Navdeep Boparai, Head of Global Statistics, Data Science and Medical Writing (GSD), talks about what it’s like to lead a key department at Teva Pharmaceuticals, and how she draws on her vast experience to create real impact.

“Small” things go a long way towards building effective collaboration. 

At Teva, we work in smaller teams, which gives everyone a chance to have a real impact. Each team member’s input is valued and appreciated as we work towards a unified vision. I do my best to bring that collaborative spirit into the day-to-day workings of the GSD department to help us to stay connected as a single community. We bring this to our business partners from Teva departments to key academic leaders. This level of collaboration has been critical to our ability to move towards adaptive design models that streamline logistics and safely expedite outcomes for clinical trials.

As a Statistician and Data Scientist by trade, I love to analyze data, develop strategies, and tie it all together.

The GSD department occupies a unique position within the drug development process. We get to analyze and interpret clinical trial data and then package the results for regulatory submissions. Medical Writing and Biostatistics serve as a critical bridge between various departments, working in cross-functional collaboration, which means I get to interact with a wide range of stakeholders.

Learning how to connect the dots in this way is important for us at Teva.

We encourage an entrepreneurial mindset. Our “Step Up Innovation” initiative gives employees an open forum to submit a proposal with innovative ideas to simplify processes or accelerate studies. We also have the flexibility to integrate new technologies into our workflows. For example, Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence hold so much promise for data analytics and medical writing. We are actively finding ways to leverage these technologies to address the most challenging areas in drug development.

Every day presents new opportunities for learning and growth, and no two days are the same.

This makes Teva a great company for professionals who are passionate about health, and eager to learn. The department I lead is very detail-oriented, it’s important to have a clear “big picture” vision of where we are going. That helps to keep our team members engaged and motivated.

The voice of the patient stays front and center throughout the drug development process at Teva.

This is a large part of our success in developing effective products through our thriving innovation pipeline. This patient-centric approach drew me to Teva. In addition to our strong reputation in generics, Teva boasts a diverse portfolio of innovative products, especially in the neurology space.

Teva understands that work-life balance is key.

This makes it possible to pursue personal passions alongside professional goals. For me, this balance is what keeps me energized and creative, whether I’m capturing a perfect shot with my camera or crafting video reels that tell a story. It’s this kind of flexibility that allows people to thrive both personally and professionally.

Don’t dwell on failures- that stops you from grasping the next opportunity that comes your way.

For young professionals beginning their journey, know this: there will be both successes and failures, and it’s up to you to learn from those failures. When you are in a moment of failure, you don’t see the value of it immediately. But later on, when you are in a similar situation, you can look back on it and leverage what you learned in order to do better. It’s this journey of growth that really matters.

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