Meet TurkishWINner: Sezen Ballı

What do you do for a living? Tell us more about you.

• I am working at a biopharmaceutical company, Coherus BioSciences. It is located in the Bay Area, California, in the heart of biotechnology hub. I have been working as a Director in Product Development group. My role includes managing internal cross functional teams and external vendors, and ensuring successful execution of biopharmaceutical drug development.

What's the best piece of advice you've received?

• I actually have two. First one, I received from my mentor when I started leading teams, and the other one is the quote I love.
  • Everyone has a motivation in life. When managing teams, find out what motivates them. What are they passionate about?
  • This quote from Joseph Campbell; “The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek”. Get out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself. You will figure out a way to survive and this is the key to transformative growth.

Do you have any pets?

• Yes, I have a cat.

Last book you read or are reading now

• I am reading Felt Time: The Science of How We Experiencing Time

Dark chocolate or milk chocolate

• White chocolate :)

One thing you wish you had known earlier in your career

• Power of feedback. Receiving feedback and real critique from people you trust is the best tool which leads you to success.

If you weren’t in your industry – what would you be doing?

• Acting

If you could have any three people (dead or alive) over for dinner – who would they be?

• Hypatia
• Rosalind Franklin
• Ataturk

Name a book you read that positively shaped you.

I have more than one.

• Listen, Little Man!, Wilhelm Reich
• Martin Eden, Jack London

You believe in the sisterhood at work because…

• It takes time and effort to develop a relationship with women we work with. However, once we understand each other’s experience, we benefit from it, personally and professionally. Sisterhood doesn’t mean we are the same or our struggles are the same, but it is a willingness to learn from each other’s experiences. This helps women lift each other up at the workplace. Having such a supportive environment at workplace reduces feeling of competition among women as well and gives development opportunities to each other.

Any tattoos?

Now you live in Germany in 1930, your child is Hitler. How to inspire him to become a good person and save the world?

If you can explain your personality like a food; which food and why?

You have a trip from İstanbul to Bodrum by car. Choose a famous people whose sit near you and join your trip.

Who are your role models?

• My parents
• My mentor, my boss, life-long adviser; Vince Anicetti
• Mustafa Kemal Ataturk

You have your own talk show on tv and your childhood self is your guest. What would be your first question to her?

If you were to create the  5. Season, what would be her name and how would be the weather in your Season

If you had one superpower, what would it be?

• It would be the power of diagnosing and treating every single disease on earth.