International Women’s Day: A day in the life of…Jing Tu

Jing Tu
Group Leader, PPD® Laboratories

Jing Tu has been working in the CRO and pharmaceutical industry since 2011. She started her career with Frontage Laboratories (PA, USA) in its U.S. biologics ligand binding services lab. As a Frontage scientist, she was then selected by Janssen R&D (formerly Centocor) to work within their ligand binding laboratories in Spring House, Pennsylvania, USA. In 2015, Jing joined PPD Laboratories’ (VA, USA) biomarker lab and started its biomarker ligand binding assay (LBA) group.

Jing has a medical degree from Jilin University, one of the top 10 science-based universities in China. She also holds a master’s degree from New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJ, USA).

In her current role, Jing has led the integration of new technologies (i.e., ELLA and Quanterix) into her laboratories. Jing also has implemented a systematic LBA biomarker method development strategy.  Due to the special technical and compliance requirements of biomarker assays, Jing has been heavily involved in PPD’s cross-lab, cross-functional strategies, and she has developed customized solutions for her clients that enable a context of use approach using fit-for-purpose, GCLP/GCL or CAP/CLIA.  She is a member of the Global CRO Council (GCC) and a member of the organizing committee for Applied Pharmaceutical Analysis (APA).

 1My alarm goes off…

The first thing in the morning, I normally take about 30 minutes to meditate and then prepare breakfast. The quality of my breakfast depends on the time of my first meeting. The commute is about 20 minutes from my house to the Richmond lab. But if I am travelling outside of Richmond, all of the previous details do not apply.

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2I’m responsible for…

As a group leader, I am responsible for the lab operations and overall growth of my team.  These include technical, team, facilities, project, customer-facing, sales-facing, finance-facing, industry-facing and compliance-based activities. Besides my basic responsibilities, I also have organized the scientific learning meetings for the biomarker team, supported PPD neuroscience clinical strategy, and travelled to China/EU several times to give talks and support global projects. The best part of my job is watching the team grow from the ground up as our talented scientists joined one by one, to develop and maintain a positive team culture that allows everyone to shine; to support individual career development and eventually to make sure the customers’ requirements are met and they are satisfied by the work provided by a group of happy scientists.

3My typical day…

I have been fortunate to begin my career as a bench sample analysis scientist and then I became a research scientist before moving into a leadership role. As a result, I gained good insight from the operational, scientific and business aspects. All this previous experience gives me the flexibility to wear more than one hat as needed. The day starts with talking to the scientists in the lab regarding ongoing projects. I then help with data analysis and troubleshooting. Throughout the day, I also need to respond to clients’ questions in a timely manner as well as join or organized client meetings as needed.  Also, I routinely respond to upper management and other departments such as business development, technical support, recruitment and human resources.

4The strangest thing that has happened…

Not strange but really funny. I was interviewed for PPD’s biomarker position in March 2015 by the department’s executive director (ED) and other colleagues.  The interview went very well (of course!) and I spent a lot of time discussing the team’s future and my future. During that interview, the ED gave me the impression he was a somewhat traditional and professional leader –  someone who is graceful, wearing a business suit.

Three months later I moved to Richmond and joined PPD. During the introduction training, a colleague showed up in front of the training room and waved to me.  He wore a pair of fashion black frame glasses, designer jeans and shiny shoes.  Without thinking twice, I asked right away: “Excuse me, do we know each other…”

I bet you can guess how the story ends. It was the same gentleman. He rolled his eyes at me and we both had a good laugh.

5The best part of my job…

No 2 days are the same for me.  Every day is fresh, fun and adventurous.

6The worst part of my job…

After I travelled 20 hours from China to JFK, my connecting flight was delayed twice and eventually cancelled at around 11 p.m. The airline attributed the event to the weather and air traffic control and refused to provide any free accommodations.  At that time, all the hotels around JFK were booked and I had to spend the night at the airport to catch the earliest connecting flight back to Richmond.

7After work…

I feel I am a scientist before drink and an artist after drink.  I always enjoy painting after a cup of red wine.  I can stay up to 3 a.m. to finish a painting.  Besides, I enjoy the moment that I am just by myself without calls, text messages, emails or any other kind of conversions.  That way I can focus on reading or meditating and exploring my inner self.

 8I always wanted to be…

In high school, I was obsessed with astrophysics and related topics. I was the winner of a national high school physics competition and I almost chose astrophysics as my major in college until my Dad killed the dream.  He said: “Jing, if you can get to the top at that field, I won’t worry about your major at all. But as a Father, I don’t want to see my daughter end up stuck in the mountains watching stars or hiding in the desert building weapons.”

Who is your inspirational hero?

Natalie Portman is my role model. Natalie is a talented actress and became famous as a child. However, she did not let the early fame disrupt her development and her life. In fact, she co-authored two research papers that were published in scientific journals and graduated from Harvard University with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology. As an adult, she has starred in a number of movies, with one of her most compelling performances in the movie, Black Swan.

I have always admired the direction she has taken her life in, the courage she has shown in making decisions, the executive ability she carries and, last but not least, the confidence and elegance she portrays as a mature woman.