Her Story
About Kat
I've been in the biotech environment and diagnostics for about 26 years, since I was 24. For the last 5 years, I was leading a region for my company, managing 12 people and a $16 million book of business in a very rare disease state. My specialty within the world of autoimmune was lupus, and we served a really great purpose for patients who had a lot of questions and very few answers. I helped the organization build a very solid footprint in the central United States, and I worked in that specific space for a little over 7 years. I found a great deal of purpose and pride in what I did. Most companies are not non-for-profit, but I rest well at night knowing that I am delivering value to someone, and we delivered a great amount of value. Now I'm transitioning into a new role as Thought Leader Liaison for pulmonary at a pharmaceutical company called Kinovo. In this role, I'm really trying to engage with the key opinion leaders to find out what they believe the direction and plan for the organization and the product should be. It's definitely not sales - it's more of a liaison, being the go-between between the customer and the company. This role is to serve in that capacity to try to gather feedback and information from the end users and parlay that back to the company to customize what the customer's needs are based on what we can give them.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Kat
01What do you attribute your success to?
I think that my greatest achievement really isn't what I've accomplished, but what I've enabled others to accomplish. I've had a lot of people that had been promoted and moved on under me, and I think that's really rewarding. I'm a mom of four kids, so I sort of mother along the way through my professional world as well, and I like to know that I'm making people better. I always tell my people that report to me, you gotta do all things with great heart. If you feel like you can't, you're in the wrong lane, which is okay, but find something else. I've been fortunate because doors have always opened, and I haven't really had to go knocking. When you do good in this space, people know. If you do your job well, your reputation precedes you.
02What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I always tell my people that report to me, you gotta do all things with great heart. If you feel like you can't, you're in the wrong lane, which is okay, but find something else. I rest well at night knowing that I am delivering value to someone. I take a great deal of pride in watching my kids' development and helping them along the way. I'm leading with great intention in all things, because my kids are watching. Being able to work with others is probably a very underrated skill in life. With selling anything, especially in the world of healthcare, our goal is just to educate and hopefully find an appropriate purpose within their needs. You're educating on the value of what you have, and hopefully that's connecting with their needs. The end goal is not talking someone into something that they don't need.
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