ISPE Philippines Women in Pharma® Soiree – An Evening of Celebration and Conversation
In celebration of International Women’s Month, ISPE Philippines Affiliate hosted an evening of networking dubbed Women in Pharma® Soiree – An Evening of Celebration and Conversation, held 22 March 2024 at the Westgate Filinvest City. The dinner and networking event was organized by the ISPE Philippines Affiliate Women in Pharma® core team led by its Chair, Jayvee Lalusis, MD. The event aligned with this year’s International Women’s Month campaign theme, #InspireInclusion, and was attended by close to fifty women professionals and allies from the pharma industry. The student sector – students enrolled in the fields of pharmacy and chemistry – were also in attendance.
Women in Pharma® International Steering Committee Chair, Vivien Santillan, opened the program with a welcome message, sharing her passion and conviction of the crucial role women play in the industry. She underlined what had been achieved thus far with the Women in Pharma® movement across the globe. She also emphasized what else can and needs to be done to foster and nurture an environment where biases and stereotypes are openly discussed and addressed, noting that open dialog can help fuel a meaningful change in achieving a future of true inclusivity and equity in the pharma industry. On the local level, Santillan encouraged the professionals in attendance to truly inspire inclusion and serve as advocates of an inclusive and diverse pharma industry in the Philippines.
To provide inspiration to the professionals and students in attendance, ISPE Philippines Affiliate Founding President Pura Averilla shared a powerful overview of her journey starting as a young woman neophyte in the pharma industry treading the field of quality. She shared how, despite gender and age biases, her steadfastness and perseverance helped her navigate the industry and eventually propel her career to holding several positions across different pharma organizations. Averilla discussed how she had started as a Quality Operations Officer at United Laboratories, Inc., and over time, made her way to securing the coveted title of Country Quality Lead at Pfizer. She shared experiences from when she was starting as a quality practitioner, noting she was always inquisitive. Averilla shared how she didn’t shy away from questioning the norms or providing suggestions and recommendations to seemingly simple process issues. In return, she succeeded in generating huge efficiency gains and significant savings to the company. Averilla further underscored the value of maximizing one’s strengths, being humble in knowing one’s own weaknesses, and finding a mentor to help steer one’s career path. Though now retired, Averilla remains one of the most sought-after quality professionals in the Philippines, providing expert counsel to seasoned experts and upcoming players in the industry.
The attendees were divided into several small groups for the main networking session, which provided opportunities to discuss personal views and insights. The small group discussions also enabled attendees to share their experiences in relation to several conversation starter questions around mentorship and inspirational pharma leaders, pivotal career moments, career achievements, short-term and long-term goals, and career aspirations. This session gave each member a more in-depth understanding and appreciation of the different experiences women face in and around their careers and personal lives, and as a result, helped others understand how to better support and serve as allies. Group members were rotated during the small group discussions to give opportunities to meet everyone in the room. Attendees noted that it was a wonderful experience to get to know like-minded people, openly share their own insights, and listen to other’s perspectives.
It was indeed an evening of empowering conversations, leaving everyone energized and inspired with the thought that the Philippines Affiliate Women in Pharma group has gained allies, grown its network, and strengthened its support system. What many thought would be an event just to reconnect with former colleagues and to meet new friends actually morphed into the beginning of a bond to foster diversity and inclusivity.
With the success of this recently concluded Women in Pharma® Soiree, another networking event is set for the Philippines Affiliate this summer/fall. The ISPE Philippines Affiliate Women in Pharma core group plans to bring the event closer to more professionals and students to achieve greater representation and stronger alliances for Women in Pharma® in the country.
The ISPE Philippines Affiliate Women in Pharma® group was founded in 2017. Since its inception, various programs and several networking events have been initiated to create a venue for professionals in the pharma industry to connect and be a part of a greater mission of shaping the future of the pharma industry in the country. The Women in Pharma Mentor® Circle Program was launched in the Philippines in 2020. This program ran for nine months and consisted of pharma professionals, as well as emerging leaders and students, covering a variety of topics from technical knowledge to country labor and professional laws, financial literacy, and personal development among others with the objective to equip upcoming professionals to be well-rounded and be strong pillars of the industry.
Learn more about how to get involved with a local ISPE Affiliate or Chapter as an ISPE member.
View a full listing of upcoming Women in Pharma events.
