“The culture here encourages you to try new things.”

Jennifer, like most Bristol-Myers Squibb employees, has people in her life—family, friends and acquaintances—who have personally been touched by our medicines.

Just the other day, her hairdresser started talking to her about a medicine she takes. “She didn’t know what I did for a living,” Jennifer says. “She was telling me her story about how she had had a stroke, was using the medicine, and how she has changed. She stopped smoking, she’s exercising, she’s losing weight... I told her what I do for a living and she got all welled up and she looked at me and said, ‘Thank you for what you do.’”

Jennifer describes her journey with Bristol-Myers Squibb as a “great one.” More than 10 years ago she joined the company’s Information Management on-the-job training program. After a few years, she helped roll out the first hardware and software technology to the company’s sales forces. Next, she became a sales representative and spent a great deal of time talking to primary care physicians throughout New Jersey.

“I knew that being successful in all those different roles would be a challenge,” she says. “But the culture here encourages you to try new things.” Jennifer is now responsible for marketing one of our novel medicines.

The company encourages employees to communicate regularly with managers and to seek out one or more mentors. “I had a significant amount of coaching, sometimes hitting me squarely between the eyes when least expected,” Jennifer jokes. “But, I asked for it. And, they’re the people I respect the most.”

At Bristol-Myers Squibb, “I work with people who have the serious job of helping patients prevail but who are fun,” she adds. “It’s OK to be yourself here, and even be a little wacky if you want to.”