Ariadna Jiménez Continente has been a member of ATD since 2018 from Spain. Here's her story in her own words.
Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I work in the training department at Novartis in Spain. I am responsible for the knowledge of the products and business skills in the neuroscience area.
I develop and lead the training plan in face-to-face meetings and online sessions to achieve the best communication about our products with different stakeholders: medical, pharmaceutical, and nursing.
What are your personal and professional goals?
I want to progress in my training career and continue learning and developing my skills. I would like to get a leadership position in the training department someday with a clear goal in mind, which is to give this department the recognition it deserves within a company.
What challenges have you had to overcome in your career?
One of the biggest challenges in my career was to change my role from a commercial position to one in the training department. After 13 years in the position, it was a huge change, and what I have been working on since then is to become a good reference in the training department, thinking out of the box.
What’s the most valuable thing you’ve gained or experienced during your membership with ATD?
ATD is an excellent resource for professional development. There are books, articles, videos, and many resources that are useful and valuable.
Can you share any professional tips specific to talent development that you have picked up along the way?
From my point of view, it is useful to be open minded with audience feedback, to learn about the mistakes, and to try to incorporate the learnings in future actions.
What’s a common misconception you see when it comes to talent development?
I think it is dangerous that the value judgments of talent department are taken as immovable values. That does not help to project a correct image to help the person in their development path.
Do you have any advice for people looking to further their careers?
Learn, learn, and work in multifunctional roles and with multidisciplinary people to open your mind to contribute as much as possible in your position.
What is your personal definition of talent development?
For me, it is not a definition; it is more like a concept. I think that talent development is completely linked with training in all the aspects that include a role in a company (soft skills and hard skills).
How do you stay motivated?
In my mind, I really enjoy improving every day, learning from different people, and working together to build something to prepare, execute, and analyze its efficiency.
How do you find meaning in your work?
When someone tells me, “Thank you so much for your work. I have really learned, enjoyed, and found your session useful for my role,” then I feel complete with my work.
Have your own story to tell? Share it with us.