Project management benefits from a wide variety of viewpoints

My name is Roman Prczewlofsky, I am from Berlin and I work in project management as part of the IT marketing and sales team at Bayer. After completing my studies in economics, I worked for nine years at a consulting firm, after which I spent three years working freelance for an aid organization. During this time, I learned how to run projects in a whole host of areas.

These ranged from rolling out reporting solutions for financial consolidation at a bank and training internal consultants at a consumer goods company to working with an aid organization to restructure a program for protecting 951 million people in 13 developing countries from iodine deficiency.

My typically atypical profile proved perfect

When it came to getting the job here, it was not my background in the pharmaceutical industry that won Bayer over, but rather my ability to take a systematic approach when dealing with a wide range of completely different issues. In fact, my department is full of colleagues with completely different backgrounds in terms of their studies and previous work experience. That makes for some really interesting discussions and expands our perspectives. Personally speaking, I wanted to join Bayer because the company has an excellent reputation, a well-established site in Berlin – my home town – and can also offer me international career opportunities.

Better consulting solutions for doctors and pharmacists

I did my induction training on the job, working on a project in China, where Bayer wanted to improve support for its sales representatives with an innovative customer relationship management system. I then took on the same task for teams in Australia and New Zealand, which involved moving to Sydney for 13 months.

Right now, I’m working on a project for our Pharmaceuticals Division that will establish new communication channels for our sales reps, so that they can give doctors and pharmacists the best advice possible about Bayer products. I am the project manager for Canada and three South American countries (Colombia, Peru and Ecuador). In my case, that means I won’t set foot in my office for four weeks, while I make sure my project customers in the country get the best support possible. However, I don’t see traveling as just a necessity for my work, I really enjoy it and can’t really get enough of it in my private life, either. Sometimes there are opportunities to drop in on old friends and colleagues while on a business trip.

At home around the world

My project team is spread across the Bayer world and is supported by external service providers. I feel really at home in this multicultural working environment and talking to colleagues from all over the world is a real source of motivation for me as I take on what can sometimes be challenging tasks. This kind of international working environment is precisely why I joined Bayer.

My work at Bayer sees me interacting with several different management levels and, as a project manager, it’s my job to guide and motivate my team as they tackle a whole variety of issues. I am lucky enough to work with interesting and really committed colleagues, and that’s what gives me the energy to launch into my work day after day.

I take care of my own continuing professional development. My line manager is also there to support me with a range of structured dialogs and supporting tools. I am particularly interested in the wide-ranging international career opportunities presented by the huge world of Bayer. I would really like to go back to Australia.
My tip for new employees is not to be put off by the size of the organization, but gradually build up a network, stay curious and ask lots of questions. I would also be happy to act as a mentor for you at Bayer.

This post is also available in: German