The simple, unassuming Lego brick is a universal symbol for possibilities. In the early 2000s however, consumers saw the brand as anything but. With over 7000 complex pieces and rigid instructions Lego became increasingly unapproachable.
Over-engineering products and spreading a brand too thin is often an unintended consequence when dealing with something that has unlimited potential and possibilities. Since a Lego brick could be anything, why shouldn’t it be everything? This strategy was unravelling Lego until in 2004 Jørgen Vig Knudstorp took over as CEO and focused on limiting what Lego stood for so that it could signify possibilities again. Sounds counterintuitive? Perhaps. But it worked.
The same tension between boundless potential and the discipline to focus it shows up in unexpected places. Tim Tang joined Nutromics as a Quality and Compliance Manager after establishing his career with industry veterans in medical devices and compliance. Immediately he recognised that Nutromics’ technology represented possibilities. “One of the main reasons I wanted to join is because we’re building something really different that could make history. It’s the world’s first DNA sensor device as a wearable”, he commented. The opportunity to work on something innovative while ensuring that it stays true to its purpose combined Tim’s personal and career passions.
Simple, systematic, sustainable, and no shortcuts
Quality and Compliance, especially in medical devices, is a high-pressure and high-impact field. Expanding on what attracted him to this field, Tim shared “I studied IT because I was always drawn to innovation and logical thinking. I spent a year in an IT role but after a while, I realised that breakthroughs need to have a real impact in the workplace and in the world, especially when it comes to safety and reliability. That's why I shifted my focus to the medical device and pharmaceutical space. I wanted my work to be meaningful, to have a positive impact on patients, and to help make people's lives better every day.”
A desire to innovate is a common thread across Tim’s career. Providing insight into his mindset, he shares, “I strongly believe that if you are doing things the same way five years later as you did before, you’re not challenging yourself. You are not looking for new improvements or ideas. I believe that things can be better.”
It was this desire that led him to Nutromics where he saw the opportunity to set up a simple, systematic, and sustainable quality system for a platform technology.
Immediately, however he had to reckon with start-up dogma: move fast and break things. Often this means that a team can set up processes and ways of working that are based on experience rather than traditional practice. This in turn intensifies complexity. The task for Quality and Compliance is to set up accountable, trackable, and compliant ways of working. However, a common misconception is that this introduces bureaucracy that slows things down. Tim disagrees.
“Quality systems are preventive tools that help teams avoid foreseen and unforeseen issues. To balance that with speed, I think it comes down to mindset. The system is here to help you, not create bureaucracy. And that brings me back to my core philosophy: simple, systematic, and sustainable. That's the quality culture I've been working to build at Nutromics” he says.
Building something like this is not easy, especially when working with stakeholders across the organization. Tim works with engineers, scientists, program managers, operations etc. and each group has different priorities. Tim’s goal was to focus on aligning varied interests so he could reduce fragmentation in processes that would affect the end product. He did so by narrowing down on three priorities all stakeholders shared: keeping costs low, keeping things moving, and staying compliant.
It was the same lesson Lego had learned the hard way: when everything is possible, the most powerful thing you can do is decide what matters most
The glue between innovation and compliance
A major reason that Knudstorp was able to turn Lego around was because he focused efforts on what mattered most to his customers: storytelling. Children used Lego to build their own worlds and stories. He prioritised strategic partnerships and shifts with brands and mediums that enabled this. For example, launching a Lego Star Wars game. With the heart of the brand amplified, products improved and new markets were unlocked. Eventually the brand was able to co-create designs with its customers which is what helped embed Lego into creative culture forever.
Tim quickly identified a similar theme at Nutromics. The team was driven by a desire to create a positive impact on patient lives. Approaches to this differed – some believed relentless innovation was the way while others over-prepared with quality systems far surpassing what a start-up realistically needed. Tim’s challenge was to bring this all together. His answer was to position quality not as a constraint on innovation, but as the very thing that would make it sustainable.
“Innovation and quality are not contradictory at all. A key term you'll see in regulations and ISO guidelines is ‘risk-based’. Regulators push manufacturers and device developers to conduct proper risk assessments and work based on risk because if you don't, everything becomes high risk, and you end up in an endless loop of rabbit holes you never come out of”, he shares.
Tim leans into agile working to ensure that innovation and compliance move together. He mentions Greenlight Guru as an example of a tool that enables this because it makes the design process traceable while providing agility. “This is the innovation I’m referring to – not shortcuts”, he says.
Ultimately however, Tim recognises that the ability to work in this way and implement tools like this comes down to a company’s culture and priorities. “What sets Nutromics apart from others is that many startups start everything from scratch on paper, but here we already have a few steps ahead. We've invested in tools like MasterControl and Greenlight Guru, which makes our development easier and more compliant. That's important for a company that wants to be both innovative and compliant at the same time.”
The results of his efforts have been incredible – in under a year Tim set up systems that streamlined quality and compliance work across all departments. Furthermore, he effectively embedded agile, impact-focused compliance thinking into Nutromics’ day-to-day culture.
“There have definitely been huge improvements in terms of adopting the quality culture. I’ve enrolled a few engineers in external quality training, and eventually that will expand further. At the same time, quality has become more and more applicable to people at this stage, because we're now documenting important things that will be part of our FDA submission. I can see the difference. People now see it as something real, not just theory. It's something they're going to use and apply, and something the FDA or regulators will actually read”, he said.
The adventure of it all
Over two years into his role at Nutromics, Tim has been challenged like never before. He has been the sole member of his team with a huge responsibility and strategy to execute. This is daunting, especially so when in the past one has worked with big teams and seemingly endless budgets.
Tim credits his growth to his mindset and manager, “I am constantly challenging myself to do things differently. I had to create an entire quality management system from scratch. I looked back at what I'd done in the past and asked whether it was actually the right approach. Just because we've always done something a certain way doesn't mean it's correct or effective. That personal growth, constantly questioning how things can be done better, has been really significant. I’ve also been fortunate to have a good manager like Hitesh, who always guides me and points out where I can improve or look more deeply. He pushes me beyond the areas I'm comfortable in.”
Tim credits Nutromics’ openness to ideas and curiosity as two cultural qualities that have kept him highly engaged and energised by his work. “I've come to love working in a lively, dynamic environment rather than a predictable 9-to-5 where every day looks the same. You want a bit of adventure”, he shared.
When asked what advice he’d give someone starting their career in quality and compliance today, Tim shared “I'd say go back to basics. A lot of people fall into the same trap. They join an established company, follow whatever system is already in place, and keep doing things without really understanding the underlying reason. It's really important to be trained up on the fundamentals and understand what the regulatory requirements actually ask of you.”
Tim's work has had an undeniable impact on outcomes at Nutromics. He came here because he saw what the technology could become and spent two years building the systems to make sure it could. Now, with a product launch on the horizon, the part he has been preparing for all along is finally here: possibilities.