11 minute read
Membership NI Chamber in Conversation With
At the Heart of Health
Dr Dennise Broderick is Managing Director and President of Galen, a member of the Almac Group. She is responsible for the specialist pharmaceutical company’s global operations, marketing and governance. Mark Devenport spoke to Dennise recently, when she was the guest on episode one of NI Chamber’s new ‘In Conversation’ podcast, delivered in association with Narratology.
Born and raised in Co Cork and the eldest of four siblings, Dennise undertook a degree in biochemistry, followed by a PhD. Refl ecting on her initial foray into the academic world, she tells listeners: “I very quickly realised that the world of academia wasn’t for me. I tended to talk far too much to be in a lab all day! While I loved science, my second love was business. So when I fi nished my doctorate, I decided to move to the dark side, as many people told me at the time, and move into the business arena. The logical step for me was the pharmaceutical industry, where I could combine my passions together.” Her extensive CV includes roles in America, Australia and many parts of Europe and for the past ten years, she DR. DENNISE has held senior leadership roles. “I’m very passionate about leadership. It is a privilege to lead people and organisations. BRODERICK “Two and a half years ago, I came to Galen to take up this role. Everything I knew about this organisation spoke to my values as a person. It gave me everything I wanted in life – a career opportunity I was excited by and the Managing Director and President, Galen ability to be near family and friends. “I came in to this organisation very mindful of its legacy and I wanted to
NI CHAMBER IN CONVERSATION WITH
IN ASSOCIATION WITH NARRATOLOGY
About Narratology
Narratology Executive Search is a boutique headhunting fi rm appointing leaders to C-Suite, Director, Senior Manager and Board positions. Its expertise in managing bespoke executive recruitment solutions spans across industry sectors including manufacturing, agri-food, engineering, construction, technology, banking, insurance, legal and professional services, healthcare, retail and wider business services.
Narratology has successfully delivered for clients from multinationals, PLCs and NI Top 100 to family-owned fi rms, SMEs and start-ups, introducing key executives to make individual impact and strengthen existing leadership teams. The company understands the sensitivity and discretion required in approaching often complex assignments and in engaging with senior level candidates. It is committed to successful outcomes and a positive experience for all.
Narratology has the capability to recruit for corporate and industry-specifi c specialisms for roles in Northern Ireland and further afi eld, with the local understanding to truly appreciate our clients and their cultures.
For further information please contact Ruth McDonald MD at r.mcdonald@narratologyexec.com or on 02890446336
be very respectful of that. There are a lot of employees in Galen and in the group who have worked here for a very long time, so when I came in, I wanted to learn as much as I could about what it stood for. But of course, I also wanted to come in with a fresh pair of eyes, to see how we could build on that solid foundation.
“There has been a lot of organisational change to address and that’s always challenging. Some tough decisions had to be made and I’m very grateful that people came along with me. They did that because the fi rst thing I did was instill a culture.
“There was already a very strong culture in Almac and Galen but we had to get better at living it. The culture we’ve created today is one of honestly, openness and transparency. I believe in giving people the opportunity to fail and I don’t believe it’s a bad thing, it’s just another way to re-learn. It was about empowering people to grow and develop through taking chances, because pharmaceutical fi rms have to be about innovating.”
Under Dennise’s leadership, Galen has experienced signifi cant growth in the past two and a half years.
“We have grown the business signifi cantly, acquiring a company based out of Scandinavia, made further additions to increase our product portfolio and expanded our global footprint with partners. We like to attract very good talent. In Northern Ireland there is a signifi cant amount of really good talent out there and we o er them the opportunity to do what they do best, locally.”
Like most businesses, Galen has had to adapt signifi cantly in the past year, not least by dealing with the challenges of remote working across multiple global sites.
“We are very grateful to be of service during a time when the world needed the industry to step up and do the best it could, by bringing these vaccines to the marketplace. Almac and Galen have been very proud to do their part,” she says.
Looking to the future, Dennise shares some of her most immediate challenges.
“The biggest challenge for Galen now is growth. It comes down to pure strategy and ours is to grow through acquisitions. It’s always a challenge to identify opportunities and acquisitions that are good cultural fi ts. We are in activate mode, in terms of looking for these opportunities.
During the 30 minute podcast, Dennise also provides an insight into what motivates her.
“Being the best that I can be every day is really important to me – what is the standard I am holding myself accountable to? I accept that I’m human. I mightn’t like it some days, when I’d prefer to be superhuman, so it’s been a long journey to accepting that my best on any given day changes.
“Family, friends and loved ones are huge motivations for me personally. They build me up, are never afraid to be honest and are always there for me. Another great motivator for me is being of service. I have had great role models who have shown me what it is to be of service professionally and personally.
For Dennise, the measurement of business success is far more than a numbers game.
“One of our pillars in Galen is ‘have we had fun today? Did I enjoy what I did today, even if there were challenges and disagreements?’ For me, it’s always, ‘did the people around me feel like they achieved something?’ I’m a business person, so of course I love to see the numbers; we are about the bottom line but I’m hugely passionate about how we get there. For me, success is about achieving the things we want to achieve, in the right way. The adventure is every bit as important as the end destination.”
Episode one of the ‘In Conversation’ podcast is available to listen to now on the NI Chamber website, as well as on Spotify, iTunes and Google Podcasts.
UK’s Net Zero Champion Hears From NI Chamber Members
Andrew Griffith MP, the recently appointed UK Net Zero Business Champion, addressed a group of senior business leaders at the latest Energy Forum event hosted by NI Chamber and SONI.
Mr Griffith was appointed by the Prime Minister as the UK’s Net Zero Business Champion to support the business community to make credible plans to meet net zero targets by 2050 and showcase the UK’s place as a global leader in tackling climate change.
As part of an established series designed to help local businesses through the energy transition, he was invited by NI Chamber to hear about the work businesses and organisations in Northern Ireland are doing in this area ahead of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) later this year.
The group, which included CEOs and directors from transport, construction, finance, utilities, education and the manufacturing sectors, also heard from SONI Managing Director Alan Campbell, who provided an introduction to SONI’s new report and public consultation ‘Shaping Our Electricity Future,’ which considers different approaches to delivering a clean energy system in 2030 and beyond to 2050.
Following the event, UK Net Zero Business Champion
Andrew Griffith MP said: “It is vital that UK government and businesses work together to achieve lasting change across the economy and society, which is why it was great to meet business leaders in Northern Ireland and to welcome their ambitious work to transition to a clean, green economy.
“There is still more work to be done, and I look forward to further engaging with businesses and sectors across Northern Ireland to identify the best ways to build back greener and reduce the UK’s contribution to climate change.”
NI Chamber Chief Executive Ann McGregor said it was a very positive engagement: “Energy and sustainability are at the top of the business agenda right now and NI Chamber is advocating for greater support to enable businesses to meet net zero targets. As the UK prepares to host COP26 in November, the time is right to further ramp up our interactions with policy makers on the issue.
“We had a very useful session with Andrew Griffith MP, who will have taken much away from his conversations with our business leaders. They are leading the way in helping Northern Ireland to reach its clean energy ambitions and as a region, we have made excellent progress on electricity generated from renewable sources. However, there is much more to do and infrastructure strategy, planning, the rating system, enhanced capital allowances and enterprise supports are key.
“We thank Mr Griffith for his time and look forward to continued engagement with him on the issues.”
SONI Managing Director Alan Campbell concluded: “It was valuable for us all to hear Andrew Griffith’s commitment to supporting businesses on their net zero journeys and he was left in no doubt as to the commitment and innovation by NI business when it comes to energy and sustainability.
“The Northern Ireland electricity system is world leading in terms of green energy; with half of all electricity used here last year coming from clean sources, but we have much to do. We were pleased to be able to share our vision for the very real changes needed to strengthen the grid, these changes will impact every one of us, including business, so it was a good opportunity for us to share our ‘Shaping Our Electricity Future’ report and to encourage NI Chamber members to take part in the public consultation.”
Alan Campbell,
Managing
Director of
Energy Forum partner SONI.
AMBITION
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