Beatrice Nyagode, PhD

Interview By Jeff Mader, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow, Dept. of Neurosurgery

Early on, Dr. Betty Nyagode combined her talent and passion by double majoring in Chemistry (her talent) and Zoology (her passion) for her undergraduate studies in Kenya. She then earned her master’s degree in Organic Chemistry focusing on chemical ecology. Following the completion of her master’s degree, Dr. Nyagode moved to the United States to pursue her PhD at the University of Florida (UF), where her work concentrated on medicinal chemistry with particular focus on toxicology and metabolism. After her PhD was completed, she made Emory University home for the duration of her postdoctoral studies within the Department of Pharmacology in the laboratory of Dr. Edward T. Morgan. During her postdoctoral fellowship from 2007-2013, Dr. Nyagode published 8 papers, being the first author on 4 of them.  Following a very productive postdoctoral fellowship, Dr. Nyagode moved on from her academic postdoc position into an industry scientist position at Procter & Gamble, where she currently works as the Product Vigilance Manager for skin care products including the Olay® product line.

Do you have any advice for postdocs who are considering careers in the biotech and pharmaceutical industry?

It is my firm belief that your career path is determined by what you want to do and how you want to spend your time on a daily basis.  No one knows you better than yourself and only when your job is aligned with your abilities and passion – will you perform at your very best. I was fortunate that my graduate and postdoctoral advisors were perfect fits for me and encouraged me to seek out my true interests.  I would encourage postdocs to get to know their “true self” through rigorous introspection, as it will give you valuable knowledge and inspiration about what path you should take. 

What do you feel is the biggest difference between working in academia vs. industry?

Academic science is primarily about exploration and the generation of novel ideas and discoveries. My current work is driven by a passion for consumer safety which supports our ability to continue providing superior quality products that improve the lives of our consumers and allow us to be leaders in the industry. I do this by analyzing the performance of products our company has already put into market, providing safety knowledge and creating consumer insights.  Although companies in industry are motivated by business objectives there are numerous positions that allow you to utilize your training and continue to conduct good science.

What experiences during your postdoctoral training, or otherwise, have helped develop the skills you apply in your current position as Product Vigilance Manager at Procter & Gamble?

The valuable qualities and skills I use in my current position have been built incrementally, experience by experience, throughout the entirety of my life. The most important skills I execute on a daily basis are very simple but extremely valuable. My time as a graduate student and as a postdoc instilled in me the importance of extensive preparation. Before embarking on any task, I believe you must focus on both preparation and delivery. I truly believe in practice, practice, practice! For example, before a big presentation or a meeting, I make sure to give adequate time to prepare what I am going to say and then practice how I want to say it - perform a “dry-run” so to speak.  This preparation gives me increased confidence and improves my ability to do a good job. I routinely seek feedback from my peers and mentors in order to gain alternative perspective and insight and learn new things.  Additionally, the time spent developing good interpersonal and communication skills has proved to be invaluable.  I have to communicate effectively with scientists and non-scientists alike - making sure that the information I am trying to convey in meetings, presentations and written reports is easily understood by audiences with diverse professional backgrounds.

What does a typical day look like in your current position?

First, I have to admit, I spend no time in the lab. The goal of my work is to evaluate P&G products that are currently in the market with the goal of delivering proactive product vigilance and contributing to continuous product improvements. To accomplish this I review large amounts of data and then establish associations between the data and consumer behavior and experiences.  Any new insights we get from these studies is used to direct our company’s decisions on product refinement with the focus on delivering even better products. This means I spend a great deal of time on my computer and in meetings.

In your exploration of career options did you use any of the available resources at Emory, such as the Office of Postdoctoral Education or Postdoctoral Association?

These programs were very helpful in molding my career path. The speakers from both academia and industry they brought in were wonderful. The symposia and talks put on by the OPE and PDA exposed me to career paths and opportunities that I otherwise would not have known existed. Since I have worked at P&G I have forwarded job advertisements to the OPE at Emory to extend to other postdocs the opportunity I was given.

This interview was published in September 2015.