Bold innovators podcast series

In this month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking to Angelique Hopkins, Vice President, Enterprise Strategy, Portfolio, and Planning Analytics. This episode was hosted by Bryant Powell, associate director, social media, Omni-Channel Capabilities, and host for the BOLD Innovators podcast series. 

Angelique supports total company analytics, insights, and processes, including long term financial planning as well as strategy and portfolio prioritization. Outside of BMS, she sits on the board of directors for women of color in Pharma, a BMS-sponsored nonprofit professional society focused on transforming the pharmaceutical landscape for women of color, where she draws on her unique perspective and cross functional experiences.

Angelique shares her story of how she stumbled into the pharmaceutical industry. She came to BMS as an intern straight out of undergrad and pursuing a Master of Public Health, and as she put it, “I joke that I came to BMS as an intern and they kept giving me stuff to do, so I never left.”

On what motivates her, Angelique speaks about growing up amongst strong women, including her mum who has been legally blind since birth. She tells us that this did not limit her mum at all as she went to college on a basketball scholarship. Simply put, Angelique is boldly passionate about challenging expectations.

Angelique says “I think it instilled in me a real sense of you can do anything that you want to do, and that the only thing that really limits you is the box that you put yourself in.”

In this month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking to Deidra Harper, senior access and reimbursement manager. This episode was hosted by Bryant Powell, associate director, social media, Omni-Channel Capabilities, and host for the BOLD Innovators podcast series. 

Deidra Harper is responsible for access and reimbursement for the oncology business at Bristol Myers Squibb. Additionally, she is the co-lead for BMS’ tomorrow’s innovators program at North Carolina A&T. In this role, Deidra is responsible for creating a talent pipeline for students of Historically Black Colleges Universities. 

Deidra shares her passion for mentoring and creating opportunities for students of underrepresented communities, particularly people of color. As co-lead for BMS’ tomorrow’s innovators program at North Carolina A&T, she visits the school at least twice a year to recruit students for BMS’ cardiovascular summer sales internship.

Deidra shares her journey from being a pre-med major to corporate America. She speaks about her “detour” into the consumer goods industry to get sales experience, and then leveraging that experience to finally land a role in big pharma. She talks about her values of tenacity, being a go-getter, and not quitting.

Reflecting on her journey, Deidra says “The experience that I have had in my past, my present and what I hope to experience in my future, all those things have led me to be the person that I am today, and those experiences have provided me with the passion and the wisdom to help others.”

This month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Bryant Powell, associate director, Social Media, Omni-Channel Capabilities. This episode was hosted by Terris Moss, associate director, enterprise governance and creative director for the BOLD Innovators podcast series at the 2023 Future Pharma Conference in Boston, MA.

Bryant Powell is responsible for leading the podcast and social audio capabilities within the commercialization organization at Bristol Myers Squibb. As well, he is also responsible for increasing BMS' evolving capabilities in social listening.  Bryant is part of the Communications Leadership Team within BMS’ Black Organization for Leadership and Development (BOLD) People Business & Resource Group (PBRG), where he uses his former experience in the marketing and entertainment industry to create and proudly hosts his passion project - the global podcast series, BOLD Innovators. 

Bryant spoke to his passion for creating and building platforms where individuals and customers can speak about their experiences, while communicating their value and impact to the world. When trying to incorporate his passions at work, Bryant advises using the power of focus. “Double down on your strengths and brand yourself to others, what you want in your career,” he says. Focusing on his strengths and passions while uniquely branding himself as a digital content and social audio subject matter expert paved the way to where he is in his career and led to the creation of not only the BOLD Innovators podcast series, but also Bristol Myers Squibb’s podcasting ecosystem.

In this month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Paul Ashley, senior director, strategic engagement and inclusion within the Global Procurement Group at Bristol Myers Squibb.

Paul Ashley is a seasoned procurement leader with over 20 years of industry experience. Paul holds a bachelor of science in industrial engineering from Northwestern University, as well as a master of science in industrial operations and engineering from the University of Michigan.

Born and raised in Detroit, MI, the capital of the automobile manufactory industry, Paul Ashley decided to focus his higher education pursuits on engineering.  After grad school, Paul landed a job at IBM where he was first exposed to the field of procurement and his love of bringing diversity to companies' supply chains from business owners of color, the LGBTQ+ community and women.

When asked what Paul is boldly passionate about, he refers to his social media profile which demonstrates Paul is unapologetically black, gay and Christian. Paul is passionate about uplifting these communities by being an example of how to live the intersections of these communities freely.  “In times where I've had to navigate troubled waters is in the intersections of being, black, gay and Christian.”  Paul had to learn to fully embrace and love all of himself, unapologetically.  He advises others to “stop coming out, just be out and be who you are, and people will figure it out.”

In this month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Akintunde Bello or “Tunde,” senior vice president of clinical pharmacology, pharmacometrics, disposition and bioanalysis.

Originally from London, U.K., Tunde was born to Nigerian parents that emigrated to the UK in the late 1950s. Tunde is the middle child with two sisters.  London offered Tunde a very multicultural childhood with friends from all over the world from different cultures, nationalities and races. It was at school were Tunde fell in love with science. His love for science was further sparked as a keen watcher of natural history programs and with opportunities to examine wildlife and insects. As a lover of science fiction, Tunde loved watching the original Star Trek and even though the show wasn’t integrated, it reflected a future state where there wasn’t any prejudice, bigotry or things of that nature. Tunde’s love for sciences lead to his study of biomedical sciences after high school.

Tunde speaks about his passion for science and technology and its application for improvement of the world. His passion spans beyond the pharmaceutical space to include other technological advances in engineering, medical science and digital technologies. When deciding to move to the U.S. to further his career, he reflects on his and his wife’s decision to relocate, thinking if they don’t like it in the U.S. that they can go back in few years. Well 20 years later and two American daughters, they are still in the U.S. Tunde never regretted the decision to relocate because of the opportunities that have opened due to what he believes is the U.S. being the center of biopharmaceutical drug development. Tunde advises others considering a move to the U.S. to be thoughtful if the opportunity is a right fit for overall career goals, consider the impact on your family and starting over in a new country with a new culture. 

As one of the few people of color within the pharmaceutical industry in the U.K., Tunde attributes his career success in part to his “village”. This village consisted of managers and colleagues along his career journey who clearly believed in him, offered support, insights and valuable career development advice. In fact, it was a former manager who was an advocate for his advancement where Tunde learned of the opportunity which led him to return to BMS in 2015 and to the executive director position heading up clinical pharmacology oncology.

In this month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Deepika Cattry, associate director, WW Commercialization – GU Cancers.
 

Growing up in New York as a second generation Indian American, Deepika Catty was the only minority in her high school and the first in her family to attend college. Although she faced challenges, it also fuels her desire to give back to other minority students, her community and eventually at Bristol Myers Squibb as the PAN STEM lead. As the PAN STEM Lead, Deepika can inspire, mentor and provide support to at risk and low-income individuals seeking STEM careers by helping set them up for a successful first year in school. She also speaks to the power of kindness. An act of kindness goes a long way, either in the board room or a smile in the office, it’s a simple yet powerful tool to being an inclusive leader.
 

Deepika shares her story of failure to triumph. Applying to medical school twice and not getting in, she still triumphed by securing a career which combined her love of science, research and business.   “Failure is hard to accept especially when it is not normalized in our day to day,” Deepika states.  She attributes her parents stressing the importance of hard work, dedication, and motivation to get through obstacles of failure. She also leaned on her mentors to gain the framework to map out what was the root cause of failing to learn from it. 
 

Deepika shares of the value of allyship for all communities. During the attacks of 911, the community of Indian Americans who wore turbans were victimized. African Americans faced the same situation with Black Lives Matter. During the COVID-19 outbreak, people called the virus the “China” virus and the Asian American community was attacked. However, Deepika feels working at Bristol Myers Squibb gives all communities an opportunity to work together across the people business and resource groups and support each other in times of need or when their communities are facing challenges. “That is the time to raise your hand and be vocal about your story,” she says.  “It is by raising your hand to let others know you went through this situation that provides an opportunity for education on what they can do to improve the outcome and be a voice for allyship.”    

In this month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Wendy Short Bartie, chief of staff to the Chief Executive Officer, Giovanni Caforio.  Wendy’s professional career began as a public defender first in Washington, DC, and then in the Bronx, NY, where she was enjoyed helping the disenfranchised and underrepresented. Wendy’s desire to start a family and work less hours, while keeping a rewarding and fulfilling career, was the catalyst for a career shift to the pharmaceutical industry. Although the change in industries did not result in work that was less busy, Wendy was able channel her energies differently and focus on helping patients. She found the same enjoyment for helping people in a career in pharmaceutical as when she was working as a public defender. Wendy states, “knowing that every day I get to take a decision that ultimately can have the impact of allowing a man or woman to spend more time and better time with people that he or she loves is incredibly, incredibly rewarding.”

Wendy is exceptionally excited about the work Bristol Myers Squibb is doing in health equity. She states, “At Bristol Myers Squibb, innovation which is equally distributed means everyone can benefit from it.”  Wendy explains, “We should be in the business of helping all patients and it's critically important that everybody get access to innovation.”  Wendy claims health equity, at least in the U.S., rests in understanding social determinants of health as factors that need to be impacted long before somebody actually gets sick. By gaining an understanding of social determinate of health, such as education and food deserts, we are making good decisions that are inclusive to all communities.

In addition to being boldly passionate about helping disenfranchised, unrepresented and vulnerable people; Wendy is boldly passionate about kindness. She considers kindness to be acts we commit that helps someone else without expecting something in return. “One act of kindness, every day would make the world better place,” she states Wendy reflects on her own experience as a recipient of kindness shown to her by a leader from a former employer. When presenting a controversial topic at a leadership team meeting, Wendy found the only seat available to her was at the back of the room. The leader who noticed Wendy in the back of the room, invited Wendy to the front of the room asking everyone to make room for Wendy so that her opinions could be heard. Through this act of kindness, Wendy gained more confidence. She states, “You have the right to be in the room and have your opinions heard.”  Wendy pays it forward by making sure that everyone’s voice in the room are heard.

In this month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Rondu Vincent, executive director, Global Supplier Diversity and Sustainability. 

Growing up in both Queens, New York, and Plainfield, New Jersey, Rondu has seen homelessness, drugs and unemployment in his community. He realized early on he had a choice to either panic or persevere and decided to align with individuals who were more progressive. Rondu wouldn’t change his upbringing because it taught him resiliency and that he could rise above those circumstances. He credits his upbringing for making him a shrewd negotiator and eventually choosing a career in procurement. Rondu uses his procurement skills with a desire for servant leadership in a manner that elevates the Black, minority and underrepresented communities. He attributes Bristol Myers Squibb as a company that celebrates and appreciates differences with the resources to create real change. Rondu advises, if faced with a daunting task or negative circumstances, you must decide “do we panic and let it fester or do we persevere because we have a bigger role to play and impact to create.”

Rondu is boldly passionate about leveraging his platform to change lives of the underrepresented and marginalized. “I am fighting for something bigger than me. My goal is to talk myself out of a job,” said Rondu. “The day there is no longer a need for supplier diversity is the day diversity is part of the culture and society in general.” Rondu continues to challenge the status quo and is okay with being in difficult situations. He stated, “As long as we are being comfortable, I don’t think we are challenging the status quo enough.”

Rondu advises to make sure to give back in some way and don’t forget to “Reach back to pull up,” he states.  His work in the Power to Impact program is just one of the ways Rondu gives back and gives voices to diverse populations. The Power to Impact program’s influence goes beyond a procurement supplier diversity standpoint and reaches out to the community by hosting events such as health screening for the homeless and reading literacy.

In Part 2 of this two-part episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Nnenna Kalu, Commercial Leadership Development Program associate and Youssef Jouichate, aCTivate associate, Science and Technology, both early careers hires at BMS.

Born in West Africa, but sent to the UK for boarding school, Nnenna never forgot where she came from. She was led to the United States for PharmD studies and has since earned an MHA and an MBA.  During her attendance at National MBA conference, she was introduced to Bristol Myers Squibb. Nnenna wanted to be in environment that would foster her professional growth. She was able to have real candid conversations with the company, which led to working on the worldwide VAP team and eventually full-time employment. Nnenna is impressed with the number of women in senior positions and feels Bristol Myers Squibb is an environment that pushes women to be their best and have work life balance. Nnenna advises new career hires to always remember what it felt like to be new and as they progress in their career to have empathy for new colleagues. 

Youssef was born in Morocco, Africa, and came to the U.S. at age 3.  Attending the Drexel University co-op program first led him to real world manufacturing experience in active pharmaceutical ingredients, biopharmaceutical manufacturing and opportunity in labs. Eventually, Youssef secured an internship opportunity through Pan Asian Network, a mentorship program at Bristol Myers Squibb. Youssef advises being comfortable with getting uncomfortable, whether that is trying something new, volunteering or mentoring and believes in making changes in the world around him where possible.

In this month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Gaetano Crupi, general manager, Brazil, and Fernanda da Silva Joao, senior manager, Global Procurement, Brazil site.

As a son of immigrants, Gaetano Crupi grew up embracing two cultures, Brazilian and Italian.  He was the first member of his family to graduate from a university and began a pursuit of an international career.  Gaetano is an advocate for diversity and inclusion and has a passion for eliminating any type of discrimination in his environment. Whether it is looking for new ways to attract Black talent by offering to pay for English classes to qualified talent or looking to see if there is diverse representation when hiring, promoting or offering tour of duties, Gaetano is passionate about stopping racial discrimination, one person, one job, one mentorship at a time. Gaetano states, “Lets go after minority talent. Talent attracts other talent.”

Fernanda da Silva Joao joined Bristol Myers Squibb for the opportunity to work in her passion and purpose. Receiving mentorship and support for her personal development, Fernanda is passionate about supporting others to succeed in their career. As PBRG lead, Fernanda is able to work in her passion to move forward diversity and inclusion in Brazil. She speaks of diversification of suppliers to provide innovative solutions for patients. Although the Black and Brown population is a majority in Brazil, we still have opportunities to improve racial and gender inequalities and to connect with those that are unseen by others. Fernando is optimistic about the progress she sees with diversity and inclusion and attributes some of that progress here with engaging leadership. She states, “We have seen great progress. I see more opportunities that my kids will have when I was their age.”

In Part 1 of this month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Carla Ayala, manager GPS Emerging Leaders Program and Stefan Ade, Business Insights & Analytics MBA Rotational Development Program, two recent early career hires at BMS.

Born in Ecuador, South America, and educated in Mexico, Carla came to the United States as a Harvard Medical School intern where she was exposed to both academics and the manufacturing production field.  But it was going after new credentials in the biotechnology business that brought her to Bristol Myers Squibb. Craving a sense of community, Carla found Bristol Myers Squibb a workplace where she was able find a sense of community.  She is an active member of the PBRB Organization for Latino Achievement or OLA, where she is able to leverage this community’s talent to create opportunities for top international students at highly competitive universities find pathways to be considered for roles within the company.

Born in Cameroon, West Africa, Stefan received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland Baltimore County. Stefan worked as a technician which led him to pharmacy school, internships and MBA program. It was one of his mentors that recommended an internship at Bristol Myers Squibb.  Stefan describes his internship as an amazing experience, which led to a full-time role in Business Insights & Analytics MBA Rotational Development Program. Stefan seeks to bring his experiences at Howard University pharmacy school and his business education to Bristol Myers Squibb and bring value to projects that create innovations for unmet patient needs.  He talks about the power of mentorship and connecting with a diverse network of people who shared an interest in helping him develop. Stefan enjoys sharing his experiences and is paying it forward by participating in the Tomorrow Innovator Initiative where he works on the pillar created to increase visibility and recruit the next generation of minority talent.

In this month’s episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Adam Taliaferro, director, Strategic Alliance lead, U.S. Policy & Government Affairs. Passionate about playing football, Adam was offered a scholarship to play at Penn State bringing him closer to realizing his dream of possibly playing professionally. At the fifth game in his freshman year against rival Ohio State, Adam made a routine helmet-to-helmet tackle that would change the course of his life. He had broken his neck — a similar injury suffered by the late Christopher Reeve. Given only a 3% chance of ever walking again, Adam fought insurmountable odds to not only walk, but to walk well.

Adam’s hope that he would walk again was fueled by the constant support of people, family and friends that encouraged him every day. “No one person can get through this type of injury by themselves,” Adam explains. His desire to help patients overcome adversary led to an advocacy position at Bristol Myers Squibb in U.S. Policy & Governance Affairs. Adam educates patient advocates on health policy and how to make their voices heard to state policy makers about the importance of access.