Q1: Tell me about yourself.
I am a mother, a gastroenterologist, and a physician scientist. I currently work at Janssen R&D, leading the Clinical Science Group in Immunology Translational Sciences and Medicine. During the last 20 years of my career, I have held different roles as a clinician, researcher, and drug developer. Mine has not been an easy pathway but it has been a successful one. I had to start over and reinvent myself professionally when for personal reasons I made the decision to move to the US from my native Spain. I was lost in translation many times, but I was lucky enough to find the right mentors who guided me.
Q2: How did you get involved in WEST?
I came across WEST soon after I relocated to Boston from NJ. I was a busy working mother of two young girls and relatively new to Industry. I was looking for networking opportunities to grow and feel connected within the local biotech community and WEST offered me exactly what I was looking for.
Q3: Tell me about WEST’s mentoring program. Is there anything unique about it? When does it run?
The WEST mentoring program helps mentees achieve a personal or career goal by using a combination of a one-to-one mentor-mentee approach and small mentoring groups (pods). It starts with one-to-one goal setting, which has been valuable for mentees. Each of the following sessions has a time for a core pod, flex pod, networking, and mentor stories. The core pods provide an opportunity for mentees with similar goals to work in small groups with mentors to obtain diverse perspectives, get support, and be accountable for making progress toward their goal(s). The flex pods allow mentees to select specific topics to work with a mentor on for a 30-minute chunk of time. Topics include communication, professional networks, strategic thinking, confidence building, self-advocacy, personal vision/branding, and influence. The program runs from September to December, and it is annually revamped based on participants’ feedback.
Q4: Have you participated in WEST’s mentoring program and in what capacity – mentor or mentee or both?
I have participated in different roles over the year including as a mentor, organizer, and meeting facilitator.
Q5: What does mentoring mean to you and how has it helped you both personally and professionally?
To me, mentoring means giving back and helping others to find their own pathway to success. It means listening and understanding how we can help others to thrive without trying to impose our definition of success.
I had great mentors during my career, people who invested significantly in my development and helped me to grow without micromanaging me, giving me constructive feedback when I needed it, and advocating for me every time there was an opportunity. The best thing about the best mentor I ever had is that he let me fly solo when I decided that it was time for me to leave the nest.
Q6: Do you have any recommendations on how to go about finding a mentor?
I would recommend starting by signing up with WEST, enrolling in the mentoring program, and connecting with all the senior WEST members that you can. Finding the right mentor is like finding a partner, if you don’t look for them you will not find them. Keep trying until you find the right one. There is an incredible pool of talented, generous, successful women (and some men) involved with WEST.
Q7: Any advice you have for a productive mentor/mentee relationship?
As with any other relationship, setting the rules of engagement early on is very important. Besides that, honesty and respect are also key.
Cristina Almansa is Senior Director, Head of Translational Medicine Clinical Science, Immunology Research & Development at The Janssen Pharmaceuticals Companies of Johnson & Johnson. Prior to that, she was the head of Medical and Scientific Affairs at Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, that aligned with Cristina’s goals of advancing the treatment and improving the quality of life of people suffering with gastrointestinal (GI) disorders. After completing her MD/PHD and Gastroenterology fellowship at the University Complutense in Madrid Cristina moved to the Mayo Clinic in Florida to continue her postdoc work as the recipient of the Jon Isenberg MD Scholar International Medical Award sponsored by the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA). Cristina has worked for more than 15 years in clinical research, as a clinician scientist or a drug developer, and authored more than 40 publications (peer review manuscripts and book chapters) in the field of Gastroenterology. Cristina has held clinical and academic appointments in the Gastroenterology and Hepatology Division at the University Hospital Clínico San Carlos (Madrid) and the Mayo Clinic Florida (Jacksonville, FL). During her tenure in the Pharmaceutical Industry, Cristina has led multiple clinical development programs in GI with assets ranging from phase 1 to phase 3. In her most recent role Cristina led the global clinical development of the GI Motility portfolio at Takeda. Cristina is a native Spaniard who lives in Wellesley with her husband and 2 daughters. Cristina loves running, cooking, and enjoying a good homemade meal with family and friends. She believes that “women can have it all” but they need to believe in themselves and find the right partners and sponsors to get (and stay) there.
More info about Women in the Enterprise of Science & Technology (WEST) can be found at https://www.westorg.org/home
