Case Studies
12+ years successful business development and corporate strategy experience in the life science industry, including preclinical and clinical pharmaceuticals, industrial biotech, and medical devices, with proven ability to build commercial value.
STARTING A COMPANY FROM UNIVERSITY IP - BIOTECH SPINOUT
Resources
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Information on the grants we were awarded - SBIR.gov
- Designed and launched the Ecovia Renewables website - www.ecoviarenewables.com
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Sample pitch deck for commercializing Ecovia Biopolymers - Ecovia Biopolymers
Introduction
I had the pleasure of working with an inventor from the University of Michigan's Department of Chemical Engineering to help transform process IP developed in an academic lab into a commercial opportunity. We co-founded Ecovia with a goal to discover the right application, gather resources with as little capital as possible (see "lean start-up methodology"), and create value for partners and customers while forming a viable business. Over five years, we built a team of 10 employees, raised $3.8 million in funding and attracted our first $1 million customer.
Actions Taken
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Designed and executed initial proof of concept studies while embarking on customer discovery efforts (including NSF I-Corps) to form value proposition
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Boosted credibility and visibility by hiring key consultants, full time employees (FTEs), and building website to increase digital footprint and capture leads
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Initiated communication and financing efforts, working on our story through pitch deck formation and seeking non-dilutive fundraising
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Established process and initiated partnering and fundraising activities to supplement R&D funding with revenue from customers and investors
Results Achieved
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Build patent portfolio, in-licensing key University IP on a worldwide, exclusive basis for minimal upfront cash
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Increased traffic to our website to 1,000+ unique views per month and 600+ followers on major social media channels
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Awarded five government grants from three US government agencies (~$2 million)
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Signed multi-million dollar JDA with a global strategic investor, allowing the company to de-risk the technology and produce product prototypes at meaningful scale
Ecovia won AkzoNobel's Imagine Chemistry Competition in 2017
CREATING A NEW MODEL FOR DRUG DISCOVERY - PRECLINICAL PHARMA
Introduction
Under a leadership transition, Therapeutic Systems Research Laboratories (TSRL Inc.) hired me to help leverage its facility, equipment, and experience in pre-formulation and grant writing to create a new business model based around accelerating pre-clinical drug candidates to IND. The business was privately owned and highly consolidated, so I worked with the CEO to engage key stakeholders to receive the necessary support to successfully execute on the new direction. Over 24 months we increased our grant submission productivity by 300%, signing our first two major accounts and raising $4 million in non-dilutive grant funding from the NIH.
Actions Taken
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Conducted due diligence on current IP portfolio to understand internal strengths and weaknesses and catalogued internal systems and in-house assets
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Interviewed staff to understand core competencies and aligned staff to create a culture that emphasized continuous improvement ("Good to Great" methodology)
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Performed competitive analysis to create target product profiles (TPPs) and stakeholder maps and drafted a new business plan with the support of leadership
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Identified opportunities and developed complementary external partnerships to systematically apply and obtain non-dilutive grant funding to support R&D milestones
Results Achieved
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Awarded three government grants from the NIH-National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases that supported investigators from two large research universities and a small microneedle company
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Negotiated two spin-out asset LLCs, an out-license agreement, and multiple low-cost option agreements to develop preclinical assets
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Launched new website and created platform- and asset-specific marketing and pitch materials to attract 20+ viable leads/month
Resources
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Information on the grants we were awarded - SBIR.GOV
- Designed and launched TSRL, Inc. website - www.tsrlinc.com
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Sample asset deck from TSRL, Inc. - Accelerator Model
TSRL's Booth at Cutting Edge Drug Discovery in 2015
MARKETING A CARDIOVASCULAR DIAGNOSTIC - CLINICAL STAGE
Introduction
Everist Health, a family owned technology and wellness company, had hired a small team to develop and commercialize its combination algorithm/medical device, termed the AngioDefender system. I worked with the Chief Operating Officer to create a multi-channel strategy to increase awareness around this new, non-invasive approach for measuring and preventing cardiovascular disease. As a CE-marked device undergoing clinical trials at multiple international sites, we had restrictions around claims while simultaneously engaging healthcare providers and patients.
Actions Taken
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Working with Chief Medical Officer and Regulatory Affairs, distilled clinical data into consumable marketing communications around "research use-only" applications of the AngioDefender system
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Created consumer engagement tool called the Vascular Age Calculator to educate users and encourage clinical trial participation
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Initiated brand revitalization, commencing digital and print campaigns for both platform- and asset-specific content tailored to physicians and patient
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Created instructional videos and interactive websites, wrote blogs, and optimized SEO through a mixed media marketing approach
Results Achieved
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Successfully launched multi-channel marketing campaigns in North America and Asia-Pacific geographies, generating significant inbound interest from partners
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Click-through-rate of consumer engagement tool increased over 200% quarter-over-quarter from launch
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Unique website visitors increased by 60% and average time-on-page increased by 40% from campaign launch
Resources
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Helped design and launch Everist Health website - www.everisthealth.com
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Helped design and launch Vascular Age Calculator - www.angiodefender.com
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Oversaw development of AngioDefender marketing materials - AngioDefender White Paper