My Most Transformational Decade

It was 10 years ago when I met Beto, the man who is now my husband – and shortly after, I joined Takeda.

Starting at Takeda Mexico in the Naucalpan site was incredibly fulfilling and a LOT of fun. It was there where I was first drawn to the company’s values and culture, which were present in every one of my colleagues and in everything we did. We achieved so much together in the two years I was there. I can only smile when I get in touch with my colleagues and friends to remember many of the remarkable internal and external events, launches, gatherings, and milestones we accomplished together.

Then came Singapore for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for a regional assignment.

This completely changed my life. As an apparently rushed, but deeply thought decision, Beto and I got married within four days after deciding to go to the other side of the world together– and it was the best decision we ever made. My scope and vision opened as I had no idea they could. I met the most wonderful people, discovered a huge array of cultures and different ways of thinking, and learned so many things that I still hold closely to my heart.

We truly loved Singapore, but after a year, a new opportunity in the Tokyo Headquarters came up and we did not hesitate for a second to take it.

This was a dream come true, and to my surprise, it was Beto who was most excited and supportive of this. Naturally, our lives again changed. Through our four+ years in Japan, there were so many challenges – more than I thought, despite our best Japanese (language) efforts, we often struggled even with the smallest things, such as Google translate at the supermarket or while making reservations – not to mention the cultural differences! But it was incredible to experience such a fascinating culture, and holding two different roles with a global scope, which were decisive for my career.

Beto had an exciting job at NHK WORLD JAPAN , and life was good: meeting new people and making great friends, opening up to different ways of seeing the world, and contemplating four stunning seasons of Japan’s sakura (cherry blossoms) and fall leaves, while eating the most amazing food and drinking the best sake.

Then, the pandemic hit while we were in Tokyo, just about when we were ready for our next move.

And to make things more interesting, we got pregnant with our first and only son during that time. It was a time of huge joy combined with the biggest uncertainty. I was so lucky have been able to go back “home” to Mexico to deliver my baby, but it was not possible to go back “home” to Tokyo due to the travel restrictions. The flexibility and support provided by team and managers during that time, was invaluable.

So, after two years of uncertainties on where we’d end up, things settled again.

I was again so fortunate to be able to officially move back to Mexico, with a super exciting new global role, which has brought me deep enterprise-wide learnings, working with brilliant leaders. All of this, while navigating a new personal challenge as a working mom – however, close to family and allowing my husband to find again his dream job.

There are not enough words to express the how deeply grateful I am for these past years.

For the challenges, the learnings, the laughs, the growth, and even for the frustrations too, as those have made be a bit better as a person – but mostly, I’m forever grateful for the PEOPLE.

• To my managers, leaders, and mentors, I will always be thankful for your trust, guidance, empowerment, and opportunities. You have truly helped me find a path of personal and professional growth.

Roxana Nohra José Manuel Caama?o Iglesias Jane Jin Vince Docherty Sanjay Patel Costa Saroukos Jose Juves Susannah Wesley-Ahlschwede Jo?o Belo Takako Ohyabu Jennifer Eberle Ramona Sequeira Rachel Higgins (Wiese) Ricardo Werner Marek Giles Platford Hernán Porcile Wolfram Nothaft, MD Uthra Sundaram Lisa Riley Milano Furuta Alexander Musil Emma Worthington

• To every one of my colleagues – past, present, and those of you who have become my closest and dearest friends, and even partners in crime! Gosh, you have made this journey so much fun, and I am so incredibly blessed to have you in my life. The learnings, memories, moments, and achievements we have built together are so precious.

Kaori Togo Katharina Geppert Rebecca Northridge Vanessa Rodriguez Kendra L. Holly Petrie Francis Megan LaMarca Alev D. Lisa Bagley Ayaka Kimura Ben Steinson Kumi Iiyama Nicole Rojas Vanessa Gleason Yuki Kanazawa, Matsushiro Roberto Casasnovas Melina Braga?a Fernanda Gonzalez Polo y Ramirez Maria Elena Vela Mike Gilronan Dennis Lucas David Feldman

• To my son, Daniel, who bares with me being away sometimes, working and traveling, but he knows mommy works trying to help people who feel sick – and keeps asking me to show him the photos of the time he visited the headquarters in Boston.
• And, to my husband, Alberto Ramírez Mier . I would not have been able to go through all these amazing work and personal experiences without you. Thank you for taking the biggest leap of your life with me. For following my career, which eventually led you to your dream job. For your continued and unwavering support over these years. You are my rock.

These past ten years have really transformed me into a woman that, with all my imperfections, I’m proud of. One with countless, fulfilling experiences that have shaped me into a wife, a mom, a better colleague and friend, and a more mindful professional.

Who knows what the next 10 years hold... I’m just profoundly grateful for this amazing decade of adventure.

EPILOGUE

Being a communicator by profession, I thought twice about writing this post and getting vulnerable by sharing something more personal – it’s so much easier doing it for someone else! What’s the right tone? The write words? I went through my photo albums and that’s what got me nostalgic in looking at such great memories. 

I hesitated about sharing photos with colleagues and leaders, and preferred not to – you know… just to stay on the safe side, but I have many great and funny ones! 

And, I tried Chat GPT for the first draft of my post –  just for fun but, nope, it didn't quite work. I perhaps could've worked on a much better prompt and my style profile, but I guess that when it comes to a personal story, nothing beats writing from the heart.