"What we do here really makes a difference"

Sophia Sagner leads with both expertise and empathy. As Head of Line Supervisor at Octapharma, she brings people together around a shared purpose: creating life-saving products that patients can rely on. For Sophia, motivation comes from knowing that every bottle represents a human life.

Together with her team, she fosters an environment built on trust, openness, and collaboration — where people feel valued, involved, and connected by a strong sense of purpose.

As Head of Line Supervisor, Sophia plays a key role in keeping operations running smoothly at the Dessau site. She acts as the link between production management and the shift supervisors, coordinating day-to-day processes in packaging and inspection while supporting her team whenever challenges arise. Alongside workflow improvements and organizational planning, she is also the go-to person for project implementation and technical testing in the packaging area.

“In the end, I’m responsible for everything connected to packaging and inspection,” she says.

Sophia has held this leadership role since 2023 — but her journey at Octapharma started much earlier. After graduating, she joined the company as a trainee and spent several years working in packaging and inspection before taking the next step in her career.

“I saw it as an opportunity to challenge myself and continue growing,” she explains. “I already knew the team well, which gave me confidence, and I wanted to keep learning and develop my leadership skills further.”

Unlocking potential

For Sophia, good leadership starts with staying connected to the people around her. Even though her office is one floor above the production area, she makes a conscious effort to stay close to the team and be present in their day-to-day work.

“I like going down to the team and talking directly with the employees,” she says. “Especially when decisions need to be made, it’s important for me to hear different perspectives and include the people who are directly involved.”

Sophia describes her leadership style as approachable, open, and fair. She believes that involving people early creates stronger collaboration and better results.

“I always try to bring everyone on board as early as possible so we can move forward together.”

Creating an environment where employees feel heard is especially important to her. Team members are encouraged to contribute ideas, take initiative, and actively help improve processes.

“Every idea deserves to be considered,” Sophia says. “It’s important to me that we find solutions together, support one another, and create an environment where people can do their best work with a smile on their faces.”

Products that matter

In her role, Sophia carries significant responsibility for ensuring that Octapharma’s products reach patients safely and with the highest quality standards. It’s a responsibility she and her team never lose sight of.

“Every bottle represents a human life,” Sophia says. “Our products need to reach patients with 100% quality, and because I work so closely to the packaging process, I feel very connected to that responsibility.”

For Sophia, even small improvements can make a meaningful difference. Every optimization ultimately helps patients receive the treatments they depend on more quickly and safely.

A real family feel

For Sophia, one of the things that makes Octapharma special is the genuine sense of togetherness across the company. Even as the organization continues to grow, maintaining a supportive and people-focused culture remains deeply important to her.

“We’re very family-oriented and always try to find the best possible solution for each employee, no matter their situation,” she says.

Sophia values the open and solution-focused mindset she experiences in everyday collaboration. At the same time, she believes that growth also means continuously evolving — not only operationally, but culturally as well.

“As the company grows, we also have to keep developing to preserve that family feeling and continue creating a good balance between work and private life.”

For her, appreciation for employees is more than just words. She believes people are at the heart of everything the company achieves.

“Without our employees, none of this would be possible. That’s why I’m glad that Octapharma truly values and supports its people.”

That sense of warmth is something Sophia and her team actively try to pass on to new colleagues from day one. “We want people to feel welcome as soon as they arrive here,” she says. “That they can quickly find their place, feel comfortable, and become part of the team.”

Investing in the future

Continuous improvement is also important to Sophia when it comes to sustainability and the future of the department. Together with her team, she is always looking for ways to make processes more efficient, resource-conscious, and forward-looking.

“We’re working to digitize processes that are still paper-based so we can save resources and work more efficiently,” she explains. “We’re always open to improvements and want to keep developing — both as individuals and as a team.”

For Sophia, progress also means learning from one another. New ideas and process improvements are regularly shared across locations so that teams can benefit from each other’s experiences and continue growing together.

“When we implement something new, we share it with the other sites,” she says. “And when they develop new solutions, we look at how we can apply them here as well. We really learn from each other.”