Building The Exact Sciences Team: An Interview with HR Business Manager Samantha Michalski

Exact Sciences is recruiting heavily in an effort to support the launch of Cologuard and development of our product pipeline. To support our hiring initiative, we are publishing Q&As with Exact Sciences team members.

A Wisconsin native and University of Wisconsin grad, Samantha Michalski was eager to join Exact Sciences as a Human Resources Business Partner. She came with a personal connection to colon cancer and today her passion and enthusiasm drive her to develop and retain the best talent to help Exact Sciences continue to grow and meet future challenges. Learn more about her story:

What attracted you to Exact Sciences?

I couldn’t pass up the chance of a lifetime to be a part of a growing organization launching a product and seeing it come to fruition. I responded to a job ad for Human Resources because it sounded like an exciting opportunity to grow both personally and professionally, as well as to help the organization expand and succeed.

I have a family connection to colon cancer, so I felt a personal tie to the Exact Sciences’ mission. Now, as we expand of our product line to help prevent other types of cancers, I’m excited to see how the work we do will benefit my family and other families in the future.

Describe a typical work day.

There is no “typical work day” at Exact Sciences. I love coming into the unknown every day and having to think on my feet and work on a variety of projects. I’ve learned the importance of having a well-rounded perspective, the ability to recognize that there may be some gray areas and that it’s okay to reevaluate the status quo.

On a daily basis I have an opportunity to help problem solve in all parts of the business. It’s incredibly rewarding to work collaboratively with people across the organization in order to find creative solutions that we couldn’t have come to as individuals.

Who or what inspires you at work?

Our HR team inspires me through its commitment. I am motivated by the team’s knowledge and dedication to staying current with industry practices, rules and regulations. I also have a phenomenal mentor and manager who encourages me to take advantage of development opportunities and maximize my experience at Exact Sciences.

On a company level, what truly inspires everyone here is our mission. Everyone in the organization—from the CEO down—is dedicated to finding better solutions for the early detection of cancer. This mission drives us forward every day.

What do you like about living in Madison?

I’ve lived in the Madison area my whole life so it’s a lot of what I know. One thing I love about the city is that you can always find something fun to do.

Some of my favorite Downtown activities include Taste of Madison, the Farmer’s Market and watching the sunset at the Union on the lake.

What are the qualities you look for when hiring?

On most days I help on the recruiting side with screening candidates who might join and help grow the lab and finance organizations. It is the responsibility of HR and the interviewing team to make sure candidates’ personality traits reflect our company’s core values, which include accountability, teamwork, quality, innovation and integrity.

We look to hire people who will fit well with our company culture. It’s important that our team members are people who can think outside of the box and look for a better way to do things. We love when employees are innovative and ask why we are doing things a certain way and seek to improve processes rather than settling and sticking to the status quo. It is important that Exact Sciences’ team members are dynamic, open-minded and flexible.

What positions are you currently hiring for?

Within lab operations, we are actively hiring on our Specimen Processing team. These individuals receive the Cologuard kits off the UPS truck, process and stage the patient samples for Cologuard clinical testing. Candidate profiles come from a wide array of backgrounds.

This position is a great opportunity for energetic and driven people who are eager to learn about healthcare or who want to work in a lab as a way to launch their career in the industry.

As more and more doctors order Cologuard and both our kit shipment and call volumes increase, we continue to hire rapidly in our Customer Care center. This is the only department within Exact Sciences that runs 24/7/365.

Here, we look for candidates who are empathetic and comfortable discussing difficult – often sensitive – topics with providers and patients directly. Candidates must display the utmost professionalism, as Exact Sciences focuses on delivering world-class service.

Our revenue cycle, or billing team, is another major growth area right now. Since we are continuing to build the department, it’s an exciting time and great opportunity for those coming in with unique experience and perspectives. The revenue cycle team talks directly with patients and insurance providers about payments, so it is important that they, too, have a high level of professionalism and ensure world-class service.