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"I find the variety of my tasks fascinating"

Shu-Hsien Li is a good example of how flexibly a career at Kuraray can develop. She joint Kuraray in 2016 as a lab technician. Today, she leads a team of five people in the Product Stewardship & REACH department, where she is responsible for product stewardship and regulatory compliance. Kuraray has given her the freedom to combine working with family life.

Shu-Hsien Li

“I make a difference at Kuraray by promoting product stewardship and driving forward sustainability and diversity.”

Shu-Hsien, you are now a senior manager in the Product Stewardship & REACH department. What do you find so interesting about your job?

I never thought I’d work in this field. I studied chemical engineering and started my career in research. But I soon realized I didn’t want to be confined to working in a lab – I wanted more contact with other areas and to apply my knowledge in a broader context. What makes my present job so interesting is its variety. Statutory requirements are constantly changing, new scientific findings influence our work, and we have to adapt continuously to new situations. I also work with many different teams both internally with the various business units and globally with external authorities and business partners. That makes my job very varied!

A female employee is writing something on a whiteboard.

What exactly do you do?

My main job covers product stewardship and regulatory compliance. In other words, I ensure that our products meet all legal requirements. That does not simply mean European regulations; we also have to comply with worldwide regulations because we sell our products globally. I check which requirements have to be met for specific applications and work with our business units to ensure that we fulfil all the necessary standards.

Your career path has been quite varied. What brought you to Kuraray?

I started working for Kuraray in 2016 as a laboratory technician in Technical Service. Back then, my primary goal was to find my feet. I studied in Taiwan and did my doctorate there. However, it wasn’t easy to find a suitable job here. So I took an entry-level position dealing with customer enquiries and doing lab tests.

After a few years, I wanted to move on and was offered an opportunity to transfer to product stewardship and compliance. That was a completely new field for me. I had to find my way around regulatory requirements and risk assessments. In 2021, I took the next step and moved to the Safety, Health and Sustainability department. Now I work for all business units in Europe and have a much broader view of our company and our products.

Three employees are having a friendly conversation.

As a mother of two children, how does Kuraray help you combine your career with family life?

That was one of the biggest challenges for me. While my children were small, I worked part-time but I nevertheless wanted to move on in my career. It’s very difficult to work full-time when you have two children at kindergarten. The last time I changed jobs, I discussed it very openly with my supervisor. He was very understanding and enabled me to use flexible working hours and mobile working. Another big benefit is Kuraray’s cooperation with the childcare facility and holiday support company Fluggi-Land. That was a big help because it meant I could go on working knowing that my children were being looked after properly.

Was there a particular moment when you became aware that Kuraray is the right company for you?

Definitely. There were actually several, but during the pandemic it became especially clear to me how much Kuraray supports its staff. If I’d still be working in a lab, it would have been almost impossible for me to manage my job and my family. But the flexibility Kuraray offered meant I could continue to do my job, continue my personal development and look after my children – that was a big help for me personally. 

 

 

Two female employees are having a friendly conversation.