Julie Willecomme

"Before wanting to be a scientist, I wanted to be an interpreter and I feel I have partially achieved that aspiration by working in a foreign country! (I am French...) I couldn’t find a job in France quick enough (my patience is legendary...) so I ‘exported’ myself to the UK in 2002 and never looked back! I worked in the Pharmaceutical Industry as an analytical scientist for 13 years (at Evotec OAI, Pfizer and GSK) before I realised I needed a change! In 2014, I went on a Pulse assignment with Project HOPE UK (Pulse is a GSK programme that sends motivated employees to work with charities for 3-6 months) and developed a Young Entrepreneur Curriculum for young adults in the township of Munsieville (near Johannesburg in South Africa). These life-changing 6 months taught me 2 things: 1) You are a lot more resourceful than you think! 2) I needed a change [another one!] On my return to GSK in 2015, I started a new job (secondment) in communications and change management to support the analytical business plan. At the end of 2016 I was made permanent in a job that I created [YAY!!!] as Engagement & Change Management Manager. After just over 3 years in this role, I wanted a new challenge. I joined the Making it Easier team in the Office of the CEO on a 9-month secondment as a communication and change enabler for the new GSK content strategy. This shows that, as you mature and develop knowledge & ‘transferable skills’ you may evolve into something you never considered! In January 2019, I joined Mundipharma IT Services in Cambridge as an IT Business Change Lead. I hadn't planned to leave GSK but I was approached via LinkedIn, liked the job description and decided to 'go for it'! My line manager was the reason I decided to join and I had fun there. I lead the communications, change, training and adoption activities for a global Finance transformation - that was quite an experience! In November 2021, I joined Johnson Matthey in Royston as a Change Manager, involved in their ongoing Digital Transformation and that turned out not to be the right place for me. If you want to know more, let's talk about it when we meet!In August 2022, I joined AstraZeneca as Science Communication & Engagement Lead - I got a really good feeling about my line manager during the interview process and it's super nice to be back in the familiar environment of big pharma, supporting scientists and our leadership team with their communications.Have I found my ideal work environment? - too early to tell but I'm excited at the possibilities that a big company can offer. Equally, I'm not afraid to move on if/when needed. I know some will look at my career path and think that it looks messy but it's been an adventure and it is not over yet.I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up and that is part of the fun! If you are reading this, don't forget to enjoy the journey and remember that whatever the outcome, every experience is a learning. There is 'the right enviro"

"At a really high level, I help scientists communicate their science in a way that non-experts can understand and make our work visible across Research & Development and AstraZeneca. I also support my department's leadership team with communications and engagement activities to create a nice culture and environment for our scientists to work in. There is more to the job than meets the eye but I’ll let you ask me what you want to know."

"I started my career as an analytical scientist and worked my way around various analytical jobs before I decided it was time for a change and got a job in engagement, communication and even change management. When I started working, I had no idea that I would end up doing a job that is not directly related to my degree... And the journey is not over!"

"Let me say this first: I'm not very rock'n'roll. I never was a party animal even when I was young so my interests are on the quieter end of the spectrum. I like good food, travelling and spending time with friends. If I can combine all three it's even better like when we went to Strasbourg (where I did my Masters) with friends for a weekend and went to an amazing restaurant there - that was amazing!We have a cat called Gin, she's lovely and slightly mad at the same time which makes for great cuddles and entertainment. I've always been a cat person and now I own one - about time!I'm pretty active - whether it's a step, body pump or cyclone class at the gym or a long weekend walk, if I don't do my daily steps I feel really bad, which is probably the very reason these fancy smart watches exist. You got me there!!!I'm a fan of going to the cinema although I've not quite gone back up to pre-covid levels. It's incredibly difficult to revive old habits when you've lost them. More work required there."

"There's nothing very routine about work and that's probably why I like it. There are some things that keep coming back like...- Looking around on our company's communication channels to look for events and development opportunities that may be of interest to our scientists - and make it visible to them.- Helping people with their science presentations, posters and other communications to clearly articulate the 'why should other people care about this' and celebrate our achievements.- Get involved of all sorts of things because I'm curious and like to be helpful (and I'm just very bad at saying no....)"

"I have a Masters in Analytical Chemistry from École européenne de Chimie, Polymères et Matériaux (ECPM), Strasbourg – France.I also have a certification in Change Management from ProSci."