Célia G., PhD - Growth/Marketing Team Lead

Célia G., PhD - Growth/Marketing Team Lead at LabTwin

Where are you from and what is your educational background? Where did you study?

I am from France, originally from Versailles, and studied Neurosciences at Aix-Marseille University, where I later earned my PhD. After completing my PhD, I pursued as a Post-doc at the Brain-Mind-Institut at EPFL, Switzerland.

Why did you decide to pursue the PhD/Post-doc journey?

I wanted to become a researcher since high school and followed that path. I enjoyed every step of it. I loved both my PhD and Post-Doc. I had the opportunity to conduct amazing science with both renowned and kind supervisors and access to all the necessary tools. Especially in Switzerland, where I could record electric currents from neurons in vivo using my own self-built two-photon microscope and correlate them with the mouse behaviors.

It is often said that the PhD is a marathon, not a sprint race. What are your thoughts about it?

It is true, no other profession demands working on a single project, independently, for such an extended period, except perhaps in the arts. I believe no one should pursue a PhD by default simply because they excelled in their Master's and don’t know what else to do now. If there is no passion or vision for the future, it can be a very hard time.

When did you decide that you didn’t want to pursue an academic career? Was it before starting your PhD journey or during your PhD Studies (at the start, mid, at the end or after)?

I made my decision to leave academia at the very end of my Post-Doc. I had the offer to return to my PhD university in Marseille in a very good lab for a second Post-Doc with promising prospects of securing a position through the French Concours. Simultaneously, I had an opportunity for a Post-Doc in a good lab located in Berlin, where my husband, also a scientist but physicist, had recently moved for a Group Leader position at the Max Planck Institute. Reflecting on my life plan and its feasibility led me to weigh my options. While returning to Marseille offered the best chances of securing a position, it was in a city I no longer desired to reside in. Germany, where my husband was, presented lower prospects for securing a position, especially in the same city as him, and would require extensive self-promotion to compensate for the lack of local connections. Considering my age of 32 and the desire to start a family, I felt it was not compatible with more years of hard work and a stressful time. Additionally, the competitive and politicized environment in academia, with by the "Publish or Perish" situation and the importance of having the right connections with the right people, was becoming increasingly taxing for me. I never wanted to be the girl that gave up her career to follow her husband and so far, all my choices had been very me-centered. But this time, I felt this was the best solution for me, and that I could be also very happy with a good job in the industry, discovering a new world.

When did you transition into industry?

In June 2019, my Post-Doc contract was over. I spent 3 months unemployed, finishing my Post-Doc paper and simultaneously applying to jobs in both Switzerland (as I thought maybe it would be easier to transition there) and Germany (where my husband was already since April).

What is a current position? What was/were your previous job(s) (If this is not your first job in private)?

I am currently leading the Growth/Marketing team of a start-up developing a voice assistant for scientists, to help them document their work, collect data hands-free, or access information. I initially joined as a Growth Coordinator. This was my first real job in the industry if you don’t consider summer jobs.

Is your job related to what you have done during your PhD/Post-doc?

Yes and no. I didn’t want to be a scientist in the industry, also because, for fundamental neuroscientists like me, there are much fewer positions in the industry compared to applied cell biologists’ positions for example. However, my current work is to improve the informatics systems used by scientists to document their work. I actually had the opportunity during my Post-Doc to witness the implementation of a modern informatics solution to document or digitalize our inventory, and I am leveraging this experience every day.

Which are the aspects that you like the most about your job?

I love the collaboration and team effort, which is something very rare in academia where everyone is a bit on their own. I also like the fact that I can do a lot of different things, as we are in a startup and there is always more work to do than people, so everyone ends up wearing multiple hats and helping where needed. This is actually a big chance for those who are not yet sure about what they want to do in the future or which subspeciality of the field to select.

How has your work-life balance changed since moving to industry?

I feel that I work as hard, as I choose the startup life, but my level of chronic stress reduced a lot. Unlike in academia, there are multiple paths to success in the industry. And two years later, I could smoothly go through my pregnancy without fearing that I would lose time in the academic race.

How did you adapt to the cultural and operational differences between academia and industry?

A startup world is more informal than a corporate one, so the adaption was not too difficult for me. I still had to learn a couple of best practices such as: getting people buy-in before starting a new project (even if you have a great idea, it will lead to nowhere if you do it alone), being transparent about what I am currently working on and always measuring the impact of my activities and report numbers.

Were there any new skills or knowledge areas you had to develop for your role in the industry?

As I chose a role a bit far away from my education, I had to learn a lot about Marketing and read many books, blogs, and studied other companies’ practices. Luckily for the practical skills, I had already good skills in communication, writing, design, and video editing that I could scale up.

How difficult was it, to gain the required knowledge when you first started your job(s)?

In academia, we know how to study, learn, and work hard, and this is the most important aspect to succeed anywhere. So, in the end, it was not too complicated. I simply worked hard the first half year to catch up and keep on learning every day.

What was your experience concerning the transition into industry? What were some of the challenges you faced during your transition?

The industry was a big black box for me before I dove into it. Identifying the range of possibilities and within it what would be a good fit was a bit overwhelming. I really wanted to find a job that I would like, not just something that I could do.

What helped you before the transition (career events, workshops, contacting people on LinkedIn, friends)?

What helped me the most was learning with a coach how to write a good CV and cover letter for the industry. Incorporating the keywords from the job offer into my CV, for example, was crucial, as unlike in academia, the first person reading it won’t necessarily be a specialist in the field but HR. Also, I searched for people on LinkedIn whom I knew from academia and looked at their career paths. Additionally, I joined BSNL, an association at EPFL that supports the transition to the industry by organizing events with companies that hire academics and talks from past academics about their transition.

According to you which are the personal/soft skills that are mostly needed to undergo a successful transition into industry?

Nearly all the best people in my startup are from academia. They are all hardworking, passionate, self-motivated, and brave, qualities that cannot be learned; the rest can. Then, of course, there are a lot of other soft skills learned during academia that are very relevant in the industry. In this new era, focused on making data-driven decisions, being able to make a good analysis of the data is very valuable, and you would be surprised how not obvious it is for others! Organizing and driving a project are also important, as is mentoring others or delivering good presentations.

In your case which personal/soft skills helped you during your transition into industry?

All that I listed above. And on top of that, all the other skills that I have developed on the side of my PhD/Post-Doc. And usually, these are what makes the difference between two candidates from academia: the extracurricular activities. I was always part of associations, even leading some. I organized events, gave presentations, designed flyers, produced videos, led some teams, created webpages and social media posts, developed branding, and implemented strategies on how to grow the community. These are all marketing skills that I am leveraging today and helped me during the interview.

What advice made a difference in your professional development?

My first boss always used to say, “You feel a bit stressed? Good, it is when you are uncomfortable that you grow” or “You failed? Did you fail fast? Did you learn something? Then it is alright!”. And I always kept that in mind during my first months on the job when I was left alone with big responsibilities. And indeed, he made me grow very fast!

What aspects of your academic studies helped you during your transition in industry (ppt presentation, public speaking, teaching, scientific project management, teamwork, multitasking etc)?

All of it, except my scientific knowledge or lab skills. But everything around it did.

It is also said that networking plays an important role in transitioning into industry. Was it the case for you?

For me, it didn’t help. I tried but was not successful through these channels. However, networking helped me to gain confidence that I will be able to find my way and how to introduce myself.

Did you do one or multiple internship(s), traineeship(s), BNF project(s), in the private sector after your PhD studies or Postdoc before being hired for a more “permanent” job in this sector? If yes, was it via the unemployment program?

I registered for the BNF program, which is a very good system to get a first foot out. With the caveat that I think one should avoid selecting the projects that are still in the university framework and only go for those that are adding value to the CV. But in the end, I didn’t need it because I found a job quite fast.

What advice would you give to PhDs and postdocs who are willing to look for opportunities outside research academia or in industry?

Go for what you want to do as a career. Do not panic about anything that you feel you can do. Realize that in the end, everyone from academia finds a job!

If you could go back, would you change anything about your career path?

So far, I am very happy with my decisions. The only thing I would do better is to learn earlier how to ask for a promotion because we are very bad at negotiating salaries in academia!

What can I wish you for the next coming years?

That I will feel as good in my next company as in my current one!