Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month – Advancing Leaders Through Innovation

Jennifer Costales, product manager in Canada for Tissue Technologies (TT) is leading the way to support the development of Asian talent at Integra.

Jennifer Costales started her career journey at Integra during the integration of Derma Sciences in 2017. She earned her bachelor of arts degree in communication arts (advertising, marketing and public relations), from the University of Santo Tomas (UST) in Manila, Philippines. Founded in 1611, UST is considered the oldest existing university in Asia and as Jennifer shared, she is a very proud "Tomasian."

Upon joining Integra, she continued in her role as a sales and marketing administrator for our advanced wound care and legacy traditional wound care portfolios. She then supported our former extremity orthopedics portfolio in a marketing associate role and then came full circle with a promotion into her current role as product manager, where she is responsible for the strategic development and execution of marketing/operating plans, forecasting and long-term strategies for our wound and surgical reconstruction portfolio in Canada.

Taking on these different positions has boosted her confidence to be a role model for others. She learned so many things along the way which is the same advice she would impart to others as they think about their own futures. First, take initiative; don't wait for opportunities to come to you. Second, keep a positive mindset and understand that setbacks and failures are inevitable but teach you to be more resilient. Third, cultivate a network that can provide you with valuable advice. And finally, volunteer for stretch assignments to demonstrate your willingness to take on responsibilities beyond your current role. In fact, this is what led to one of her proudest moments at Integra when she was given an opportunity to showcase her talents and abilities which resulted in her receiving the One Integra Award for Commercial Excellence for Canada in 2022.

Specific to networking, she is very grateful to Laurene Isip, vice president of global corporate communications and marketing and the Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) employee resource group (ERG) network lead who encouraged Jennifer to use her voice and presence within the AAPI community to take on more of a leadership role within this ERG. As the chair of the professional development committee, Jennifer focuses on providing learning opportunities and coordinating events to support the development and advancement of Asian talent within the organization.

As she shared, "AAPI Heritage Month is a wonderful vehicle to help us promote our heritage and culture to our Integra colleagues and celebrate our uniqueness and diversity. It is also a great time to celebrate the achievements and contributions of those individuals past and present who have elevated the voices of AAPI globally."

Jennifer is also very proud to be a role model to her two daughters Kyra and Kessandra, who are her greatest achievements. In a world of social media influence, she hopes that she has imparted on them to not put so much emphasis on material things and that true happiness and joy can be found in doing things that you love.

For her, what is most positive and fulfilling about working at Integra is our products and her work on the marketing team to help improve the quality of life for patients around the world. She is grateful to be part of a team that emphasizes collaboration and teamwork and fosters an environment where everyone can thrive and learn from each other both personally and professionally.