We start the #BehindTheScenes interview series dedicated to the Pharma Division with Emanuele Conte, Business Unit Manager.
Let’s start from the beginning, what and how were your first steps in the company?
I started in 2008, freshly graduated in Chemistry and before the Mérieux NutriSciences acquisition, when the company was called Chelab. From 2008 to 2012 I was a chemical analyst for the environmental division-I spent two very nice years in Sicily where I started to gain experience in laboratory management, and hey, Sicily is beautiful and rich in history so there was always something new to discover.
Since the acquisition of Chelab by the Mérieux NutriSciences Group, have you changed roles?
Yes, from 2012 to 2016, I worked as Industrial Performance Manager for the Food division. From 2016 to 2021, I moved to the Pharma, Healthcare and Cosmetics division as Operation manager, and since last year, I have been the Business Unit Manager.
You have had the opportunity to experience various realities of the Mérieux Group, what motivates you to stay in the pharmaceutical one?
Our division is very challenging; there is never a dull moment. Improvement has to be continuous, and this is a challenge for us as well as a great responsibility. If it is a necessity for all industries, I think for pharma it is more pressing since changes happen very quickly. Our customers, the pharmaceutical companies we work with every day, are excellences in the industrial sector, and every week we have a different audit to ascertain the correct application of quality regimes – in our laboratories we operate under three different regimes (GMP, GLP and ISO), a major challenge for all the teams involved! In addition to these, there are inspections by Regulatory Agencies (FDA, AIFA, Ministries etc.) aimed at maintaining the certification status of our division.
What was the biggest challenge you faced?
Reliability is what customers rightly demand of us. Therefore, the most important challenge was to adapt to data integrity and data security requirements. A great deal of work involved both quality managers and IT systems in order to implement all the requirements for data tracking and traceability of the work performed in the various laboratories.
Did the period characterized by the Covid-19 pandemic result in a paradigm shift at your division?
Together with my colleagues, who have shown great professionalism and spirit of adaptation, we quickly reorganized work shifts and services to reduce the number of people in each laboratory and ensure not only compliance with legislative decrees, but more importantly, the safety of everyone. But also the boom in biocide requests that have had a major impact on all functions of the division to respond quickly to market demands and the need to have these products available on the shelves. Do you remember? At the beginning, they were nowhere to be found.
At all times you talk about the team you work with, but what are the characteristics you look for in a person and those you would rather not find?
I am looking for people who are versatile, optimistic, precise and punctual, with a strong desire to learn and improve, and who know how to work well with the rest of the group. Since 2016, we have doubled our staff, and that says a lot about working in synergy with all the people involved who work in pharma. Not only in the Operation side, but also with the commercial and customer care side who are our customer direct line, reporting to us not only their needs but also the difficulties that may arise during a project.
You talked previously about continuous improvement of the Pharma division, what are your next goals?
We are growing and should be able to expand laboratory areas. We also want to continue to expand our international markets, and a secret dream is the creation of a network of international laboratories dedicated to pharma and healthcare. We are known and appreciated especially by the Italian companies, and today they are beginning to know and appreciate us in France and Spain. I think we have great potential to continue on this path and … maybe even give a little acceleration.
Last question, the most atypical situation that happened to you?
I will start by saying that it does not concern our customers, that is, the companies we work with. However, sometimes private citizens also come to us with requests let me say “CSI-like”. Since we are an analytical laboratory and technologies are of great interest for the general public – just look at the success of these TV series and the higher number of these on TV as well – I can understand the interest everyone has in unknown situations and the desire to better understand what is around us.