Valentina Mancuso
When research becomes intuition
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Valentina Mancuso is Exploration Lead at Roche Diagnostics International. She selects and applies innovation concepts, methods and tools in the most suitable way in order to reduce risks, exploring innovative opportunities to be developed into digital solutions for the healthcare sector.
What is your current occupation?
Since July 2020, I‘ve been with the Innovation Management team at Roche Diagnostics International as Exploration Lead to work at the intersection of digital solution design, business strategy and innovation. I’m responsible for generating and exploring innovative ideas to be developed into digital solutions in healthcare.
What role did the Master of Science in Business Administration with a Major in Innovation Management play in preparing you for this role?
All companies need to innovate, create value continuously and adapt according to changing customer needs. The Master’s provides the tools to innovate and keep companies relevant in the market. The variety of courses offered in the curriculum ensures versatility, flexibility and critical thinking skills to tackle complex problems, integrating data collection and analysis with the ability to think outside the box.
Which elements did you particularly appreciate and why?
The opportunity to work and attend the Master's course in parallel allowed me, on the one hand, to acquire new skills by weekly exchange with students and teachers, and, on the other hand, to improve my work performance by integrating what I learnt into the professional context.
The projects carried out in collaboration with business, together with the testimonies of entrepreneurs and innovation managers, helped me to understand theoretical aspects in a practical way, indirectly bringing me closer to the work I’m doing today. Another aspect that is certainly relevant and brings value to the Master's programme in terms of comparison and experience is the diversity of the students from both a professional and academic background.
To whom would you recommend this training course?
To students wishing to undertake training that combines theory and practice, to those wishing to broaden their job possibilities also thanks to the opportunities offered by SUPSI (job portals).
However, the Master’s is also a valuable resource for those who already hold certain roles in different business environments but who wish to acquire new skills.
Finally, to the curious, the innovators, the creative.
What advice would you give to those wishing to start the Master's programme?
As obvious as it may sound, I have realised over time that one should never hesitate to ask questions, to be curious. The advice I would give to future students is to draw as much as possible from the professionals, lecturers and colleagues in the Master's programme.