APOblog

At Apotex, we believe recognition is a powerful and positive way to develop an empowered and engaged team. Service milestones allow us to recognize and celebrate not only the commitment of our employees but also their career achievements since their first day with Apotex.

We spoke with Joanne Patriarche, Vice-President, People & Performance Canada to learn about the history behind Quarter Century Club, an exclusive group of employees who have worked at Apotex for 25 years.

“We introduced the Quarter Century Club around 10 years ago,” says Joanne, who is also a member of the exclusive club, with 30 years at Apotex. “Recognizing how special this milestone is, a few of the actions we take include honouring these employees with a special ceremony, and ensuring they are represented on our ‘wall of fame.’ With more than 300 employees in the club, we have three walls covered and our ongoing joke is that we are running out of space!”

With more employees well on their way to joining the Quarter Century Club, Joanne attributes the long-tenure of our employees to how much our people believe in Apotex and our purpose of providing access to affordable, innovative, high-quality solutions to millions of patients worldwide. The opportunities for development and growth in their career is also a key factor.

The Quarter Century Club ceremony was created to bring new and previous inductees together with Apotex executives as a way to say thank you for their 25-year commitment and contributions.

“Apotex was a young company when these employees started their journey,” says Joanne. “Our employees have a real sense of pride that they have contributed to the growth and success of Apotex – and they have. We wouldn’t be where we are without our people.”

When Apotex started 45 years ago, there were two employees. Now, there are more than 8,000 employees globally, with our longest tenured employee being with the company for 44 years.

Not only has Apotex grown since its inception, each individual has flourished within their personal and professional life.

In fact, new Quarter Century Club member Manoj Bisnath, Manager, Manufacturing Resource Planning says Apotex will always be part of his extended family. “My colleagues were there for many important parts of my personal journey such as my wedding day and seeing me become a parent.”

In addition to his personal growth, he notes, “I have been provided with many opportunities to enhance my skills and develop within my career. I started [at Apotex] as a Formulation Development Technician from there I have worked in multiple roles which allowed me to progress to where I am today as Manufacturing Resource Planning Manager.”

Danièle Thibodeau, Principal Consultant and recent Quarter Century Club inductee shares a similar sentiment saying one of her proudest achievements at Apotex are the relationships she’s developed with her colleagues as they enrich her life by providing support and encouragement. She attributes her long career with Apotex to the opportunity to grow laterally and the support in her journey a life-long learner.

Similarly, Allan Rey, new Quarter Century Club member and Senior Manager, Research, Technology and Intellectual Property Affairs cites his experience as highly motivating due to the ability to grow in different areas over his career. “When I started my journey at Apotex, I was a process organic chemist developing cost-effective and scalable processes. Most recently, I manage our Research and Technology group which explores and brings new, useful technologies to the organization”

As we celebrate another group of Quarter Century Club inductees, we asked Joanne to reflect on the event after 10 years. “Back then [25 years ago], I was the only recruiter at Apotex so I hired a lot of the people that have made it to their 25^th year. I feel a great sense of pride each year at the ceremony because of my connection with the employees. Having been able to watch their growth over the past 25 years from when I hired them to where they are today, is not only rewarding but also inspiring.”

Congratulations to our 2019/2020 Quarter Century Club inductees! Thank you for your 25 years of hard-work.