Career Possibilities Panel & Speed Networking: Portfolio Strategy, Business Development, Tech Transfer


In the world of business, careers are no longer linear or predictable. What was once a clearly sign-posted path as you progressed through milestones, a career road map is now circuitous presenting new challenges and opportunities at every bend. Life-long careers in one sector or one company are becoming a rarity as new technologies and shifting social norms disrupt traditional careers. Both employers and employees are seeking more diversity of experience, lifestyle flexibility and alternative paths.

This panel is designed to help you think about your career path and the different options that are open to you. The panel will have an informational interview type feel with panelists sharing their career paths, a look at what their job entails, transferrable skills for those looking to make a change, tips for uncovering opportunities, advice for others, and how to make brave leaps. This discussion will be moderated by Tatiana Demidova-Rice, Director of Business Development at Evotec and WEST Advisory Board member.

 

Panelists Include:
 - Stacey Hero, VP of Business Development, elevatebio
 - Jennifer Ma, Executive Director, Transactions, NIBR BD&L
 - Asli Sahin, Associate Director of Search & Evaluation, AbbVie
 - Hat Sawaengsri, Senior Manager, Partner Alliance and Project Management, ImmuneID
 - Will Yen, Corporate and Business Development, Head of Search, Evaluation & Licensing, Voyager Therapeutics, Inc

 

Date and Time:  
April 13, 2022
6:15-7:45 PM EST

Agenda: 
5 mins: Welcome
60 mins: Panel discussion
10 mins: Small group speed networking
5 mins: Learnings
10 mins: Small group speed networking

 

Location:
Zoom  

 

Cost:   
Members, Students, Postdocs: $5; Non-Members: $15

Given our mission is to promote women's development in STEM we would like to offer a free spot in our workshops to those in transition between jobs or who cannot afford the ticket price. Please contact [email protected] if you qualify.

 

Register Here

 

Check out the other events in this series

 

Panelist Bios

Jennifer Ma joined the Novartis Institute for BioMedical Research as a transactor in 2015.  At NIBR she is responsible for deal-making activities ranging from pulling together the first deal structure and proposals, all the way through closing on contract negotiations.  She started her BD career at Phenomix, a genomic startup company based San Diego.  Since then, she has held different roles within venture capital and traditional BD&L roles, most recently in AstraZena’s autoimmune franchise.  She received her chemistry PhD from Caltech and has an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Hat Sawaengsri is a Senior Manager, Partner Alliance and Project Management at ImmuneID, a biotech start-up located in Waltham, MA. In this role, she initiates and manages relationships and projects with external partners. Previous to ImmuneID, Hat was an Alliance Manager at Harvard University’s Office of Technology Development (OTD) where she managed research alliances created between OTD and industry partners. She ensured all obligations in the research agreement were met, coordinated meetings to support research collaborations, and monitored and tracked research progress and milestones. Prior to that, Hat spent four years at yet2, an open innovation consulting company, as an Innovation Services Manager. In this role, she led multiple technology scouting and acquisition projects for large companies and government organizations. Hat obtained her B.A. in Biological Sciences from Dartmouth College and her M.S. and Ph.D. in Biochemical and Molecular Nutrition from Tufts University.

Will Yen currently works at Voyager Therapeutics, a gene therapy company focusing on severe neurological diseases. As a core member of Corporate & Business Development team, Will not only plays an essential role to every aspect of business development activities, but also contributes to various other functions, including portfolio strategy, corporate development, competitive intelligence, as well as supporting research and development with his science expertise. Prior to Voyager, Will worked at Biogen Corporate Strategy, where he investigated neurodegenerative disease space with a comprehensive view to identify trends and barriers of the field, thereby informed the company's investment opportunities and long term growth strategy. Before transitioning to business development / strategy roles, Will started his career as a research scientist at Agios. Will received his scientific training through a PhD in Virology at Harvard University, a Master in Biotechnology at University of Pennsylvania, and a Bachelor in Zoology at National Taiwan University.