Interview with a Dietitian

interview

WITH A DIETITIAN

SUE CLORAN

What made you choose dietetics?

A funny story! When I finished high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do, and I was departing on a yearlong exchange programme to Sendia, Japan. Whilst I was away, my parents completed all of my university applications for me, and when I returned after a year abroad I found out I was enrolled into Dietetics at UKZN! Keep in mind these were the days when email was limited, and we used to post each other letters to stay in touch (giving away my age here!). They say your parents know you the best, and this truly was the case for me.

Where did you study?

Pietermaritzburg campus, University of Kwa-Zulu Natal. I furthered my studies by completing an MBA at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland a few years later.

Career path- tell us about your journey and where you find yourself now.

I have been really, really lucky in my career path to-date; I feel like I’ve been in the right place at the right time all along the way! It started off with an ‘invitation to apply’ letter from Kellogg South Africa, whilst I was completing my comm. serve at Ermelo Provincial Hospital, and ended up on the Mediterranean working as a Senior Vice President for a specialized communications agency called Eat Well Global. But let me tell you more…. I joined Kellogg in 2007, as a Nutrition Business Partner, managing nutrition communications, consumer affairs, regulatory affairs, product development and nutrition marketing. I spent 5 years in that role, gaining a broad introduction to marketing and business. I especially enjoyed being part of the commercial team – Kellogg is famous for its marketing, worldwide.

I soon got itchy feet, and was asking myself ‘what’s next?’, and at that time decided to study an MBA through Wits University to solidify the business exposure and experience I’d had at work, and to keep me busy. As it happened, half way through the degree, an opportunity came up at the Kellogg European Headquarters, in Dublin. I was promoted into this role and, on a mid-summers day in January 2012, left Johannesburg, for mid-winter in Ireland. What a shock! It took a while to settle in, (not to mention having to start the MBA all over again!), but I moved through various roles at Kellogg, ultimately leading the European team of +-21 dietitians and nutritionists, and specialising even further in nutrition marketing. After almost a decade, again I was asking myself ‘what’s next?’, and started job hunting, only to find this incredible company called Eat Well Global. Eat Well Global is a specialized nutrition communications agency, staffed by healthcare professionals and operating all around the world. At first, I was excited about the opportunity to work on game-changing projects across the food spectrum, and not only be ‘the cereal girl’. Eat Well Global also operates on a fully remote business model (i.e. working from home), so I was even more excited about the opportunity to leave gloomy Ireland if I wanted to! However, what attracted me most, and still inspires me every day, is the impressive client list (from FMCGs, to pharma, to commodity boards…), and more importantly, our incredible team. Never before have I experienced a team with such professionalism, strong ethics, and a true dedication to the profession. The company takes on projects relating to insights gathering, strategy setting, and market activation, and some of the clients I work on include Barilla, Mars,

Eat Well Global, Pumpkin Carving Team Social Event, October 2020

Meeting with our game-changing client, KIND International, for a workshop in London, January 2022. Left to right: Christina Xenaki, Orla Danaher, Sue Cloran, Emily Stephens, Rachel Menzies

Nestlé, IKEA and Yum! Brands. I do still feel lucky to have found this role when I did, in late 2019, which came at the right time for my personal and professional growth. I hold the role of Senior Vice President, managing our projects, strategies, and team across Europe. I’ve recently relocated to Valencia, Spain, and am now living the dream on The Med - whilst doing what I love! Perfection!

What are your career highlights?

Without a doubt, the highlight has been the sheer diversity of responsibilities I’ve had in my career so far. I also love where I am now, best captured through Eat Well Global’s vision of ‘a world where good nutrition is good business’, because that’s exactly what I personally believe in too! Some other moments I could call out have been launching the first ever Kellogg SA website (no doubt this has moved on since those days!), and the various media appearances I was able to make on behalf of the company during that time. I also loved contributing to the South African FBDG during their revision in 2012. Another highlight (and stretch goal) was coauthoring two scientific publications on fibre – relating to my work on All-Bran® – in 2016. More recently though, I have been immensely proud to have designed

and developed proprietary consumer research for Eat Well Global, with the aim to understand where consumers go for health information and who they trust (hint: it’s dietitians! Feel free to contact me for more info; we included South Africa in the study!). Lastly, as a dietitian who’s also a consumer myself, getting to work on the recipe redevelopment for IKEA’s iconic meatball was amazing, and help Barilla with their messaging to HCPs! There are too many exciting and fun projects to mention, which is what I love the most about my job.

If you could go back in time, what advice would you give to your younger dietitian self?

To keep an open mind, and realise that clinical dietetics isn’t the ‘be all and end all’. I had no idea the world of nutrition in business was an option until I entered it.

Advice for dietitians considering a change in career path: Be prepared to start again – I’ll never forget the feeling of being ‘the little fish in the big pool’ when I joined the European nutrition team at Kellogg. It is temporary, you will learn, and grow, and find your place again. Humility and hunger to learn, is key!

What do you love most about the dietetics profession?

I love so many things! That we are a closeknit community, cheering and supporting each other – this is important to me. I also love that the profession is ever-evolving; I’m thinking of various shifts over the years from personalised nutrition to the recent holistic wellbeing approaches,

Eat Well Global, Virtual Holiday Party, December 2021

Eat Well Global, European Team Meeting (in person for the first time post-covid), Summer 2021

to incorporating sustainability into our dialogue. Agility, and finding your niche and passion is critical.

What do you miss most about South Africa?

Gosh, too much to mention! I left South Africa for a career opportunity, not because of any other reason. South Africans often think that life is better ‘overseas’, but having now lived in 3 other countries, I realise that the grass isn’t always greener. So many things spring to mind when I think about what I miss about home: the weather, the beauty of the ever evolving African landscapes, and the food – OMG the food.

If you have an interesting career story or community service experience you’d like to share, please contact adsacomms@gmail.com

We’d love to hear about your journey.