Hayley ponders our industry’s complicated relationship with ambition

Someone said I was ‘ambitious’ and followed up with ‘…they won’t be able to handle you – you’re too much for them’.

I was in the selection process for a short-term assignment a couple of years ago. This comment was not a compliment.

I was reminded of this experience when last week BBC Radio 4 ran an item on Woman’s Hour about ambition.

‘Is it ok to be considered ambitious?’ was the hypothesis being discussed. It struck a chord with me. In my experience, this debate poses an interesting notion that the pharmaceutical industry seems to struggle with. I sense that we sometimes find it a little, well, distasteful.

Of course, the focus of Women’s Hour was to examine how women are perceived when they are seen to be ambitious. But in our patient-focused industry, perhaps I need to explain the clanging chord I heard.

Another way of describing ambition is the ‘setting of an intention to achieve something’. An aspiration. Nothing in that definition gives me hives, nothing at all. Good intentions are to be celebrated, lauded and encouraged.

I have observed two types of ambitious colleague in my time in pharma, in-house and agencies. I hold examples of both stereotypes very dear in my close friend group. Some have even been to both of my weddings.

First, there is the one who seems to have a plan and outcomes all figured out. This individual’s path is clear and the course is set. Don’t get in the way or you will be trampled. Don’t offer to help as you may be rebuffed. Don’t contradict or you will become an enemy. Don’t think for one moment that this type’s ambitions won’t be achieved regardless of cost. Let us call this individual ‘the intentional achiever’.

Then there is the colleague who sets out a worthy intention. Yes, this type sets an intention too but this is most likely to achieve for the ‘greater good’. This individual is a quiet hero, thinking of those who might benefit from the good intentions and planned outcomes.

This colleague willingly shares the platform and achievements. Credit isn’t taken for the work and this individual is most likely to put him- or herself last in any equation, making sacrifices that might personally affect this individual. This type is a people-pleaser. Let’s call that person ‘the passive achiever’.

Do you see where I am going here? Doesn’t my language sound different already talking about the two types of intention-setters? I already know which one I like more, the one who I think I would enjoy collaborating with and seeing succeed.

Isn’t it odd though, because they are both achievers? They have both set a course to deliver and they both do just that. So, the way we judge them is not actually their fault. It is us. It is me.

Going back to the question, ‘is it ok to be seen to be ambitious?’, we tend to only think about the cliched version of ‘ambitious’ and judge people we work with according to a set of rules that result in the bad taste we experience.

The fact is that even those people who make us feel uncomfortable because they have everything figured out and have a truck-like approach to achieving the goal set just the same intention to achieve as the seemingly selfless ‘passive’ colleague, the people pleaser.

Being ‘the passive achiever’ doesn’t come without challenges. This achiever’s ambition may be quieter and more palatable but at what cost? We are all being paid, I hope, to do a job in an industry where there is one purpose: the patients.

Yes, we have to serve our customers and our stakeholders and our regulators and our boards. But ultimately that little dance should be with one focus on the human beings we are striving for.

We are all setting our intention just by working in the pharmaceutical industry. We all have ambition in the same direction.

Could our perception of being ‘ambitious’ depend entirely on how we project that ambition? In a highly regulated and collaborative field like pharma, ambition is respected if it aligns with certain qualities, such as collaborative leadership, pairing ambition with a team-oriented mindset.

If our drive to succeed involves helping the company or team achieve shared goals, it’s seen as a strong leadership trait. Then there is our focus on innovation and patient-centric outcomes. An intention or ambition to improve patient lives or drive cutting-edge research is highly admired.

In R&D, market access or commercial roles, it’s crucial to frame your ambition in terms of meaningful impact. We also uphold ethical and professional conduct. Given the regulations we adhere to, ensuring that our ambition must be ethical and transparent is crucial.

Aggressive self-promotion at the expense of compliance or integrity could be damaging. And last but not least for ‘the intentional achiever’, there is strategic ambition. If our ambition is about long-term growth and development, taking on challenging projects or becoming an expert in one area, it will most likely garner attention and be nurtured. Ultimately, collaboration is key. Self-serving behaviour is not.

It is possible to be a high achieving passive-people-pleaser and ambitious at the same time. However, it can be tricky to balance.

Both traits can coexist in ‘the passive achiever’ if managed well. But in the long term, being too much of a people-pleaser may undermine how effectively your ambition is perceived or realised.

People-pleasers often excel at creating connections and fostering collaboration to build strong relationships, which can help drive their career forward, especially in highly networked environments like our industry.

So, when others like working with you, they may be more willing to help you achieve your goals. This can help you rise without creating unnecessary friction.  The knock-on here is that team success equals personal success. If your ambition is framed around helping your team succeed or advancing projects that benefit the company, people-pleasing tendencies can fuel this.

However, the passive people-pleasing protagonists may also have difficulty asserting themselves. Not something that generally bothers ‘the intentional achiever’.  Ambition requires taking initiative and sometimes making tough decisions that won’t please everyone.

People-pleasers may avoid conflict or hesitate to push their own agenda, even when it’s necessary. They may also be more susceptible to burnout by trying to balance the demands of pleasing others while chasing ambitious goals. Consequently, they may overcommit and exhaust themselves.

The ‘intentional achiever’ has boundless energy and draws on others for fuel. And finally, the perception – colleagues may see a people-pleaser as supportive but not strategic – great for collaboration, but lacking the edge required to be seen as a leader or visionary.

On reflection, I think being ‘too much’, while being nice or self-aware about it, is probably the best combination.

Ultimately, I like being hard to handle, but I also like to smile too.

• Be selectively assertive: focus the intention on pleasing people whose support aligns with your long-term ambitions while setting healthy boundaries with others
• Communicate your goals clearly: don’t be afraid to state your ambitions openly, so they’re visible and understood
• Learn to say no: saying no strategically, and respectfully, can earn you more respect without damaging relationships
• Anchor ambition in shared goals: frame your ambition in terms of broader team or organisational success to avoid seeming self-serving while staying true to your desire to help others.