Meet One of McKesson’s Emerging Professionals

Read time: 4 minutes

Whether just starting out or having decades of experience, McKesson employees looking to develop professionally have a variety of tools available to help them advance their skills and careers. That’s why our Emerging Professionals (EP) employee resource group (ERG) was created – to educate and empower employees to make a positive difference in both their careers and their personal lives.

Originally designed for young professionals, this unique ERG has evolved to support all employees who want to advance in their career, regardless of whether it’s their first job or their fifth. With 15 chapters across the U.S., Emerging Professionals’ ultimate vision is to produce top-level leaders and help employees build the career of their dreams at McKesson.

One of the longtime EP members, Rodrigo Espinosa, exemplifies the benefits of participating in this ERG while also providing opportunities for others to succeed in their quest for more.

Rodrigo Espinosa: Paying it Forward

Rodrigo Espinosa

All four of Rodrigo’s grandparents dedicated their lives to helping others – from serving as a president of the Red Cross in their native home of Colombia, to creating an organization that supports women, and even founding a school in Bogota. From an early age, he knew he wanted to honor their contributions and help those less fortunate succeed.

Joining McKesson seven years ago opened the door for him to have the impact he craved. Today, as business development director, Pharmaceutical Solutions and Services, he’s motivated to help oncology practices maintain ample supplies of critical drugs to better treat cancer patients.

Three months after he started with McKesson, he joined EP. He started as the local chapter’s learning cohort leader for a year in Alpharetta, Georgia, then became a full site leader for two years, and now serves as the group’s national vice chair.

What EP means to him:

Rodrigo decided that in order to build the McKesson career he envisioned, he needed to get involved. He felt that EP offered an ideal opportunity to surround himself with likeminded, driven individuals of all experience levels and diverse backgrounds.

Since joining, Rodrigo’s been promoted four times at McKesson. He firmly believes that EP was a critical part of that journey, providing an invaluable platform for leadership, networking, and honing his skills in public speaking, event planning, and other areas that are beyond his usual responsibilities.

EP has also given him the opportunity to achieve what he calls his proudest McKesson moment so far – organizing a 2019 Heritage Month community event. In partnership with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS), he recruited more than 35 company volunteers to prepare care packages and write letters to cancer patients. As a result of their work, McKesson donated $1,000 to LLS. At the time, he had a friend dealing with blood cancer, and now he’s helping source oncology drugs, which has made the opportunity to see McKesson’s impact and galvanize others to get involved even more meaningful.

“EP has given me an outlet for connection and networking. It’s afforded me the chance to team up with the finest and brightest who have a calling for doing more than just our day jobs. We’re passionate about driving change and building a company culture we can all be proud of.”

How EP gave him a platform to help others grow:

Rodrigo is passionate about EP, not only because he’s motivated to challenge himself personally and professionally, but also because he wants to help ensure that others have similar opportunities.

His work with EP helps to provide opportunities for others to advance their careers. Through the group’s breakthrough program, Free Agency, managers seeking extra help on a project can post their opportunity to the EP network, and members can apply and amplify their skillsets.

“In EP, we’re thoughtful about the speakers we invite, the workshops we offer, but most important, the hope and motivation we offer our members to dream big. We want them to know that others at McKesson are going through similar challenges, but this is a family that is always willing to help. We thrive on seeing and supporting each other’s success.”

His advice for the next generation of McKesson leaders:

Given his family’s example and his own experiences, Rodrigo knows quite well that success begins and ends with hard work, but hard work without vision isn’t enough. He’s also learned that everyone needs help along the journey, but driving professional advancement is a personal responsibility. He counsels others to not be shy about their intentions – to be authentic to themselves, get out, network, and find their own growth opportunities.

“Nothing will be served to you on a silver platter. You’ve got to take ownership and work hard. EP offers resources to help McKesson employees take the right steps to advance their careers.”