Michael Prunier, Eli Lilly &
KW: What was your career path after Wabash
MP: I initially got a job at Indiana Farm Bureau as an Analytical Chemist. 1972 was a bad year to be starting out, and the pay wasn’t what it should’ve been. After four months there, I moved to RCA in Findlay, OH to work as an Engineering Technician in their Integrated Circuit Manufacturing Plant. The pay there was what it was supposed to be, except they wanted to ship me off to California to work in one of their plants there. At that point, my wife and I decided that we wanted to live in our hometown of Indianapolis, so I applied for a job with Reilly Tar & Chemical for a Research Chemist position. I worked with synthetic pyridine and oxidation chemistry, but my primary focus was forming the Hydrogenation Group. I was responsible for all hydrogenations at Reilly including research, development, and process optimization work. Hydrogenation is the addition of hydrogen to chemical bonds done in a high pressurize lab. After 13 years at RT&C, I accepted a senior position at Searle Pharmaceutical in their R&D group in Skokie, IL. I continued to work in the Hydrogenation Lab supporting all R&D projects, supervising all chemical transformations requiring pressurization. I worked at Searle for 13 years. In 2000 I joined Lilly Research Laboratories as a Research Scientist and as the leader of the Hydrogenation Lab. I continue to work there to this day, getting into the lab by 6:15 A.M. and leaving most days around 3:30 P.M. I spend an average of 30-60 minutes a night catching up on work or reading up on ongoing projects. Presently, I currently serve as the Chairman of the Organic Reactions Catalysis Society and will organize and run the 22nd Biennial Conference in 2008.
KW: What advice do you have for students wanting to pursue a career in science, but are not necessarily inclined towards medical school?
MP: Don’t waste the opportunities Wabash offers you. Take advantage of your broad education; it really rounds you out, especially the things you don’t know you’ll need. I’m in team meetings a lot of the time with people that are incredibly smart, and to have your voice heard you have to be able to effectively articulate what you’re thinking. I feel my Wabash education has helped me tremendously with this. Early on, by not specializing, I had opportunities working in electronic, organic, and analytical chemistry with three different firms. Try to be open and flexible and try to make options for yourself. I also cannot stress how important it is to be able to write well; you may never interact with the Vice President directly but you can count on the fact that he’s reading your reports. Take speech and English classes! Bad writing, regardless of how brilliant you may be, does not go very far in today’s competitive world. Although I do not have a Ph.D., this has not prevented me from working in jobs that are traditionally Ph.D. level. I have found that advancement comes easier when you work hard and are consistently productive. One of the defining moments of my career was presenting a seminar at Wabash in November 2005 on the Hydrogenation of Nitriles with Dr. Zimmerman, my adviser, in attendance.
In Wabash,
Krzysztof "Chris" Wojciehowski