From idea to impact: embracing entrepreneurship in the life sciences

This career development event is for early career researchers wanting to better understand entrepreneurship and routes to commercialisation.  It will be especially beneficial for researchers interested in pursuing the benefits of research and driving change through innovation in the life sciences sector.

The event will start with a series of short presentations and a panel discussion to learn from leaders in entrepreneurship, innovation, and commercialisation. This will be followed by an interactive workshop, led by Caroline Broad, exploring the routes to commercialisation and the skills required to do this successfully. Before running her own training business, Caroline worked in the commercial sector in hi-tech and bioscience.

Agenda:

About our speakers:

Professor Dhavalkumar Patel FMedSci

Dhaval Patel is Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer at UCB, Belgium, and is a member of UCB’s Executive Committee. Before UCB, he was responsible at Novartis for research teams in the areas of autoimmunity, transplantation, and inflammation and served as Head of Research for the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research Europe. Before joining industry, he was a renowned researcher at Duke University Medical Center and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (USA), authoring over 100 thought-leading publications with more than 10,000 citations. Dhaval is a medical doctor and holds a Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology.

Caroline Broad              

Caroline Broad is a specialist in helping you create clarity in who you are and create intentional choices in what you do.  You will leave her workshops with an increased self awareness and a plan of how to implement practical tools and techniques so you can create a more productive, balanced and innovative research career.

Caroline’s workshops are practical, interactive, research based with wellbeing always at their centre. 

Caroline gained her twenty years’ experience facilitating teams and delivering skills training with a focus on developing the skills of career researchers and University staff in STEM.  

Caroline loves working with people who have a depth of knowledge and a passion for their work.  She starts with the assumption that everyone is naturally resourceful and capable and delivers value by developing an individual’s self-awareness, alongside an introduction to tools and theories that are directly applicable to their roles.

Caroline is a certified practioner in Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) and Belbin Team Roles, is a Mental Health First Aider, C-Me profiling and Resilience Tools consultant

              Dr Jordan Lane               

Jordan is the Co-CEO and Scientific Lead at Ignota Labs. With a BSc in Biochemistry and Genetics, as well as a PhD in Alzheimer's Biomarkers and Biophysics from Nottingham University, he has dedicated his career to the forefront of drug discovery. Jordan's vast experience encompasses contract research organisations, big pharma, and biotech firms, with his work ranging from cellular synergy assays to high-throughput screening of 1.8 mn compounds. He has led multiple drug discovery programs, two which are in Phase II clinical trials. In addition to his scientific accomplishments, Jordan completed an MBA from Quantic in 2022.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Dr Richard Gibbs            

Richard advises clients in patenting and other IP matters in the field of biotechnology and has particular expertise in technologies relating to antibodies, vaccines, biologics, virology, bacteriology and molecular biology. He has worked with all of Scotland’s major universities and is a regular speaker at IP conferences and events.

Richard joined the patent profession after a period as both a research scientist and a university lecturer having obtained an honours degree in medical microbiology and a doctorate in immunology and microbiology from the University of Edinburgh.

Our Career Development events are free and open to everyone. They are particularly useful for early-career biomedical and health researchers, offering practical skills training and structured networking opportunities. To hear about our upcoming events, funding schemes and other opportunities, please sign up to our bi-monthly careers newsletter.

This event is generously supported by Wellcome.