| | APRIL 2024MANAGEHRMAGAZINE.COM8In MyOpinionCAREER OBSERVATIONSBy Andrea G. Procaccino, Vice President of Global Talent Management, SyscoAs a child, I remember the joy of climbing and swinging from one bar to another on a jungle gym in the park while my parents laughed and looked on. I didn't approach the jungle gym with a plan per se. When the opportunity presented itself to me, I decided where to go or climb to get to the top in the most exciting, efficient way. My career has been no different. I always say that your career is a jungle gym, not a ladder. You sometimes go up or over laterally or even down a rung to go even higher to your ultimate goal. Isn't it more exciting that way? I know it has been for me, and I've enjoyed every minute of it! In college, I knew that I wanted to major in one of the life sciences (biochemistry) as I found the complexity and ambiguity of science so intriguing. I knew I didn't want to spend years and years in medical school, and as an animal lover, I knew I couldn't work in a lab doing animal experiments. Let's face it, I was a business suit and killer pair of heels kind of girl! So, I joined Johnson & Johnson's Ortho Pharmaceutical Corporation two weeks after college as a Clinical Research Associate and climbed the ladder in clinical research and site management. I thought in my naivety that you had one way to go: up the ladder. I didn't even consider that you could change your career trajectory dramatically, which I would do years later. Then, I was given an opportunity at JNJ to get trained and certified in learning and development and start and grow an L&D department in their Pharma sector. This was Andrea G. Procaccino
< Page 7 | Page 9 >