Giulia Balestra and Gabriele Schininà both completed internships at Roche which led to full-time positions with the pharmaceutical company.
The opportunity stems from an international competition that Roche holds every year to offer graduates careers. Both holding LUISS master’s degrees in Corporate Finance, Giulia and Gabriele worked on the same team during the competition. Gabriele had decided to study at LUISS before even completing high school. After completing a bachelor’s degree in Economics and Management, he decided to focus his studies on business finance: “I was interested in the more technical and analytic aspects of management and I was able to use this concrete approach during the Roche challenge.”
With previous international experiences under her belt, Giulia chose the LUISS bachelor’s degree program in Economics and Business, held entirely in English, in order to take advantage of her linguistic skills. “During my second year, I studied at Utrecht University which was fundamental to my future decisions and career. I discovered my pragmatic side which helped me to define my interests and to work on projects or in groups, which proved to be useful during In Company Training at Roche.”
The competition is held in two phases between October and December: one at the Italian offices in Monza to create the teams and a final event to present our projects at the headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. “After a series of initial screenings, we were invited to a meeting in Monza where they explained the challenge and introduced us to our groups,” explained Giulia. “Our team was charged with evaluating the introduction of biosimilar pharmaceuticals in Roche’s current business model, future opportunities and possible threats.”
Gabriele continues: “We all worked from a distance. We were a large group with ten participants all living in different cities and universities. Even coordinating our work was stimulating. The presentation at the headquarters in Switzerland was a very educational experience, in close contact with the other participants and the managers. This aspect was important as it gave us the chance to learn about the company culture and structure and we also got to meet the other participants that we now have great relationships with.”
Coming in contact with the pharmaceutical world was a discovery for both graduates. “Before participating in the competition, I was interested in the pharmaceutical industry but I didn’t understand it at all,” explains Giulia. “The first step was studying the sector to best resolve a very real case that could increase competition while remaining economically sustainable, with great risks in terms of revenue.”
The In Company Training was the first step towards internships and full-time contracts in the Monza office, Giulia in Strategic Insight Analysis and Gabriele in Procurement. “It is a dynamic job,” says Gabriele. “It allows you to project both analytically and in terms of demand from retailers and marketing. They are very stimulating environments for students and graduates as they allow you to get first-hand experience with the problems and needs of a large company.
“Proposing and understanding innovative strategies in a new market was complex, but our Roche contacts appreciated our contribution,” conclude Giulia. “The pharmaceutical sector is in constant evolution. It currently faces new hurdles that make it a great place for students who love challenges.”