Employee Spotlight: Louie Gnida

Louie Gnida | Associate Product Marketing Manager | Joined Penumbra in 2020

Q. What is your current role at Penumbra?

As Associate Product Marketing Manager, I work as part of a team to bring vascular products to market and manage product adoption thereafter. A big part of my role is to stay in constant communication with the sales force and our operating physicians to successfully facilitate and implement feedback.

Q. What drew you to Penumbra?

The biggest reason I was drawn to Penumbra is that we manufacture devices that address unmet needs for our patients and make a tremendous difference in their outcomes. The second thing that drew me to Penumbra is the rapid pace of innovation!

Q. What aspects of your job do you enjoy most?

My favorite part of my job is that I have the opportunity to learn and grow on a daily basis. My job truly enables me to be a lifetime learner, and I love that aspect.

Q. Describe yourself at age 10. What career aspirations did you have at that age?

At age ten, I was dead set on being a football player. I dreamed of playing defensive line for the Iowa Hawkeyes. After college, I planned on being drafted by the New England Patriots and being teammates with the greatest football player of all time, Tom Brady.

Q. Describe a travel adventure that you’ll never forget.

After I graduated from college, I spent three months traveling around Europe. I spent most of my time in Barcelona but also visited Dubrovnik, Budapest, Vienna, Berlin, Brussels, The Netherlands, Prague, and London. My favorite part of the experience was getting to interact with so many different people from different backgrounds.

Q. What is the most important thing you have learned in the last five years?

This year specifically, I learned that Denis Villeneuve is a great director, and that Dune: Part Two holds up against the book. I had considerable doubts, because the book is so good, but, man, that cast absolutely brought the house down.