In this blog series, you’ve been getting to know some of the employees at Luminex. In today’s Q&A, we profile Christoph Cordes, Senior Director of Marketing & Scientific Applications for Europe, the Middle East, India, and Africa. He’s been with Luminex for 14 years, and has a biology degree and MBA from the University of Texas. In 2015, he and his family moved to the Netherlands to help launch new products in Europe.
Q: What do you do at Luminex?
A: I’ve had lots of different jobs since I joined in 2002. I’ve worked in sales, distributor and partner management, and global marketing. In 2012, I started up a group that was responsible for launch readiness. Once we got close to launching the ARIES® system and the NxTAG® Respiratory Pathogen Panel, they asked if I wanted to help launch these products in Europe. Now I’m based in the Netherlands and my responsibilities involve managing product marketing and marketing communications, scientific affairs, and the application scientist teams.
Q: What made you interested in taking an assignment in Europe?
A: I didn’t really go abroad until I started traveling for work, so I always wanted to live in Europe when my kids were young so they could experience it and have a broader worldview. There are certain things we miss doing, and that we didn’t understand were elements of “culture,” until we left the U.S. At the same time, living in Europe has really broadened our scope and enriched our lives, and we feel very lucky to have such an incredible experience. It seems that you never truly learn about your home country until you leave it behind for a while.
Q: When you joined Luminex, it was a much smaller company. What was that like?
A: It was totally different. Back in those days, the company had fewer than 100 employees, and only one instrument — the Luminex® 100™. I started in tech support. We were a group of three people sitting in an old telephone wiring closet that they converted into a bullpen. We would stagger our shifts to cover working hours across the U.S. time zones, and did our best to help users all over the world.
Q: What drew you to Luminex?
A: I had been working at the UT Southwestern Medical Center, but I wanted to go back to my hometown of Austin. I was familiar with flow cytometry technology, which is similar to Luminex’s original instrument, so I applied for a support job. I had been on the other end of the phone many times talking to tech support and felt like that was something I could do. I discovered an affinity for helping customers that I didn’t know I had. Solving somebody’s problem always felt good.
Q: If you weren’t at Luminex, where would you be?
A: Doing something that combines art and science, like cooking or making wine or something to do with cuisine.
Q: If you could solve any clinical or genetic challenge, what would it be?
A: My youngest daughter has a pretty serious food allergy, and that’s extremely scary for parents. It necessitates a lifestyle change for the entire family and it can limit you later in life as well. I wonder about the things that she’s not going to be able to experience. These allergies are way more common than they used to be, and I would hope to figure out how to cure or prevent them.
Q: What is something about you that no one at Luminex knows?
A: I used to be a lot less science-y and a lot more artsy. I played guitar and wrote songs and performed at open mics. I even had a few gigs way back in the day, mostly at parties or events at the Austin Rodeo.
Q: What’s your favorite weekend activity?
A: In Austin it would be going out on the lake in a boat with some friends and family, doing some wakeboarding — or even just grilling and cooking by the pool. Those are the things I miss most here. In the Netherlands it’s got to be biking. I’ve really gotten into cycling over here!
