In this episode of Elevate: Women Leading the Way in Pharma Outsourcing, host Marianne Gissane speaks with Eleonora Casucci, Vice President of Quality and Compliance at Pro Pharma Group, about building a career with intention, leading through curiosity, and repositioning quality as a strategic driver rather than a compliance function.

Eleonora shares her journey from graduating in Rome and joining a small Italian pharma company undergoing a complete quality system overhaul, to deliberately seeking out gaps in her experience, relocating to the Netherlands, and ultimately making the leap from technical expert to business leader in a global consulting organisation. Reflecting on the mentors, pivotal decisions and moments of discomfort that shaped her path, she describes how humility and curiosity have been the constants behind more than two decades of professional growth. Drawing on her experience leading quality teams across Europe, the UK and India, Eleonora offers thoughtful insight into what it means to serve your team, navigate the rise of AI in pharma quality, and lead with both technical credibility and human warmth.

In this episode, you'll learn:

How to intentionally map your career by identifying gaps and building on your strengths at every step
Why choosing a lower-paid role with the right mentor can be the smartest early-career decision you make
How quality has evolved from a policing function to a true strategic partner within pharma organisations
What it really means to lead a consulting team and why being at the service of your people is the key to success
How the industry is responding to the rise of AI and machine learning in GXP compliance and validation
Why humility and curiosity are the most underrated qualities of a seasoned professional

"I've always approached every job as a learning opportunity. Being humble is a very important characteristic of a seasoned professional — because you will never be as strong as the team is together."

Eleonora Casucci is Vice President of Quality and Compliance at Pro Pharma Group, where she leads the delivery of quality and compliance services across European, UK and Indian teams. With more than 20 years of experience spanning pharma and biotech, she has held roles across quality systems, validation, qualified person responsibilities and new facility build-outs, before transitioning into consulting leadership.

Known for her collaborative approach and people-centred leadership style, Eleonora combines deep technical expertise with a genuine belief that quality, at its best, exists not to police but to enable — bringing teams together around their shared purpose of delivering safe, effective medicines to patients.