Aurélie - Research & Innovation Management Assistant

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  • March 6, 2023
  • 3 minutes of read time

Aurélie - Research & Innovation Management Assistant

Summarize your career in a few lines

I am a "Seppic baby" since it was the first company to give me a chance after several refusals from employers reluctant to recruit a person with a disability. The temporary assignments followed one another for 2 years, as a Quality Assistant, then in Sales and finally in Marketing. It was in this last position that I was hired on a permanent basis in the Vaccine and Injectables Adjuvants Department. I held this position for 12 years. I made a "Seppic marriage" since my husband also works there. Moreover, he recently left Paris for Castres and I asked for a mobility to be able to follow him. Today, I hold the position of Research & Innovation Management Assistant. Finally, between Seppic and me, it's a story that lasts and that creates a bond that's worth fighting for.

Why did you want to do this job?

I have always been interested in many different professions. I finally studied Psychology but I wanted to discover other fields. I also tried History of Art and English Literature. At the same time scientific, literary and artist, I have an atypical profile, difficult to classify and which can worry an employer in search of very specialized profiles. My position, which is very transversal and can be modeled as required, is an opportunity to accomplish very varied tasks in a variety of fields and with many different collaborators from whom I can learn a lot.

What drives you in your daily life?

I am creative and curious, every day must teach me something and allow me to express my creativity, both in my hobbies and at work. I love to read, write, express things in many ways, so I will add humor, a pinch of whimsy, and a creative point of view to everything I do.

What are you most proud of? What would you say is your greatest achievement?

My life's accomplishment is to have overcome my disability and to always try to overcome my fears. I have albinism, a disease that has a physical impact: I am very visually impaired, photophobic, among other things... We often forget the psychological impact: very young I was isolated, rejected because of my difference, which has greatly impacted my social life. However, in spite of the difficulties I followed a normal and brilliant schooling, I work like everyone else, I read, I draw, I did theater, I dance, I travel etc.

What has been your biggest challenge in your professional life?

Perhaps I would talk about the last few months spent in uncertainty because I chose to follow my husband. He got his mobility before me. I felt like I was sacrificing my career. I left my comfort zone: I left a job and a team that I loved, a place that I knew, to arrive in the unknown. Thanks to my resilience, the support of my husband, the caring of people who trusted me and people who chose to do so, I held on and what I saw as a sacrifice turned into a new beginning.

How has Seppic accompanied you throughout your career?

What I liked right away at Seppic was the opportunity to learn on the job, to prove myself and, above all, to make suggestions. I had the opportunity to work with people who appreciated my curiosity and nurtured it so that the positions I held kept evolving and changing. I have always redefined my positions according to my personality while meeting the needs of my team.

If you had to give one piece of advice to a young woman starting out in her professional life, what would it be?

I would tell her to not give up on anything, to pursue her dreams and goals while respecting others but not losing sight of the fact that you don't get something for nothing. In short, "Help yourself and you will find the help you need."