Most health professionals spend years building toward a role they're told is the destination. What happens when you get there and realise you're still evolving?

Kristen Hicks-Roof is a registered dietitian and PhD researcher who built a full academic career - tenure, grants, research agendas, and chose to leave it to lead human nutrition at the US National Pork Board, a role that didn't exist before she took it.

This conversation gets into what it's like to be a high performer navigating competitive dynamics, the identity reckoning that happens when your career and your motherhood collide on the same timeline, and what it actually looks like to take clinical skills into an industry most dietitians are taught to distrust. If you've ever felt like you outgrew a role you genuinely valued, or wondered whether the skills you built in practice could belong somewhere completely different, this one will sit with you.

• The fight to prove nutrition's value and why it follows you no matter what setting you're in
• What happens when your drive and the culture around you aren't well matched
• The identity shift from "mother scholar" to something with no established name
• How a 2am LinkedIn scroll during maternity leave became a career turning point
• What dietitians and clinicians misunderstand about working in the food industry

Chapters

• 00:00 Unexpected Career Paths
• 06:31 The Role of Nutrition Professionals
• 17:08 Academia and Career Transition
• 28:26 The Decision to Leave Academia
• 34:01 Navigating Tension in Academia
• 42:46 The Impact of Motherhood on Career
• 49:29 Role in Nutrition Research
• 59:12 Building Connections and Following Passions

Kristen Hicks-Roof PhD, RD is the Director of Human Nutrition at the US National Pork Board, where she oversees research investment and science communication across stakeholder groups from farmers to federal policymakers. A former associate professor with promotion and tenure, her academic research focused on integrating nutrition across healthcare teams and the lived experience of mother scholars in academia. She also hosts the Nutrition Connection podcast.

• LinkedIn: Kristen Hicks-Roof
• Podcast: Nutrition Connection

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