Ms Arleen Paulino has been in the biotechnology industry for the past 25 years, most of which has been between pure R&D and commercial. Working as Vice President of Amgen Singapore manufacturing since Jan 2016, Ms Arleen Pauline is responsible for site operations at Amgen's new biomanufacturing facility and leads a cross functional team across various departments.

Established in November 2014, Amgen’s Next-Generation Biomanufacturing facility in Singapore heralds a new juncture of efficient and innovative commercial-scale production of medicines. First in Asia, it is one of the newest manufacturing site, which uses a revolutionary approach incorporating multiple technologies to enable greater speed, productivity and flexibility.

Amgen’s Next-Generation Biomanufacturing site is highly efficient and is able to produce the same output as a conventional facility with a smaller footprint. This site will eventually produce Amgen’s global supply of two medicines for patients with skeletal-related disorders (e.g. osteoporosis and bone metastasis).

While talking to BioSpectrum Asia on the issue of gender disparity in the field of biotechnology, Ms Arleen chronically said that there might have been a perception that this industry was largely a male-dominated industry in the past, but there have been many remarkable women that have risen the ranks in the field in the recent years. “The biotechnology industry has certainly set the pace for other industries and sectors in terms of female representation, but there is definitely still room for more women leadership in executive and decision-making positions”, she added.

Ms Paulino gets in-depth about how women need self- empowerment in the new era. “In the harsh and rapidly-evolving business environment in the world today, women need to remain resilient and versatile, and boost our networking skills to achieve our ambitions and business goals. We need to not stand in our own way and we need to support one another.”

As a senior leader at Amgen, and with higher responsibilities, VP of Singapore Site Operations, Ms Arleen feels quite empowered but also understands the true weight and autonomy of her decisions. She pinpoints that there is no safety net if she either makes the wrong decision or fail to make timely decisions.

Amgen boasts a long history of manufacturing, having established a very extensive global network of facilities that incorporate conventional technologies and infrastructure. “At Amgen, our mission is to serve patients and we have a set of values that guide us in how we should behave in order to achieve that mission. These values are the foundation for our culture and this has been a good guide to the culture we need to build”, Ms Arleen says proudly.

A travel and a food enthusiast, Ms Arleen manages the demands of her high-octane role in a global organization by following a five-pronged approach: being very organized in her schedule, effectively communicating with everyone, being self-disciplined, taking good care of herself and effectively prioritizing competing demands on her time by not being afraid to say a no when needed. She is an ardent believer that as long as we are learning at the job, enjoying the company of the people we work with and getting a sense of accomplishment in making a meaningful difference, any role will be a rewarding one.