Tag: LatinX + Friends

  • Where Science Meets Access: How Daniela Rodriguez Helps Mammotome Provide Life-Saving Technology

    Where Science Meets Access: How Daniela Rodriguez Helps Mammotome Provide Life-Saving Technology

    After childhood dreams of being a doctor, Supplier Management Engineer Daniela Rodriguez found a career path that blends her skills in math and her passion for problem-solving by helping others through medical technology. Daniela explains her journey to mechanical engineering and Mammotome, her involvement in Danaher’s LatinX + Friends Associate Resource Group, and why considering gender and race is crucial to providing quality medical care.

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    Tell me a bit about Mammotome and your role there.

    Mammotome is a global leader in breast cancer diagnostics and surgical solutions. We pioneered vacuum-assisted breast biopsy, which improved breast cancer diagnostics, as well as the overall patient experience because the procedure is minimally invasive. It was a real game-changer in the industry.

    I’m a supplier management engineer, which means I’m the bridge between our contract manufacturing suppliers and us. Day-to-day, I facilitate conversations with our contract manufacturers, everything from helping out with quality changes to delivery issues. In our group, we like to call ourselves firefighters, because when issues arise, we’re the first to know. We put out the fires by finding solutions, both in the moment and for the long term.

    I also created and now oversee our obsolescence program, which addresses parts of our equipment from suppliers that are getting older and maybe going out of production, not recommended for new design, or parts that are hard to procure. We try to forecast the demand and find alternates if possible. It’s a cross-functional effort within our company—everybody’s involved. 

    My work is very dynamic. Every day is different, which is why I enjoy my job. It keeps my blood pumping!

    What sparked your interest in engineering? And what brought you to Mammotome? 

    Part of it is that engineering runs in my family: My father was a mechanical engineer. He’d studied and worked in the U.S. but later moved back to Colombia, married my mom and had me. When I was a teenager, we immigrated to the U.S. from Colombia in pursuit of a better life. Math and science were always my strongest subjects—I think partly because they’re universal. It didn’t matter that I was learning them in my second language. I’d always wanted to be a doctor because identifying and solving problems fascinated me, and problem-solving is also what drove me to love engineering. Engineering allowed me to combine my passion for medical work with my skills in math. So I became the first female engineer in my family. 

    After getting my degree in mechanical engineering, I got a job at a contact lens manufacturer. That was in Atlanta, where I went to school. Eventually, I made my way to Ohio. I have family near Cincinnati, which is a major biomedical hub, with companies like Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, Ethicon, and, of course, Mammotome. I knew about Mammotome’s top-of-the-line products, but what really attracted me was the cause and how the company puts patients first.

    Being a woman, the issue of breast cancer hits close to home. On one hand, it doesn’t matter what your social, racial, or political background is. Cancer is something that is a risk to all of us. On the other hand, Hispanic women are one of the least likely groups to seek out preventative measures for breast cancer. There are lots of reasons—finances, language barriers, lack of health insurance—but, as a Hispanic woman, this issue really speaks to me.

    Knowing that we are impacting women’s lives motivates me to get up each morning and do the best I can.

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    How have you learned and grown at Mammotome?

    When I first started here, Danaher Business System (DBS) tools quickly oriented me with the basics, so I could hit the ground running. From there, I was blessed with a great team and manager who helped me. I learn by asking questions. I’m definitely not a shy person when it comes to not knowing things, and the culture at Mammotome welcomes people who want to learn, to know more, and to continuously improve. Furthermore, my boss trusts me to take on new tasks, while still providing guidance if I need it. Their management style really works well for me, and we get along great.

    The obsolescence program is a great example of a task he gave me to really take on and make my own. Before I started, people would talk through a list of components every week, but we’ve improved the process by adding timelines, clarifying end goals, and allocating resources. Now, the obsolescence program has become one of our biggest cross-department meetings and has helped prevent serious supply chain obstacles. Sourcing components remains an ongoing challenge, not only because of the pandemic but also due to other global crises like a water shortage in Taiwan, where half of the world’s semiconductors are made, for example. But the program has done a lot, and it’s something that I’m very proud of owning and working on.

    Finally, I’ve also grown in terms of advocacy. I’m heavily involved within the company with Danaher’s LatinX + Friends Associate Resource Group (ARG), Mammotome Inclusion and Belonging initiatives, the Society of Women Engineers and the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers. My focus is on advocating for and increasing the representation of Hispanic women in roles like mine.

    Tell us more about your advocacy work and participation with the LatinX + Friends ARG.

    Women, especially women of color, are underrepresented in STEM. That data speaks for itself, but I also learned about the additional challenges we face from an early age, when my father explained, “You have to work twice as hard to be considered half as good.” I think times are changing, and I want to see and be a part of that change. That’s why it’s important for me to be part of the LatinX group. No one else in my direct department is in that ARG, so I like to keep people informed about what we do. 

    I think people forget how many different Hispanic identities there are, especially in Latin America. Sometimes people can’t find my home country, Colombia, on a map, or they misspell it with a “u.” If you put a Colombian, an Argentinian, and a Mexican person in a room, we’re all going to speak differently and have different customs. So with the LatinX + Friends ARG, I get to learn more about other cultures while also teaching fellow associates about my own. We’re proud of our Hispanic heritage 365 days a year, not just in October. It can be hard to have conversations about race, especially for me, as someone who is non-confrontational. I’m trying to learn—by taking courses and just through better understanding—how to handle a room and get my point across without it being too personal or too emotional.

    As a Colombian, I want to create a positive memory for people. And as a woman, too. There weren’t a lot of female engineers as role models for me growing up, but those few that were there, like my professors in college, really inspired me. I’d like to be an inspiration for future generations. 

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    What’s next in your career? What are you excited about?

    I’m excited to connect more in person. I started just a few months before the pandemic hit, so most of my work has been online. That meant I was able to work from Colombia for several months and spend a lot of time with my family, which was wonderful. But I’m definitely a people person, and, once it’s safe, I would love to get more involved with Mammotome’s volunteer events in the community, maybe even create new volunteer opportunities. Data shows that Hispanic women respond more to community-based programs that promote proper breast care and early breast cancer detection, so this work is vital and important for my own advocacy goals. 

    Right now, I’m focused on doing my best work and learning from my peers. I would like to continue down my path at Danaher, which may lead to becoming a subject matter expert or, eventually, a people leader. I like to think I’m someone people can trust and communicate with. Being that type of leader inspires me, and I think with proper training I could be very successful in that role. Thanks to Danaher’s tools, I’ve been able to take some courses, and I know there is a guided path forward for career growth. 


    Interested in joining Daniela and the rest of the Danaher team? Check out open roles or join our talent community today. 

  • Gerardo Gutierrez on Helping Scientists Solve Problems

    Gerardo Gutierrez on Helping Scientists Solve Problems

    After spending most of his career on the bench leading R&D projects, Gerardo Gutierrez initially wasn’t sure about switching to sales. But at Cytiva, he’s realized R&D and sales have more in common than he imagined—and it all comes back to helping patients. Gerardo reflects on joining the company during COVID-19, shares his experience in Danaher’s LatinX + Friends Associate Resource Group (ARG), and explains what he’s working on going forward.

    First, what do you do at Cytiva?

    I’m a sales specialist for our Biacore instruments, which means I support our customers—researchers at universities and biotech and pharmaceutical companies—who use our technology to develop new therapies. Biacore machines allow them to study the interactions between molecules in real time. If they want to test a new drug, for example, they can see exactly where, and for how long, antibodies stay bonded to a specific protein. A group of scientists that helped develop one of the COVID-19 vaccines last year used our instruments to verify parts of the virus and characterize its binding territories.

    It’s my job to talk with customers about the experiments they want to do, then use my knowledge on Biacore and the science behind it to advise them on which option will give them the best results. Essentially, I get to help scientists solve problems so they can help their patients. That’s my passion, and I’m so thankful I get to be part of work that matters.

    So I knew it was a great company and a great product. But when the opportunity to join came up, I was still a little worried at first; I’d spent 12 years on the bench, and I wasn’t sure if sales was the right move for me. Then I started having informational interviews with some of the managers, and I realized how similar the work was to what I’d done at UGA, when I was designing experiments. You talk with researchers to understand their needs and their short- and long-term plans, and then you partner with them to help them succeed.

    What’s challenging about your job?

    Right now, because of COVID-19, we can’t meet face-to-face with our customers. But I think that’s a challenge we’ve been able to turn into some great opportunities. For one thing, I cover a lot of territory, and I can reach more customers remotely than I can in person. And when I schedule calls, I try to get the whole team together—the account manager, the application scientists, the field engineer, and me. That way we can all meet the customer at the same time and answer any questions they have right away. We call it “showing Cytiva muscle”! I think it’s helped customers be confident in our team and the products we offer.

    What’s the culture like on your team?

    I first joined in August 2020, so I’ve been working from home so far—and I’d always wondered how that would work in terms of getting to know your colleagues. But we have so many tools we can use to communicate, I actually feel very close to my team. Once a week, we get on a call and go outside—you can walk, garden, whatever you want to do—and just chat about anything except work. One of my teammates was growing chili peppers, so I gave him a recipe. Little things like that really bring us together, even though we’re all remote. 

    Tell us about getting involved in Danaher’s LatinX + Friends Associate Resource Group.

    I’d never had the chance to join a group like this before, so when I first heard about it I thought, “Well, let’s see what I can learn.” And it’s been great. We’ve had events like salsa lessons, which I never expected at work. But the ARG is also a place to share our struggles and successes—and our ideas. We help each other with our personal growth plans, which is something everyone at Danaher updates with their manager every six months. Being new to the team, it’s been so helpful seeing how others develop and present their plans.

    The ARG has also given us an opportunity to share our culture, costumes, and language with other associates—and to know that’s appreciated here. A lot of companies have mission statements around inclusion, but at Danaher and Cytiva it’s not just words. You see it in action. English isn’t my first language and I have an accent, so I’ve sometimes felt shy. But I’ve realized that people on my team are truly interested. They want to hear about how to prepare a certain dish or pronounce a certain word. That gives me more confidence and makes me feel like I belong.

    Additionally, with everything becoming increasingly global, it’s more important than ever for all of us to learn about different backgrounds. Inclusion is something we should be proud of and discuss on a daily basis. It helps everybody.

    What’s next for you?

    There are so many opportunities to grow. It’s hard to keep up! Not only within Cytiva, but throughout Danaher. One thing I appreciate about working here, though, is that it’s not just the classes you can take and the tools you can learn. It’s the guidance you get. It’s kind of the best of both worlds—I feel a little like an entrepreneur in my job, because I’m in charge of my own business and territory. And I’m in charge of how I want to develop my career, too. But I also have so many people who are there to help.

    I’ve been interested in marketing, for example; I like the idea of reaching people who aren’t yet aware of our technology but could really be helped by it. So I shared that with my manager, and within a couple of days she suggested a class I could take and put me in touch with some people I could learn from. I feel like whatever I decide to do, I’ll have people supporting me and pointing me in the right direction.


    Interested in joining Gerardo and the rest of the Danaher team? Check out open roles or join our talent community today.