Wendy-Dobson Helaire, PhD
Commercial Lead,
COVID Therapeutics
*The views and opinions expressed in this profile are those of the professional and do not necessarily reflect the official policies of their employer.
Tell us about your career path
I have always loved science, research, and discovery as well as being on the cutting edge of innovation. I also needed to figure out what I was looking for; which took a lot of introspection because I had been on this very focused academic path without much exposure to other career possibilities.
As a result, I didn’t have a strong sense of what was out there and I didn’t know what I would like. I set out to research through networking and informational interviews to identify what truly piqued my interest, which is when my interests in scientific and business strategy stem from.
Wendy completed her PhD at the University of Toronto and her MBA with a health sector specialization at the University of Western Ontario. She is also a pharmaceutical commercialization innovator with a passion for supporting therapeutic treatment market access.
I was clear in not just sharing my development plan with just my manager but my broader network. This helped me show my interests and willingness to demonstrate my capabilities to people outside my department and played a key part in my transition.
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What does a typical project look like?
In essence, a commercial lead coordinates the launch for therapeutics to get to market. They wear numerous hats as they mobilize marketing, medical affairs, and market access to bring a therapeutic further along its launch path.
I think of projects like journeys. Most products have an 18-24 month launch timeline and there are many steps in that timeframe that need to be coordinated in order to be successful. We need to build out the team to support us by identifying the representation required from key functions (e.g. regulatory affairs, medical affairs, and market access) for a product launch.
We work to develop a work-back schedule for that 18-24 month launch timeline with key priorities and checkpoints. This also includes identifying interdependencies (e.g. the medical team coordinating documentation with regulatory affairs for a submission).
Furthermore, we often have a global team coordinating launches in multiple countries. This means that there is lots of collateral created to support the dissemination of medical information requiring coordination between the local and global teams.
What advice would you give grad students looking to pursue careers in this space?
First and foremost, do good work in your role. It’s also key to demonstrate your interests and look for ways to contribute to projects of interest, especially if you’re looking for opportunities outside of your discipline. Don’t be afraid to approach people; get in their heads so that you’re top of mind.
Furthermore, people take many different paths before transitioning into a commercial lead role. People have often started in sales to get some commercial experience whereas others start in MSL roles.
With any path you take, it’s key to develop the capacity to demonstrate strategic thinking and bring teams together to achieve common goals.
How has COVID-19 impacted your work?
I used to work in the office which was key for collaboration, information flow and connection. However, we have been working from home to protect our colleagues in manufacturing that need to go into the office.
The dynamic of work has definitely changed, and I didn’t realize how much of an extrovert I was! Furthermore, I find that it’s a little more difficult to have those quick conversations that really help us work as smoothly as possible.
It can be pretty easy to end up in a lot of meetings when coordinating various teams and juggling independent work, so you need to be careful to avoid work days from getting too long.
S2BN