Continuing our series of Q&As with past winners of the Communiqué Young Achiever of the Year Award, this week we’ve tracked down Kelly Teasdale, our winner of 2009.
What first attracted you to healthcare comms?
I had the opportunity to work with a number of global communications networks as part of my CIPR Postgrad Diploma back in 2000 and was instantly attracted to the complexities of healthcare communications. Communicating scientific innovation in a rapidly evolving political and regulatory landscape for the benefit of people’s health felt like a challenge worth taking on!
Where were you in your career when you won the Communiqué Young Achiever’s award?
I was a consultant at Chandler Chicco Companies (CCC) in London and also led the company’s best-in-class Global Affiliate Network.
What did winning mean to you and your career?
It was a really important milestone for me. Being relatively young in any profession comes with its own set of challenges, but the award gave me great confidence early on and significantly raised my profile within the industry. It also gave me an opportunity to get involved in industry working groups, such as the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association (HBA) and the Healthcare Communications Association (HCA).
How has your career developed since then?
I went on to work more closely with CCC local market teams in France and Germany, joined the European Leadership Team in 2009 and have had the opportunity to launch a number of new business units and initiatives on behalf of CCC in Europe, as well as supporting global expansions and acquisition plans in collaboration with CCC’s parent company, inVentiv Health.
At the start of 2012, I took on a new role within inVentiv Health Communications/Europe, a super agency that brings together all of inVentiv ’s advertising, public relations, public policy, market access, medical education, marketing, branding and digital services in Europe.
And what is the most important lesson you have learnt during this time?
No one single person has all the answers. If you really want to be successful, surround yourself with a hugely talented and opinionated team.
What is your current role?
Network Operations for inVentiv Health Communications/Europe.
Describe it’s most challenging aspect…
It’s busy! ‘Operations’ touches almost every single aspect of our business, inside and out.
And it’s most rewarding…
Turning concepts in to real life successes and solutions…for our clients, our business and our teams.
What has been the most significant change to the industry since you began in it?
The stakeholder engagement model has changed dramatically since I joined the industry. Healthcare stakeholders have increased in number over the last decade; they are interrelated with growing complexity and technological advances have transformed the ways in which they communicate.
Name one piece of advice you would give to someone starting their career in healthcare comms…
Grasp every single opportunity you have to gain experience across the spectrum of both healthcare marketing disciplines and global markets. In a rapidly evolving industry, perspective always gives you an added edge.