QR code and it's attached to their manager, so when you recognize someone, their manager also gets notified. And then now it's put into a pool for our quarterly luncheons and town halls where we'll do a raffle of everyone who's received a high-five recognition. I really like to give feedback, and when it's positive it can be best, but I think even if there's something that needs to change, saying that right away in a positive way is impactful as well and creates meaningful change and is really good for building trust within the team.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Make a place for yourself at the table. And share your voice. Share your thoughts.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
I think a common challenge in a lot of industries is just managing the different priorities and making sure that you're able to gain traction and move forward with multiple areas of importance at one time.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The main core values for me center around integrity, trust, and love.
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