“My advice: Do what needs to be done and opportunities will come”
Yvonne Liu, Head of Sales for Lab Essentials in China
Yvonne Liu joined Sartorius as Head of Channel Management in 2019 and just recently gained responsibility for sales of the company's lab essential products. In this interview, Yvonne shares why she joined Sartorius, useful tips that have helped her in her leadership career, and how she drives people development in her own team.
This article is posted on Sartorius Blog.
Yvonne, to start with, please tell us a bit about your role and responsibilities.
I am responsible for sales for Lab Essentials (LE) in China. I've just transitioned into this new role from my former position as Head of Channel Management. Our lab essential portfolio covers a broad range of instruments and consumables needed for experiments and research in the lab. My main responsibility within this scope is to define, oversee and implement our sales strategies, drive sustainable growth and increase customer satisfaction.
Why did you join Sartorius?
I joined Sartorius in 2019 as Head of Channel Management for laboratory products in China, where I was responsible for different sales channels. These include, for example, dealers, where our ambition was to set up a new dealer management system, but also online channels. It was a new challenge for me, but as I had already gained several years of experience in operations and management positions in other life science companies, I was confident to tackle it. Moreover, the open and diverse corporate culture that I had heard about was appealing to me. Shortly after I joined, our team was involved in the successful launch of the e-shop on the Chinese website. This first team work and achievement quickly showed me that joining Sartorius was the right decision and that I could grow and learn in this company. On a personal level, that project, for example, maximized my professional knowledge and hands-on experience, and on the customer's side it helped simplifying the sales process, and improved the customer experience.
Is there a person or event that inspired you and helped you grow in your career?
Yes, indeed. Earlier in my career, a manager once suggested to reach out beyond my own department and communicate more with colleagues from other departments. That opened up a whole new world to me, enabling me to better understand each other's responsibilities and needs and to view things from other peoples' perspectives. I also benefited from the trust of the following managers during my career: They taught me to have confidence in my judgements, to make bold decisions, and also to pass on this trust to my employees in my own team, when I became a leader myself.
Reaching out beyond my own department opened up a whole new world to me, enabling me to better understand other's responsibilities and needs and to view things from other people's perspectives.
Yvonne Liu, Head of Sales for Lab Essentials in China
What were some of your biggest challenges in building your career and how did you overcome them?
As a leader, my responsibility is to help the team succeed. The daily challenge I face is how to accomplish this within a limited time while also balancing the care of my 14-year-old child and other responsibilities in my life. To meet this challenge, my experience has taught me to plan my time wisely, improve work efficiency, and respect others' time schedules. I also have to say, that the working conditions here at Sartorius as well as the strong support from my team and family help a lot with this.
I'm always open to discussion and feedback.
Yvonne Liu, Head of Sales for Lab Essentials in China
As a female leader, how do you create a workplace environment that fosters growth and development?
For me, long-term development is more important than short-term benefits, and I want my team to have a long-term vision and a pragmatic mindset. To achieve this, I give them trust, patience and space to develop their talents, and I'm always open for discussion and feedback. My advice for people who would like to grow: Do what needs to be done, and opportunities will come.
