CV:

Rachelle Howard is a Senior Process Control Engineer leading Vertex Pharmaceuticals Continuous Manufacturing Automation Engineering function. Rachelle is a natural problem solver, delivering innovative solutions across an array of automation platforms. Last year, Rachelle was recognized as a member of Putnam Media’s inaugural class of Influential Women in Manufacturing. A graduate of Tufts University and UConn, Rachelle has degrees in Chemical Engineering and a PhD in Process Control.

 

The Pop in your Job: What drives you / what is your passion:

What excites me about my work is taking in the big picture and finding innovative ways to assemble the pieces in streamlined solutions.

Vertex is a global biotechnology company that invests in scientific innovation to create transformative medicines for people with serious and life-threatening diseases. We discovered and developed the first medicines to treat the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis (CF), a rare, life-threatening genetic disease. In addition to clinical development programs in CF, Vertex has more than a dozen ongoing research programs focused on the underlying mechanisms of other serious diseases. Founded in 1989 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, our corporate headquarters is now located in Boston’s Innovation District, and our international headquarters is in London, United Kingdom. We currently employ approximately 2,500 people in the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia and Latin America with nearly two-thirds of our staff dedicated to research and development. Vertex is consistently recognized as one of the industry’s top places to work by Science Magazine, The Boston Globe, Boston Business Journal and the San Diego Business Journal. Our research and medicines have also received esteemed recognitions, including the Robert J. Beall Therapeutics Development Award, the French Prix Galien and the British Pharmacological Society awards.