Consultant Karen's experience in the Pauwels Acceleration Program

The fourth edition of the Pauwels Acceleration Program recently came to an end. The program – an initiative to give motivated consultants a boost in terms of personal development, leadership skills and communication techniques – has become an annual fixture in the calendar. We spoke with Karen Blockhuys, who is active as a consultant with Pauwels Consulting for a large life sciences concern operating in the field of medicines production. She took part in the Pauwels Acceleration Program because, alongside her interest in the sciences, she is also drawn to find out more about personal development. Karen told us how her work as a consultant brings both interests together.

A nudge in the right direction

My Talent Manager is Debbie Croonen: she is in regular touch with me to see how things are going with my project and keeps me up to date about events and training sessions.

Debbie gave me a nudge to check in on the information session about the Pauwels Acceleration Program. Afterwards, I was really glad for her suggestion because I realized the program could be of real value to me.

Personal development through learning

Personal development is something I pursue outside of work. I may have my degree, but I always want to keep learning. This is borne out in my reading choices. For example, I’ve read recently read Zelfzorg is het begin van alles (Everything Starts with Self-Care) by Nina Mouton and Humankind by Rutger Bregman. These books prompted me to think more about communication, and how you perceive yourself and others. Continually discovering new things about yourself and other people not only makes life more interesting, but also richer.

A practical approach to personal development

The Pauwels Acceleration Program focuses on personal development, communication and self-leadership. The program consists of six training sessions, coaching, and the work you do in preparation, in which you acquire new tools and learn how to apply them in the context of consultancy. This makes it very practical – something you can’t always learn from a book, of course.

Although I was already motivated to pursue this further, when it comes down to it, you really need a mentor who can direct you and hold a mirror up for you. It goes without saying this was an opportunity I wanted to take full advantage of.

Communication as a way to build bridges

One session I found particularly interesting was the communication marathon. Using role play, we studied various situations where conflict can arise in the workplace. The aim was to facilitate effective communication and make a connection with the other person, even if they are approaching things from a completely different angle. I’ve already been able to apply insights from this session in my everyday life. I was struggling to make a connection with one of my colleagues. Not that there was any conflict there, but I was having difficulty seeing eye to eye with standpoints that were so different from my own. Through open communication and by keeping our common goal in mind, my efforts to create a better working relationship have borne fruit. It starts with being willing to understand one another. Having the right tools also makes a big difference.

Understanding yourself

Another session, Insights Discovery, was about getting to know yourself and understanding other people. This time, I was able to gain some helpful insights about myself. I realized I didn’t want to be so reserved in my communication and so intransigent in standing my ground anymore. Through the session, I realized that I could benefit from being upfront and clear. Holding back too much may mean you don’t get your message across as clearly. As a result, you might end up missing your targets. All this while my aim is to progress as a consultant.

Encouraging one another

We went on this journey together, as a group, and we saw each other grow and develop during that time. In the beginning, I felt a bit uncomfortable discussing rather personal topics. But in the first few sessions, we took a deep dive into communication and understanding yourself, so it didn’t take long before we felt comfortable with each other. I also learned a lot from the group. It was very revealing to start to understand the reasoning others bring to a situation, and sometimes to reflect this back to them. I really started to value and look forward to our joint sessions because of the bond we had developed.

Scientist at heart

I’m a scientist at heart and research is what I really enjoy. Graduating in Biomedical Sciences, my first job was at the University Hospital of Antwerp. I had a fantastic position as a scientific study coordinator in the orthopedics department. I was involved in all aspects of research, from patient consent to carrying out research studies, and analyzing the results.

Aside from the practical aspect of doing scientific research with patients, I quickly learned to work at my own initiative. As the only study coordinator, I had to regularly reach out to other departments, and I got to know who was the best person to speak to for whatever it was I needed and how to set priorities. So, what prompted my move to become a consultant? Even though I loved the job, after a while, I was getting a bit bored with researching knees.

A job with meaning

As a consultant in the life sciences, I work as a dissolution analyst. In the lab, we simulate a stomach with a dissolution bath to test how quickly the active ingredients of medications are released into the body. We also test the purity of medicines. This means we check the number of active ingredients in tablets, and whether there are any impurities or chemical differences between them. We do this under a range of different conditions. For example, we’ll look at how a drug performs when it has been stored for a period of time at different temperatures.

Through my research into medicines, I feel that I am making a valuable contribution to society. Maybe not in a literal sense, but everyone who helps make drugs safe and available is contributing in their own way to the quality of life of many, many people.

Motivation to do meaningful work

Doing the Pauwels Acceleration Program, I also learned a lot about what motivates me. This came up during the training, and was something I took into the individual coaching sessions. We worked together to formulate my ideas and feelings into something concrete, and turn them into a road map. So, when I’m ready for the next challenge, I’ll be able to go to my Talent Manager with my ideas. Where exactly am I headed in my career? I can’t say for sure. But, working with my coach, I identified that a healthy work/life balance is very important to me, that I like to be challenged to learn, and that I would prefer to do a job where I can contribute to the environment and/or society.