A day in the life of a drug discovery projects group leader

Meet Shilina Roman, a Group Leader in Biology at Charles River Laboratories (CRL).  Shilina has a diverse role focused on science, leading and developing people and contributing to the ongoing and future business within CRL.  The science focus includes leading multiple drug discovery projects in a matrix environment and driving the Immuno-oncology platform in Harlow. 

My typical day…

Working for a Contract Research Organization (CRO) my day is highly dynamic, can be unpredictable and usually consists of a combination of the following:

• Planning and management of client projects; co-ordination of experiments, data evaluation and providing scientific expertise to project team
• Interfacing with clients to understand their needs and the project deliverables,  providing updates and scientific insights to take projects forward
• Working across different targets/projects; these can be locally, across multiple CRL sites or client sites across the world
• Responding to business development queries; supporting the generation of new quotations
• Working in collaboration with the Biology Management team to implement our talent management strategy; resource planning, talent acquisition, career development etc.
• Partnering with colleagues across Discovery to drive continuous improvement; processes and technology

Being a project leader at CRL is very different to my previous experience in big pharma; encompassing the duties of both a project leader and project manager.  I am responsible for both the scientific deliverables as well as taking care of the project budget (income, invoicing, scheduling), study documentation and project team meetings. This means I have to collaborate across the organisation and get the opportunity to work with many people in different areas and functions.

The worst part of my job…

The toughest part of the job is juggling multiple balls, all at the same time to ensure deadlines are met!  However, I love what I do and have a great desire to succeed; being driven, organised and logical helps.  I have great support systems both at work and at home; for me my job is not just a nine to five job; I am passionate about what CRL does and the difference we make. 

The best part of my job…

1. The science!  As a scientist, the satisfaction I get when a project milestone is reached or when we succeed in delivering quality drug candidates to the clients is huge.
2. As a manager, seeing my team members grow and progress into confident and independent scientists.

Being part of CRL means that I can collaborate with so many sites across the world within the organisation not just specifically scientific teams but also HR, finance, project co-ordination, safety and toxicology, business development and marketing to name a few. I have previously worked in a big pharma company for eleven years but never experienced such wide interactions so feel fortunate to have such opportunities.

Over the last few years at CRL I have been given the opportunity of working flexible hours and this had truly made a huge impact on my work-life balance. I have two young children and flexible working means I can tailor my role a couple of days of the week to be able to spend time with them which is absolutely invaluable for me as a parent without impacting my career aspirations.

I Love my job because…

My passion has always been to do ‘meaningful science’ and what better way to do so than be part of some drug discovery projects that provide medicines to patients and ultimately may combat devastating diseases. Being part of CRL and working collaboratively with so many external companies’ means I am more likely to see the benefits of these drug molecules in the clinic improving patient lives at some point in the future.

The other exciting part of my job is having access to new technologies, specialised disease models and innovative science all of which help to accelerate the projects we work across.

Advice to others… (What advice would you give to others who want to get a role like yours?)

Always pursue your dreams and don’t let anyone or anything deter you. Being the first member of my extended family to go to university and being a female from the Bangladeshi community I feel proud of my family who have helped me achieve my dreams. My parents and my husband have never held me back and have always encouraged and provided me with the support to fulfil my career aspirations.

Care about your goals, be fearless and go for it. I think of science like cooking, you can do things the bland way or spice it up by trying new and innovative ideas. What is the worst that can happen? It may not work but at least you know that you have tried something different and the outcome could be something amazing.

Never be afraid to ask questions – inquisitive thinking brings the greatest ideas out in a person.

Identify mentors and support systems at work – people you look up to and can go to for guidance when you need it. I have been fortunate to have some wonderful managers and mentors both at CRL and in big pharma.  

Collaboration and teamwork is key to success – the outcome of a successful team effort is so rewarding on any project be it scientific of not!

I want to be remember for…

As a scientist, I would like to be remembered for making a difference to patient’s lives and for doing innovative and high impact science.

As a manager and leader, I would like to be remembered as someone who leads from the heart as well as my head, building trust-based relationships to bring out the best in my team and enrich everything that we do.

My Plan B… (If it wasn’t this job – what else would be doing?)

I have a very artistic and creative side as well which may seem a bit odd for a scientist!  If I was not doing this job I think I might have been something quite different such as having my own baking or event management company. I currently use my culinary skills to create innovative food designs by fruit carving and baking. Over the last few years I have managed three of my sibling’s weddings; providing the appropriate themed floristry, decorations and dessert tables. I also do a lot of baking to raise money for charity events. I feel this creative streak helps me in my scientific role as I always like to think of alternative ways of doing more “complex” science.

More about Charles River

At Charles River, we are passionate about our role in improving the quality of people’s lives. Our mission, our excellent science and our strong sense of purpose guides us in all that we do, and we approach each day with the knowledge that our work helps to improve the health and well-being of many across the globe.