When Passion Starts as a Family Value and Continues as a Work Value

To recognize Hispanic Heritage Month, we asked our LatinX Business Resource Group members to share who within their American Latino community inspired them growing up and empowers them to prosper in their career today.

For Meryam Plaza, a senior business manager working at our site in Puerto Rico, this person is her mother along with her sisters. She shared that the piece of advice from her mom that has stayed with her over the years is: “If you are going to do something, do it with love.” Meryam recollected that her mom encouraged her early on in life to pour passion into everything, have gratitude, and be humble.

Meryam’s connection to her culture and her family motivates her to work with humility, which she said, “serves as a compass, guiding me toward empathy and a deeper understanding of others.” She also shared that her values

“foster genuine connections, opens the door to personal growth, and allows me to learn from every situation. These lessons have shaped me into the person I am today, and I'm forever grateful for [my mom’s and my sisters’] guidance and love.”

Alicia Boyanowski, a business director for our human pharma team based in Connecticut, shared that she’s inspired by her father, Francisco (“Paco”). Alicia said,

“He taught me to value all people regardless of their background and to never lose sight of my roots.”

Alicia’s father, who was an almond farmer at the time, emigrated from Spain 55 years ago to build a future for his family and to gain an education. After he arrived in the United States, Paco became a shoe salesman in New York City and later became vice president of sales along with running his own businesses. These accomplishments empower Alicia to dream big and set out to reach her own goals in the pharmaceutical industry.

Another employee, Claudia Juckem, who is a diabetes business manager for our Minneapolis, MN, district, had a similar experience with her mom. “[My mom] wasn’t allowed to go to college, but that didn’t stop her from pushing me to go. So, thanks to her, I am the first woman that holds a college degree on both sides of my family.”

Our company values

Being a family-owned company is about family - we consider our employees, patients, and local communities all to be a part of our family. Our work environment and values are rooted in passion, respect, trust, and empathy to create a culture of belonging for one another and to do the best for the people and animals we serve.

It’s also vital to provide employees with a platform through our business resource groups to share their stories and experiences so they learn from one another and celebrate the uniqueness that everyone brings to our company each day.

If you’re interested in working for a company with these values and culture, explore joining our team!