1. What do you do at Evergen?
As the Director of HR Operations I manage the implementation and improvement of our benefits, compensation, and wellness programs.
A significant part of my role is stewarding these programs at the individual level. No matter how busy we get, I’m always delighted to help an employee who needs assistance.
Beyond that, I lead project work. For example, we are currently rolling out clinical training to the entire organization, working closely with our clinical, R&D, and commercial teams. I also implement and integrate new systems and technologies with our HR information system (HRIS) on a regular basis and recently implemented an employee recognition platform. On the data and analytics side, I work closely with finance on headcount budgets, payroll spend, open positions, and pending hires.
I work extensively on compensation benchmarking to ensure we make good decisions about talent while supporting Evergen's continued growth in the biomaterials and regenerative medicine space. If you visit our Alachua location, you'll see our employee wall showcasing everyone who's been with the company for over five years. The number of photos is a testament to how we value and invest in our people!
2. What inspired you to join the regenerative medicine/CDMO industry, and what keeps you motivated?
Improving someone's health and quality of life is the best gift you can give, and we get to do that every day at Evergen. The patient impact was definitely my initial draw to the industry.
What keeps me motivated now is the tremendous growth potential in the CDMO space. We're pioneering this segment in the regenerative biologic field with multiple technology platforms and directly serving specific patient needs. It's exciting because it constantly opens new opportunities.
Year by year there’s more opportunities to grow because we're continuously evolving. I feel like we're at a pre-launch stage of the company, not in the sense that we don't have a great 25-year track record, but I see Evergen swirling around that growth inflection point right now, which makes it an incredibly exciting time to be part of this company.
3. Evergen has been busy with company acquisitions. What have you learned from these acquisitions about how to quickly integrate different company cultures?
From Evergen's acquisitions, I've learned that transparency, trust, and open communication are key to successfully integrating different company cultures. Building strong relationships with incoming companies is probably the number one way to integrate; being there in person,shaking hands, looking people in the eyes, and creating that sense of humanity.
There's a lot of collaboration at Evergen, but also significant ownership at the individual level. We also do a good job of explaining our overall direction to anyone who wants to know and openly discussing why we're focusing on specific segments, the data points behind our decisions, and our revenue and financial goals for the year. We like to help new team members understand their role within our broader mission of improving patient outcomes through regenerative medicine.
4. What stands out the most for you about Evergen’s values and culture?
Throughout my almost 10 years at Evergen, what stands out to me is our extremely clear vision of becoming the CDMO of choice for our OEM partners.
We always strive to be more than just a company to our employees and are all driven by our unwavering commitment to meeting patient needs and enhancing patient lives. I deeply value the humanity in what we do.
Accountability is also huge for me. It requires self-discipline, which I believe is fundamental for managing yourself and others effectively. This accountability at Evergen shows up in how we take ownership of our workplace, right down to the small things like tidying up conference rooms.
5. We always say everything at Evergen starts with the patient. What does that mean in your role?
In my role, I still have a direct line to patients, both emotionally and in my work. I see my responsibility as taking care of the people who take care of the patients. The people creating the implants and biomaterials need proper support to deliver the high quality products that ultimately improve patient outcomes.
This means providing education and training to ensure everyone meets our extremely high quality standards. A significant part of my job is supporting leaders to build the best teams possible who can create the best biomaterials possible. We focus on creating a team that’s empowered and driven to make a real impact.
The CDMO space in regenerative medicine offers tremendous potential, and as we continue pioneering multiple technology platforms, there are always new opportunities to evolve and make a greater patient impact year after year.
