Melissa's journey: Three boomerangs a charm!
Melissa has been part of EIP from the early days however, her journey has taken a few detours! Read about Melissa's career journey, how she got to working in client relationship management and how she managed to complete a BSc degree while juggling working at EIP and having a young family!
Tell us about your career
I joined EIP in 2006. My life in the IP profession started at Adams & Adams in Pretoria, South Africa. In 2001 I moved from South Africa to London in pursuit of adventure and between 2001 and 2006 I travelled as much as I could whilst working as a temp in various IP firms across London. I decided it was time to take life a little more seriously in 2006 and that’s when I started at EIP. I still remember being interviewed by Heather and I instantly liked the ‘vibe’ at EIP.
I have worked with various patent attorneys at EIP over the years, but Heather has been a constant. Alongside the paralegal work, at some point between 2006 and 2010 I took on the responsibility at EIP of becoming the assignment specialist and Heather and I worked on some huge patent assignment projects together. These were the days before NetDocs, and I remember spending hours and hours in the office looking through mountains of boxes of files trying to tidy up Chains of Title. My role at EIP now still involves the assignment work when bigger projects come up, but I do less of the day-to-day paralegal work and my role now is more about client management, which I really enjoy.
When you temporarily left EIP, where did you go and how long were you gone for?
There is more than one answer to this question as I have boomeranged more than once! The first time was in 2011 when my husband and I took a 3-month break from work, bought a campervan, and went travelling around central and Eastern Europe. My second time was after my son was born and I had the crazy idea that I might like to try being a stay-at-home mum, and the final time I left was to pursue a career change and work as a nutritionist. What I haven’t mentioned yet is that whilst working at EIP and having my two children, I was also doing a BSc in Nutritional Sciences. It took me 6 years to complete, but I submitted my final dissertation about a week before my daughter was born. There is nothing like pressure to get the job done!
What made you 'boomerang' back to EIP?
I absolutely loved my years at EIP, and I always kept in touch with Heather and other colleagues after I left, so when I got back from my campervan travels, I asked if there was still a Melissa shaped hole at EIP, and there was, so that was lucky! As hinted above, turns out being a stay-at-home mum really is not for me, and as much as I love my children, I also enjoy working. I was very happy that I could come back again after that moment of madness! My career as a nutritionist went well and I worked at a clinic in London for a couple of years, but somewhere along the way I fell out of love with it, and it was actually very hard to manage full time alongside a young family. The hours were long and the stress was high, so I boomeranged back to EIP part-time at first whilst trying to keep the nutrition going on a part-time basis as well, but it slowly faded away and now EIP is my one and only! To boomerang back three times can only mean that I was, and continue to be, happy at EIP.
What has changed the most at EIP since you first started?
The size! I can’t remember the exact number, but when I joined, I think there were only about 10-15 people at EIP. It was like family. To see how much the firm has grown over the years is incredible. We all got very excited when the Bath office opened, then Cardiff, and to now have offices internationally is truly something to be proud of.
What is the weirdest thing you missed about EIP while you were gone?
OK – I’m going to be honest here… It might not be a weird thing, but what I missed was the partying!! Everyone would have heard the stories by now, but we had a lot of fun! So much fun that some of it I can’t fully remember. A quick drink at lunch would turn into a 2am bedtime.
What do you love about EIP?
It’s a cliché, but I have always loved the people. I have known some EIPers for nearly 20 years – Heather, Jerome, Laura, Matthew B, Paula, Maggie, Lizzie. We have shared so many milestones together – big birthdays, marriages, children. Although I was already 28 when I joined EIP, I was definitely not a grown up yet! I love that my fellow EIPers have been with me through some of life’s highs and lows. And now that I am a real grown up, I get to see my younger colleagues reach life’s milestones and share that with them, even if it is just via a Teams call! If it wasn’t for the amazing team of people that I worked with when I started and continue to work with now, I wouldn’t still be here.
Really useful guide, thank you. I've been to INTA a few times now and the hotel recommendation is spot on — book early or you'll be paying a premium for something much further away.