“The world is moving so fast – keeping up with the pace is what motivates me!”
Idit Booch is Teva api’s Senior Director of Customer Experience & Marketing. Leading a large, global team certainly keeps her on her toes but she has a lot to keep her motivated each and every day.
I have a degree in food tech, and a masters in chemistry with business (both from Hebrew University, Israel) which is a rare combination. I like the science part very much but knew that I wanted the focus of my work to be more on the business and marketing side. And this is exactly what I’ve been doing over the last 15 years at Teva api.
Marketing now to what it was then is drastically different! I started off as a product manager, first in a company that dealt with chemicals and analytical instruments, and then for 5 years at Teva api dealing with pipeline and launch products. I then focused on customer experience (CX) for many years, before receiving the position to head up the global CX and marketing team. It’s incredible to see how marketing has developed and just how many activities we’re running to promote our products and services, to increase sales. In the last few years especially, we’ve focused a lot on hybrid marketing – peppering in a good mix of both online and offline marketing, in the form of global events, paid and organic social media activities and many email campaigns. It’s given me the place to learn so many new things and expand into many new directions.
I’ve had so many opportunities along the way at Teva api. I was one of the leaders to establish the global CX team which was a one-of-a-kind project. There used to be separate customer service teams connected to each manufacturing site. The vision was to have one language and one unified experience so that the customer would get the same experience whether they were sourcing a product through a manufacturing site in Italy or India. I had never done anything like this before – creating something so different and new.
A solid and cohesive team is what brings success. One of the most important skills in this role is to really like and know how to work with people, and it doesn’t matter whether they’re located in India, the US, or Latin America. To engage a team and have their buy-in when making changes and decisions is crucial. And I really saw this when establishing the global CX team. We did a lot of work in change management, and it helped me understand that to succeed, you need a lot of people on board. You cannot do it by yourself. All of my work involves this engagement with a lot of global interfaces, from Sales to R&D to Operations.
Understanding our customers and their needs is crucial. We’re constantly working to understand what information they need based on changes and requirements in the industry, how they like to be approached, and how to keep them engaged and on board. It’s a fascinating journey and involves being open to new ideas and initiatives, which is why I love what I do.
The world is moving so fast – keeping up with the pace is what motivates me! There are a lot more channels we can use these days to communicate with customers. Innovation in this area is fascinating. The world is moving so fast and learning how to do things differently is a massive learning curve. One example of this is our online customer portal, which is a unique solution in our industry. We introduced it a number of years ago as the world started becoming more digital. As the world evolves and customer needs evolve with it, we bring in new developments to the portal so it stays relevant and useful for customers in today’s changing technological climate.
Leading a global team through COVID-19 has been challenging but we’ve seen adapting to changes can be positive and meaningful. When the pandemic broke out, communication was suddenly harder but now it works. Trying not to let our personal lives impact the customer experience was hard, but now we see that it works. We’ve learnt how to do things differently and there is something really nice about that. It motivated us throughout this year. We also have a great foundation of teamwork and strong relationships with our customers, which is why I think we have been able to cope so well.
We have a fantastic all-female leadership team! Choosing a talented team, filled with different personalities and management styles is really important for the success of a department. And I feel that we’ve really got that. Having the support from my co-leaders, who have become my friends, is what grounds me. We’re an all-women team and there’s something quite special about that!
Baking is my therapy. See below for my latest creations!
