Caring for a Cancer Patient, I Learned My Craft—Listening

Simon’s Craft is Listening

I was 16 when I learned the difference between listening with my ears and listening with my heart. I was working as a volunteer at a hospital—serving food, cleaning and making beds—and I spent a lot of time with patients. Over the 12 months I volunteered, there was a lady who kept coming in and out of the hospital because she had cancer. Just before she passed away, she thought I was her son. We had this beautiful conversation about her life—and then she was gone.  

I can remember feeling helpless, wondering what could I have done to help her? This experience led me to study molecular biology and later work for companies like Daiichi Sankyo, where we can have a profound impact on patient lives.  

What Happens If You Really Listen?

I once thought I had to have all the answers. What I learned throughout my career is that there are many more people who have better ideas, experience, and are way smarter than I am. To build our People Strategy at Daiichi Sankyo, I took learnings from throughout my career and applied them here. One of the things I knew coming in is that if you really listen, people will bring you the issues. What amazed me about Daiichi Sankyo is that our people don’t just bring challenges, they bring insights, ideas and solutions. 

Conversations That Make an Impact

I studied molecular biology and began my career in research before making the untraditional leap over to human resources. Understanding the science really helps me in my role. Ideally, if you look at a group of people in a meeting room, you can’t tell who the human resources person is because they're talking about the business. I found early in my career that when I really engaged in how to solve business problems, I had much more impact as an HR leader. At Daiichi Sankyo, I have supported every part of the business which offers a holistic view of how everything fits together. That is important. I find if we talk about the business, the conversation will usually lead to the importance of people and how we can lead and work better together.

A Place for Passionate People

If you have a passion to make a difference in the world, Daiichi Sankyo is a wonderful place to be. Whether you have spent decades or years honing your craft or you're just at the start of your career and are driven to learn, this is a place where you can bring your unique skills and collaborate with like-minded individuals. I believe together we can create something remarkable.  

Interested in applying your craft to creating better tomorrows for patients? Visit our Careers site. 

Watch “Where Craft Meets People”

Take a deeper dive into the craft of listening.  Go to Daiichi Sankyo’s YouTube Channel to watch Where Craft Meets—People, featuring Simon King, Chief People Officer at Daiichi Sankyo, Inc., in conversation with his colleague Dan Switzer, Head of U.S. Oncology Business. Simon shares what it takes to drive a successful people strategy, the importance of building an inclusive culture and what he heard during his interview for the role that convinced him to join the team.