Heidi LaPensee

"I believe we all have many personality types and that we shouldn’t get too bogged down in the detail of who the questionnaire tells us we are. Last time I completed that I came out as a Communicator/Coach/Coordinator. That said, I do recognise the Influencer, Innovator, Developer personality types in who I am and what I do."

"I spend my days collaborating with colleagues and partners externally to find ways to bring our medicines in a more effective way. We spend a lot of time looking at the unmet need and then we will find a way to address that. I’m a visionary marketing leader and my superpower is working with teams to shape a crystal clear vision for the future. Once we have that “North Star” in place the plan of action is much easier to craft and the rest will follow."

"As I studied for my engineering degree it was apparent to me that a career in engineering was not where my heart lay. In my final year, I chose a dissertation that investigated replacement aortic heart valves. I loved it and from that point on my path was set. Whilst others looked at car engines, I went through scientific papers in the hospital with the goal of getting the materials used within the prosthetic heart valve just right. After university I was fortunate enough to be accepted onto the GSK Commercial Management Trainee Scheme which gave me valuable insight into sales and marketing across varying parts of the business. An area which I found particularly interesting was HIV. I was fascinated by passion and drive of the individuals – patients, clinicians, campaigners – who were part of the fight against this disease, and I decided to stay in the therapy for 12 years, working on many brands and initiatives across multiple pharma companies. "

"I live in Surrey, UK, with my husband, 3 teens/tweens and our cat, Leia. In my free time I like taking on adventures like heading to ski freestyle sessions with all the “kids” to learn new tricks, heading to the trails or to the Italian alps with my fab MTB girl crew (mountain biking was a new discovery in lockdown) or my most recent addition – running an ultramarathon with a Pfizer colleague. I also love to spend time with friends and family and to read and especially love mixing up the two with my “wine and book club”!"

"I work in a global team with many US-based colleagues, so my typical day is pretty meeting-heavy (usually via Teams) in the afternoons, whereas in the morning I spend more time focusing, thinking and progressing my projects. I’m very new into role so my main focus is on understanding and evolving the plans for the Patient strategy for our brand. I do spend as much time as I can collaborating with colleagues – I truly believe we can learn so much from each other. Whenever possible I like to get together as a team, although this is a bit more challenging in a global role but there are plenty of opportunities to travel so that’s always something to look forward to!"

"3 x A-levelsM.Eng at Sheffield University"