Dr. Noubar Afeyan is founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering, a company that conceives, creates, resources, and develops first-in-category bioplatform companies to transform human health and sustainability. An entrepreneur and biochemical engineer, Dr. Afeyan holds more than 100 patents and has co-founded and helped build more than 70 life science and technology startups during his 33 year career. He’s co-founder and chairman of the board of Moderna, the pioneering messenger RNA vaccine company addressing the global COVID-19 pandemic, Omega, Generate Biomedicines, Tessera Therapeutics, and Laronde. He is also co-founder and board member of Rubius Therapeutics, and YourBio Health. Dr. Afeyan has been a Lecturer at Harvard Business School and Senior Lecturer at MIT where he taught technology-entrepreneurship and innovation for more than two decades. He received a Technology Pioneer 2012 award from the World Economic Forum, was awarded the National Order of Merit from his native Lebanon in 2021, a Great Immigrant honor from the Carnegie Corporation in 2016, and the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2008. Dr. Afeyan is a member of the Corporation of MIT and a member of the board of trustees for the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Together with his partners, Noubar has launched and supported philanthropic projects including the IDeA Foundation, UWC Dilijan School, FAST, and the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity to raise awareness of the world’s most pressing humanitarian problems. A passionate advocate of the contributions of immigrants to economic and scientific progress, Dr. Afeyan received the Appeal of Conscience Award in 2020 and the Golden Door Award in 2017 from the International Institute of New England, in honor of his outstanding contributions to American society as a U.S citizen of foreign birth.

Patrick Berreby is currently the Vice Present of Supply Chain at Alnylam Pharmaceutical and brings close to 30 year experience with more than 25 years in the biotech industry. His expertise encompasses Clinical Supply, Material Management and Warehouse Operation, Project Management Office, Contract Manufacturing and Commercial Distribution. Patrick is an expert in the end to end supply chain and has taken products from early stage development to commercialization, building global organizations located in multiple continents and launched products in multiple region of the world including APAC, LATAM, EU, Middle East and the US.

In the role of CEO, Joe will manage MassBio’s federal affairs, state and municipal government relations, and will take the lead on initiatives to sustain Massachusetts’ economic competitiveness focusing on issues around infrastructure, workforce, and digital health. Prior to joining MassBio in September 2021, Joe served as the State Senator for the First Suffolk and Middlesex districts, representing his hometown of Winthrop; the Boston communities of East Boston, North End, Chinatown, Beacon Hill, Bay Village, and South End; the Cambridge neighborhoods of Cambridgeport, Riverside and MIT; and the City of Revere. While in the State Senate, Joe was the Chair of the Joint Committee on Transportation, Chair of the Senate’s Committee on Personnel and Administration, Chair of the Joint Committee on Housing, Vice Chair of Rules, and member of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, Senate Ethics Committee, Committee on Bonding, Capital Expenditures and State Assets, and the Committee on Financial Services. Before being elected to the state legislature in 2016, Joe practiced law specializing in criminal law in his private practice and as a public defender with Suffolk Lawyers for Justice. Since his early life, Boncore has been an active member in the Order Sons of Italy in America, he is currently the National Second Vice President. Boncore earned his bachelor’s degree in political science and government from Providence College in 2004 and received his juris doctorate from the Massachusetts School of Law. Joe resides in Winthrop with his wife Christine and twin sons John and Philip.

Julie is currently Chief People Officer at Evelo Biosciences, a clinical stage biotechnology company developing oral biologics that act on SINTAX™, the small intestinal axis, with systemic therapeutic effects. Julie brings more than 20 years of experience having led large enterprise transformations as well as building commercial organizations. Prior to joining Evelo in September 2020, Julie served as Chief Human Resources Officer at FXI Corporation, a private equity held manufacturing company. While at FXI, Julie managed and oversaw the integration planning and execution of an acquisition that doubled the size of the company’s revenue and footprint. Before her time with FXI, Julie spent more than 20 years with Novartis Pharmaceuticals, where she served in various customer-facing business roles and well as leadership positions within Human Resources, most recently as Human Resources Lead for the Cardiovascular Business Unit. Julie holds a B.A. in American History and French from William Smith College in Geneva, New York and resides in West Newbury, Massachusetts with her husband and two children.

Julie Chen, a recognized leader in research, STEM and economic development in higher education, is the fourth chancellor of UMass Lowell. Chen was named chancellor after leading the university’s growing research franchise into a nearly $95 million annual operation. She was unanimously appointed by the UMass trustees in May 2022 and assumed her role as just the second woman to lead the university of more than 17,000 students on July 1. In her first year as Chancellor, Chen led the development of a new five-year strategic plan, focused on four strategic priorities: 1.) Enrollment and Student Success, 2.) A Diverse, Welcoming and Inclusive Campus, 3.) Research Excellence and 4.) Partnering with Our Community for Mutual Benefit. In the past year the university has experienced increases in undergraduate enrollment, retention, six-year graduation rates and philanthropic gifts, which hit a new one-year record of $37.4 million. Forty-eight percent of 2023 first-year students identify as students of color. Research funding has continued to increase in the last year – reaching $111 million – and UMass Lowell sits on the precipice of Research 1 status, the highest tier of research university in the country. The designation will further accelerate UMass Lowell’s growth in research, external partnerships with industry, non-profits and government agencies. It will also provide additional opportunities for students, faculty and alumni seeking internships, research collaborations and jobs. Chen previously served as vice chancellor for research and economic development, a role that included managing industry partnerships, technology transfer, startups and innovation, core research facilities and economic development programs. As UMass Lowell’s chief research officer, she facilitated numerous innovative models that brought together industry, government and academia. Chen joined the UMass Lowell faculty in 1997 after six years as an assistant professor at Boston University. From 2002 to 2004 she was director of the Materials Processing and Manufacturing as well as the Nanomanufacturing programs at the National Science Foundation in Washington, D.C. Chen was appointed UMass Lowell’s vice provost for research in 2009, and she was promoted to vice chancellor in 2016 with an added external and outreach focus. Chen has served on many editorial boards, advisory committees and review panels for journals and federal agencies including the National Science Foundation; the National Institutes of Health; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine; the U.S. Department of Energy; and the U.S. Department of Defense. She serves on boards of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center and MassTech Collaborative, as well as the Massachusetts Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative and the Massachusetts Military Asset and Security Strategy Task Force. An advocate for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives, she served as co-lead for UMass Lowell’s Council on Social Justice and Inclusion. Additionally, she was a co-principal investigator on a $3.5 million National Science Foundation ADVANCE Institutional Transformation grant to support and elevate women faculty in science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines. Chen received her Ph.D., Master of Science, and Bachelor of Science degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in mechanical engineering, where she was an Academic All-American in softball and field hockey. In 2019 she was awarded an honorary degree from Queens University Belfast. She is a recipient of the U.S. Army Public Service Commendation Medal – the Army’s fourth-highest civilian honor – for her leadership in developing the innovation ecosystem. Chen and her spouse, Susu Wong, reside in Wilmington.

Giacomo is currently Head of Global Rare Diseases at the Chiesi Group, where he leads the team developing and commercializing treatments for rare and ultra-rare diseases. His mission in life is to make a tangible difference in the lives of patients and alleviate all those who suffer from disease around the world. His passion is listening to patients and building and shaping organizations and put the feedback from the patients in practice. He was previously Head of Global Corporate Development at the Chiesi Group where he led the team through an intense deal making activity. The deals were instrumental for Chiesi to become a global company with expansion to several new countries including Canada, Australia and China, enter and grow its presence in the US market, selectively expand in new markets in Europe and establish a global portfolio and pipeline in rare diseases, which culminated in the constitution of a new organization: Chiesi Global Rare Diseases. In his career, Giacomo has directly structured and executed deals with $4B in value ranging from sell-side to buy-side M&A, in- and out-licensing, and spin-offs. In 2014, he founded Chiesi Ventures as a joint venture with Pappas Capital, an established life science venture capital fund, where he currently serves as Managing Partner. He serves as a Board Member on the Board of the Chiesi Group. He was previously¬ an observer or board member at Chiesi USA, Glycomine, Aura Biosciences, Sentien Biotech and Minoryx Therapeutics. Before joining the family business, Giacomo was a consultant with Bain & Company, a management consulting firm, where he led teams in a variety of assignments including due diligence, restructuring and strategy projects for consumer goods and IT companies in different countries. Previously he was with Accenture where he led large teams in outsourcing projects across Europe and US for clients in the transportation and retail businesses. Giacomo earned a Master of Science degree Magna cum Laude in Telecommunications Engineering from the University of Parma, Italy, and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business with concentrations in Entrepreneurship, Economics and Finance. He practices calisthenics every day and enjoys spending time with his wife and kids, reading, traveling, and playing guitar. In 2021, he was awarded the Champion of Hope award from Global Genes and in 2022 he was a PharmaVoice 100 Honoree.

Helen is currently Vice President, Early Development at Sage Therapeutics, a company whose vision it is to fearlessly lead the way to create a world with better brain health. Helen led the development program at Sage that culminated in FDA approval of Zulresso for the treatment of Post-partum Depression. Helen’s current responsibilities include oversight of the transition of programs from Research into Development and through Early Development. Helen’s career has included working for large and small biotechnology and pharma companies, as well as work in consulting and medical devices.

Gretchen Cook-Anderson, inaugural executive director of Ignite, a workforce diversity platform of parent nonprofit LabCentral, is an award-winning marketing executive with 25+ years of promoting biotechnology careers, global education, space and Earth science discoveries for NASA, Mars candy, entertainers in Hollywood, candidates for political office, and a host of household products (at Edelman PR). In her new role at Ignite, she’s leading efforts to address systemic racial, gender and other underrepresentation across life sciences and the biotech industry – from labs to leadership, and from the STEM student pipeline to the entrepreneurs advancing life-changing innovations that heal, save and extend lives. Prior to her current role, Gretchen served as Associate Vice President, Assistant to the President & Director for Diversity Recruiting & Advising at IES Abroad, one of the largest providers of academic study and internship programs abroad which educates about 9,000 US college/university students abroad each year across 35 international cities. Gretchen led diversity and inclusion-related marketing outreach, resulting in 151% growth in enrollment diversity during her 10+ years at IES Abroad. In 2014 and again in 2016, her efforts garnered Diversity Abroad’s EDIIE (Excellence in Diversity & Inclusion in International Education) Award, and an achievement award from IES Abroad in 2018. In May 2021, Gretchen was awarded NAFSA's (the Association for International Educators) inaugural Award for Impact in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in International Education -- a distinction from the most prominent, global professional association in the field.

Edgar Lara is Director of Supply Chain Biologics at BMS with 15 years of experience leading supply chain teams and a total of 20 years supporting manufacturing operations for biotech industry leaders of Medical Devices and Pharmaceuticals. Through his career, he has lead the design and implementation of Lean Production Control Systems, has been a Subject Matter Expert for Supply Chain business processes in several ERP implementations and has conducted extended capacity analysis from supplier base through distribution during double digit growth years, identifying initiatives to meet customer and business long term expectations. He has a passion for continuous improvement, team development and matrix collaboration to help biotech companies meet their goal of impacting patients life’s. He holds Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Engineering from CETYS University, a Master’s Degree in Quality and Productivity Systems from Tecnologico de Monterrey, is a Certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and has a CPIM certification from APICS.

Rohini Deshpande leads the Amgen Massachusetts (AMA) site, which sits in the heart of the Cambridge biotech ecosystem. As Site Head, Rohini and her leadership team work to maximize the strategic potential of AMA, further building capabilities at the site to be a center of excellence for Amgen Operations. In addition to her role as Site Head, Rohini also serves as Vice President, Drug Substance Technologies. Rohini’s Drug Substance Process Development team develops and transfers Drug Substance processes to Amgen manufacturing sites to ensure reliable supply, and advance next-generation manufacturing technologies. Rohini’s team has presence in several US sites (Thousand Oaks, Cambridge, Rhode Island, Puerto Rico), Singapore, and Germany. Prior to this role, Rohini served as Vice President, Attribute Sciences, in which she established an analytical organization with end-to-end capabilities for a diverse portfolio from pre-pivotal to commercial stages. Rohini’s team developed attribute-focused capabilities across seven Amgen sites and established novel strategies and technologies to achieve specific quality target product profiles for products and materials. During her tenure, Attribute Sciences implemented phase appropriate release testing at the pre-pivotal phase to reduce timelines and in the commercial phase established a unified approach to method development and transfer through method stewardship to improve reliability in collaboration with Quality. Since joining Amgen in 1997, Rohini has held numerous positions of increasing responsibility and leadership, including Director of Cell Sciences & Technology and Executive Director Drug Substance. Over the years, Rohini has also led teams and initiatives that advanced the Molecule Assessment Process, Platform Evolution, Fast-to-Patient Approach and Manufacturing of the Future. Prior to joining Amgen, Rohini was a postdoctoral fellow at UCLA and University of Michigan and earned a Ph.D. in Biology from SUNY Binghamton.

Debbie is an accomplished human resources executive with a focus on providing strategic direction to companies on people matters, managing rapid growth and creating and maintaining high performance cultures. Most recently, Debbie served as the interim head of human resources for Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Inc., where she was appointed to lead the post-merger human resource integration following the acquisition of Cubist by Merck. Prior to this role, she was the global senior director for talent management and organizational development at Cubist, where she was primarily responsible for building talent and leadership strength and depth while managing change on a global scale to create a cohesive and highly differentiated culture. Prior to Cubist, Debbie served as the North American manager of talent acquisition and workforce planning at Holcim, Inc., in Waltham, MA. She serves as a member of the board of directors for the Massachusetts Biotechnology Education Foundation, a nonprofit organization committed to supporting science and biotechnology education in Massachusetts through school programs, workforce training and lifelong learning. Debbie earned a B.S. in business management from Bentley University.

Awny Farajallah M.D. joined Takeda in July 2021 as the Head of Global Medical Affairs Oncology. He brings over 25 years of combined experience in both academic and industry settings related to clinical research/development and medical affairs across multiple therapeutic areas. Awny joins us from Ipsen, where he was Senior Vice President, Medical Affairs, North America. As a key North America Leadership Team and Global Medical Affairs Leadership Team member, Awny was responsible for providing strategic leadership and direction for all facets of the Medical Affairs organization in North America. During his tenure, Awny also led efforts to enhance Medical Affairs capabilities with the goal of broadening the impact to patients through medical stakeholder partnerships across Oncology, Neuroscience and Rare Disease. Prior to joining Ipsen, Awny served as Vice President and Head of US Medical Affairs at Bristol Myers Squibb, where he led functions such as field medical, disease areas, medical education, biomarkers, promotional material review, portfolio strategy, as well as strategic collaborations across oncology, immunoscience, cardiovascular, neurology and mature brands. Awny has led multiple successful launches in Immuno-oncology and hematology for Opdivo and Yervoy and Sprycel. He also was the clinical development lead for hematological malignancies in leukemia and multiple myeloma. He also led the global medical and clinical development teams for HIV including Reyataz global life cycle management and business development. Awny earned his M.D. from Cairo University and completed an Internal Medicine residency and Infectious Diseases fellowship at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and New Jersey Medical School, respectively.

Teo Forcht Dagi is a neurosurgeon and venture capitalist with an abiding interest in biomedical innovation and translational science. He holds professorial appointments in Neurosurgery at the Mayo Alix College of Medicine and Science, and at Queen’s University Belfast in Northern Ireland, where he previously chaired the faculty of medicine and the William J. Clinton Leadership Institute. He also serves as an International Surgical Advisor for the United States and Member of the Surgical Specialty Board for Neurosurgery at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. Previously, he served as CEO of Boston Neurosciences, Inc., as a partner in several venture capital groups, and director of a number of privately held and publicly listed biomedical companies in the UK, Canada and the US. He is currently a Senior Managing Partner with ROSC Global, LLC. He was a director of the Harvard-MIT Program in Biomedical Entrepreneurship, of the Goergen Entrepreneurial Institute at Wharton, and at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He has advised a number of academic and research institutions and sovereign wealth entities on innovation policy, practice and investment and is currently senior advisor to CURAM, the program in medical device development for the National University of Ireland in Galway. He also advises the Leducq Foundation, a venture philanthropy group focused on cardiovascular and neurovascular innovations. Teo received an AB from Columbia College, MD and MPH from Johns Hopkins, MTS from Harvard and MBA from Wharton and trained in Neurosurgery at the Massachusetts General Hospital and at the Neurosurgical Unit of the Maudsley, Guy’s and King’s College Hospitals in London. He served as a flight surgeon and neurosurgeon in the US military and is currently the Deputy Command Surgeon of the Georgia State Defense Force.

Brent P. Forester, MD, MSc, is the chief of the Division of Geriatric Psychiatry at McLean Hospital, Senior Medical Director for Value-Based Care Solutions, Population Health Management at Mass General Brigham and an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Forester is an expert in geriatric psychiatry, specializing in the treatment of older adults with depression, bipolar disorder, and behavioral complications of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. He is currently President of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry and a distinguished fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. Dr. Forester’s research focuses on studying novel treatment interventions to manage behavioral complications of dementia such as agitation and aggression. Dr. Forester also leads a Mass General Brigham system-wide initiative to enhance the assessment and treatment of individuals with dementia, while supporting family caregivers, in primary care settings. Finally, Dr. Forester and his research team use brain imaging techniques and careful clinical assessment to better understand the causes of dementia, depression and bipolar disorder in later life and to identify promising new targets for effective treatments.

David Frey is a Principal in KPMG’s Advisory practice. Based in Boston, David is the leader for KPMG’s life sciences industry concentration in the New England & Upstate New York region. He applies more than 25 years of experience in strategic planning and transformation advisory to assist life sciences clients in achieving their growth, profit and protection objectives. Prior to relocating to Boston in late-2019, he spent most of the last two decades working in China and across Asia Pacific. Under David’s leadership, KPMG's life sciences team in Asia supported an industry leading client in a number of important areas including optimizing cost-to-serve through a redesign of the distribution network (medical device division), CAR-T market opportunity assessment and risk profiling for China (pharmaceutical division), enhancing patient experience through innovative digital platforms (pharmaceutical division), and optimizing product profitability by developing sophisticated data & analytics capabilities (consumer division). For more than two decades, David has advised multinational corporations on their most critical growth and transformation objectives in the USA and Asia. While in Asia, David’s views were called upon regularly by both western governments and the China government, having served as an expert witness at a US Congressional Commission on China’s Five Year Plans, chairing roundtable sessions at China’s prestigious Party School, and hosting a series of multi-lateral sessions in the USA, Europe, China and Japan with the Development Research Center (DRC) of the China State Council regarding the country's urbanization path. He is regularly invited to participate in closed-door discussions with Ambassadors, government ministers, and company boards on the opportunities and challenges of operating efficiently and profitably in China.

Aremin focuses on organization health and development for Third Rock and the firm’s portfolio companies. He also leads and cultivates the Beyond Great Learning Community, which allows senior leaders across the portfolio ecosystem to engage in dialogue and mentorship around the shared aspects of building transformational companies. Aremin is motivated by the passion and dedication of the entire Third Rock team to the singular mission of improving the lives of patients, and he places priority on building and strengthening the community both within Third Rock and across our growing portfolio ecosystem. One of Aremin’s greatest professional accomplishments is having worked on creating a global culture across the Pharmaceutical Sciences division at Takeda, which at the time included multiple sites across Japan, EU, and the U.S. He is proud that he and his team were able to honor the unique regional strengths and differences, while creating a unified culture that everyone felt connected to.

As Chief Commercial Officer, Nicholas brings more than 20 years of commercial and launch experience in the fields of virology, cardiovascular and oncology to his role at Shorla Oncology. Over the course of his career, Nicholas has held leadership roles in analytics, market access and commercial operations at pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Before joining Shorla Oncology, Nicholas served as Head of Commercial Operations at Oncopeptides, INC. Previously he led Commercial Operations & Market Access at Kempharm and held roles of increasing responsibility at Nextwave Pharmaceuticals, Gilead Sciences & Symphony Health. Nicholas holds a B.A. in Finance from the University of Otago, NZ & B.A. in Architectural Studies from the University of Adelaide, Australia.

Dr. Nathan Jorgensen brings a comprehensive background of buy-side, sell-side, consulting, and scientific experience to his new role at Vor. At QIA, the sovereign wealth fund of the State of Qatar, he spearheaded biotechnology and pharmaceutical investment efforts, which included opportunities in public, private, and specialty investments. Prior to joining QIA, he led investments in therapeutics at Calamos, a growth-focused public equity investment firm with $25 billion of assets under management. Before joining Calamos, Dr. Jorgensen covered mid- and large-cap biotech companies at the investment bank Stifel Nicolaus. Prior to working on Wall Street, Dr. Jorgensen investigated the pathobiology of Parkinson’s disease at the Columbia University Medical Center as a post-doctoral scientist. He earned an MBA from the Johnson School at Cornell University and a PhD from the University of Minnesota.

Sree Kant is an experienced biotech executive, and company builder. Over a 20-year career in life sciences and healthcare, Sree has worked across investing, operational, advisory, and entrepreneurial roles and functions. He is passionate about translating cutting edge science into therapies that significantly change health outcomes for patients. Before founding BAKX, Sree headed the Investments and Partnerships function at Life Biosciences, where he built platform focused companies in the areas of age-related diseases. He also took on operational roles in the portfolio companies driving the corporate development agenda. Prior to Life bio, Sree led early partnering strategy for Pfizer, driving strategic partnerships across different therapeutic areas/technologies and geographies. He also built Pfizer’s early target partnering vehicle and drove academic partnerships and spinouts to advance novel target platforms. Sree was also Principal at the Boston Consulting Group advising large pharma, biotech, and medical device companies in areas of Corporate development, R&D strategy, M&A, etc. Sree started his career with Ranbaxy labs in New Delhi and London, and also was a founding member of India’s first preventative, managed health company. Sree has an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, and an MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health.

Dr. Sekar Kathiresan is co-founder & CEO of Verve Therapeutics, a biotechnology company pioneering a new approach to the care of cardiovascular disease, transforming treatment from chronic management to single-course gene editing medicines. Dr. Kathiresan is a cardiologist & scientist with a career focused on understanding the inherited basis for heart attack & leveraging those insights to improve the care of cardiovascular disease. Based on his groundbreaking discoveries in human genetic mutations that confer resistance to cardiovascular disease, Dr. Kathiresan co-founded Verve Therapeutics with a vision to create a pipeline of single-course, gene editing therapies focused on addressing root causes of this highly prevalent & life-threatening disease. Today, Verve is advancing 2 initial programs targeting PCSK9 & ANGPTL3, respectively – genes that have been extensively validated by Dr. Kathiresan & others as targets for lowering blood lipids, such as low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, which is a major driver of cardiovascular disease. Before joining Verve, Dr. Kathiresan’s roles included director of the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Genomic Medicine, director of the Cardiovascular Disease Initiative at the Broad Institute & professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. There, his research laboratory focused on understanding the inherited basis for blood lipids and myocardial infarction. For his research contributions, he's been recognized by the American Heart Association with its highest scientific honor - a Distinguished Scientist Award & by the American Society of Human Genetics with the 2018 Curt Stern Award. Dr. Kathiresan graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in history from the University of Pennsylvania & received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School. He completed his clinical training in internal medicine & cardiology at MGH & his postdoctoral research training in human genetics at the Framingham Heart Study and the Broad Institute.

Laura joined Thermo Fisher Scientific in July 2021, as Vice President of Supply Chain and PPI (Practical Process Improvement). With more than 25 years of operational experience, her most recent role was with Philips Royal, where she was VP Supply Chain for Medical Devices. Prior to Philips, Laura spent 16 years with Honeywell, where she served in a number of different roles in operations/supply chain, including M&A integrations, Supply Chain planning, SIOP, E2E Operations optimization, Logistics and Distribution Operations. In her last role with Honeywell, she was in charge of Corporate Logistics Operations. Previous experiences include several roles with 3M and a start up company. Laura holds a Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering from University of Naples, Italy.

Sarah Rhee Lieber is Vice President and Head of both Region North America and Global Labeling/Ad Promo within Sanofi’s Global Regulatory Affairs organization. In this role, Sarah is accountable for regulatory leadership and strategy for all Sanofi development and marketed products, including vaccines in North America. She also oversees labeling, advertising and promotion processes and activities globally to ensure regulatory compliance. Previously, she was Head of JPAC region within Sanofi and served as a steering committee member at Japan Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Association. Prior to joining Sanofi, Sarah has held positions of increasing responsibility with EMD Serono, Abbvie, Ironwood, and Genzyme. Sarah has nearly 20 years of pharmaceutical/Biotech industry experience, which includes US and global development of regulatory strategies in the areas of early and late-stage product development, advertising and promotion, labeling, and product maintenance.

Award winning former Boston TV news and business anchor Mike Nikitas led live coverage of countless major news events, including the Boston Marathon bombings, 9/11, and New Hampshire Presidential Primaries. He interviewed hundreds of major newsmakers and business leaders, and hosted numerous fundraisers, debates and conferences. Known for clarity and credibility, he brings these characteristics to the core of his work with clients. Nikitas is an adjunct professor of “Media Strategy and Skills,” teaching graduate students at the Carsey School of Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire, Durham. He has guest-lectured at Harvard, Northeastern and Boston University. He has a special interest in veteran’s issues and is the longtime emcee of the annual Massachusetts Veteran’s Day Ceremony. Nikitas appeared as a newscaster in two movies, including the hit film “Ted.” Nikitas is a five-time Emmy nominee as Outstanding Anchor in Boston, and has been inducted into the prestigious “Silver Circle” of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

Kendalle Burlin O’Connell is a seasoned and effective executive who has received wide acclaim for her leadership of MassBio, the world’s largest biopharma membership organization, where she drives the strategy to grow the industry and support member companies as CEO and president. To better serve the entire life cycle of biopharma companies, Kendalle has expanded MassBio’s innovation offerings to include partnering and investor events, an entrepreneurial accelerator, and a network for founders and chief executives. As part of MassBio’s commitment to realizing a more diverse and equitable life sciences industry, Kendalle was the driving force behind the organization’s launch of the non-profit Bioversity and the opening of its first workforce training center in Dorchester where graduates are prepared for rewarding entry-level careers at local life sciences companies. Kendalle has been an outspoken advocate for the industry in policy debates about state government support for the expansion of the life sciences in Massachusetts, the federal government’s intervention into biopharma innovation, and efforts to improve the affordability and accessibility of life-changing medicines, just to name a few. Kendalle has earned numerous accolades for her leadership, including top recognitions from Boston Magazine and the Boston Business Journal, and serves on the Boards of The Boston Foundation and the American Cancer Society, where she is Chair for the Eastern New England region, among others.

Susan O’Connor is an accomplished executive with progressive and diversified experience in the biotechnology sector. With more than 25 years of experience in human resources, she has made significant contributions in building and leading companies from the initial startup phase and scaling through commercialization. Her expertise includes overall talent management, culture building, strategic recruitment and selection, IPO planning and execution, leadership development as well as board development and engagement. Prior to Beam, Ms. O’Connor launched O’Connor & Associates, a strategic human resources consulting firm, in 2008. She has partnered with several venture capital firms, including Third Rock Ventures, acting as the chief human resources executive for a number of biotech companies, including Celsius Therapeutics, Relay Therapeutics, Blueprint Medicines, Voyager Therapeutics and Fulcrum Therapeutics, among others. Prior to launching O’Connor & Associates, Ms. O’Connor was vice president, human resources at Johnson & Johnson, where she also served as a board member for several operating companies within the medical devices sector of the company. Ms. O’Connor holds a bachelor’s degree from Providence College.

Originally from the South Side of Chicago, Patrick attended Milton Academy, thanks to the organization A Better Chance, then Harvard College & Harvard Law School. After law school, he clerked for a federal appellate judge & then launched a career as an attorney and business executive, becoming a staff attorney at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights in the Clinton administration, a partner at 2 Boston law firms and a senior executive at two Fortune 500 companies. In 2006, in his first bid for elective office, he became Massachusetts’ 71st governor, the first Black person to serve in the role. During his 2 terms, Patrick expanded health care to over 98 percent of the Commonwealth’s residents, made unprecedented investments in Massachusetts public schools and public infrastructure, & launched initiatives stimulating clean energy & biotechnology. Under his leadership, Massachusetts ranked first in the nation in student achievement, energy efficiency, health care coverage, veterans’ services, & entrepreneurship, & emerged from recession to achieve a 25-year high in employment. After his time in public office, Patrick founded & built an impact investment fund at Bain Capital, the 1st fund in a major financial institution to focus on delivering both superior financial return & significant positive social impact. He continues to invest in mission driven business as a Senior Advisor to Bain Capital & a board member. Patrick remains involved in progressive politics, currently as co-chair of American Bridge 21st Century through its BridgeTogether initiative, which supports local grassroots groups working to build engagement among disenfranchised & marginalized voters. Patrick is a Rockefeller Fellow, a Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute, & author of two books, A Reason to Believe: Lessons from an Improbable Life and Faith in the Dream: A Call to the Nation to Reclaim American Values. He divides his time between Cambridge & Western MA.

As president of Quinsigamond Community College (QCC), Dr. Luis G. Pedraja provides leadership to the College community while working to enhance the College’s mission to address the higher education needs and economic development of its community. He is a passionate advocate for increased access to higher education for all people, especially those who have been underserved historically by the American higher education system. Throughout his career, Dr. Pedraja has focused on Latino perspectives, and has published many books and articles exploring how understanding language and culture can promote intercultural dialogue and tolerance. At QCC, President Pedraja has developed and implemented a collaborative and transparent strategic planning process, created community based learning hubs at 2 locations in Worcester and launched several initiatives to bolster student success at the College. Included among these initiatives is a new mentoring program, creation of a student success center, and a series of professional development seminars for student-centered services. Before coming to QCC, Dr. Pedraja served as Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs at Antioch University in Los Angeles and Interim Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs for Peralta Community College District in California. Dr. Pedraja was recognized by the Worcester Business Journal as one of the 22 people to meet in 2022, the Worcester Business Journal named him as Innovative Business Leader of the Year in 2021, and in 2019 was appointed to the Worcester Business Journal’s Power 50 Class of 2019. Dr. Pedraja was recognized in 2020 as one of the 50 most influential people in Central MA. He was awarded the Key to the City of Worcester in 2018.

Michal is Head of Johnson & Johnson Innovation, East North America, located at the Innovation Centre in Boston. In this role she leads the Innovation Center team to build, advance, and manage the External R&D portfolio of co-investments spanning across pharmaceutical, consumer health and medical devices. Until recently, Michal served as the Executive Director of Harvard University’s Office of Technology Development (OTD) Harvard Medical School site, where she was responsible for development and commercialization of technologies emerging from research at HMS laboratories and for the strategy and execution of all industry collaborations. She negotiated agreements with major biopharma, life sciences, food and cosmetics companies to advance the translation of discoveries into products and create a revenue-generating product pipeline, and worked with scientific founders and investors to create new startup companies. Prior to joining Harvard University’s OTD in 2005, Michal held a number of business development and technology development positions at Compugen, most recently as VP of Protein Therapeutics, responsible for the business management of the company’s emerging drug discovery pipeline. Previously, she worked in the technology industry in marketing and business development roles, and co-founded a biotechnology startup. Michal serves on the Scientific Advisory Boards FutuRx Accelerator, and was, until recently, a member of the SAB of Prize4Life and a Member of the Board of Directors of a number of companies, including Compugen and Alma Lasers.

Chandra Ramanathan is a biopharmaceutical executive with extensive experience translating scientific ideas into treatment options & access for patients with high medical needs. He's led several initiatives across pharma, biotech, startups, & academia from early stage discovery programs to launching new products. Chandra has deep subject matter expertise across various therapeutic areas & experience in different modalities from small molecules to complex biologics including cell & gene therapy. Currently, he is the Head of External Innovation, Life Sciences Innovation Group, at Danaher Corporation. He is responsible for building and executing on external innovation strategies, including the Danaher Beacons. Previously, Chandra held various leadership positions over 12 years at Bayer. Most recently, he was the Global Head of Pharma R&D Open Innovation, where he led Open Innovation Centers (OICs) around the world (US, Europe, Japan, China, & Singapore), which focus on early access to breakthrough technologies, management of strategic alliances, & public-private partnerships. Key accomplishments include the establishment of a new innovation center & approval of a Cell & Gene Therapy Incubator in Cambridge (Investment value: $200+ Million). Chandra’s past roles at Bayer include Head of Open Innovation Center North America-East, Global Program Lead for External Innovation/Life Sciences, Global Launch Team Leader (Aliqopa), & Head of Global Oncology Pipeline Marketing. Previously, he worked at Wyeth (Pfizer) & BMS in various roles in Drug Discovery, Applied Genomics, & Business Development & Licensing. Chandra earned an MBA from Columbia Business School, a PhD in Genomics/ Bioinformatics, an MS in Medicinal Chemistry, & a BS in Pharmacy. He's an adjunct assistant professor at Tufts School of Medicine, is on the Board of Directors of MassBio, & is an Innovation, Development & Entrepreneurial Advisory Board Member at John Hopkins University.

Pam Randhawa is CEO and Founder of Empiriko, a biotech company focused on developing R&D technologies for drug discovery and home-based point-of-care devices for personalized patient treatment. Pam has over 20 years of experience in the healthcare and life sciences industries with expertise ranging from policy, corporate strategy, product development, analytics and marketing for Fortune 500 companies, startups and government. Prior to founding Empiriko, she co-founded AgroGreen Biofuels, an alternative biofuels technology company using agriculture waste. Previously, Pam held several executive positions with major healthcare technology companies. She also served as an independent consultant to the State of Ohio, Department of Health, where she led a statewide taskforce for the Health Status of Ohioans for the State Health Plan to increase access and quality, reduce the cost of healthcare and improve public health in Ohio. Pam serves on the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC), a state investment agency responsible for $1.6 billion fund to support life sciences innovation and create STEM related jobs in Massachusetts. She also serves on the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Biotech Technology Council and a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Biotechnology. She chairs NSF/NIJ Industrial Advisory Board of Center for Advanced Research in Forensic Science and a member of the NIH review panel for SBIR/STTR Commercialization Readiness Pilot Program. Pam is a member of the Silent Spring Institute’s Leadership Council which studies the links between the environment and women’s health, with a focus on breast cancer. In addition, she serves on the Economic Development Planning Council for the State of MA. She serves as a judge for the Harvard Business School’s New Venture Competition and provides mentorship to startups and young professionals. Pam holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Rajasth.

Siân is currently VP, Head of Global Clinical Operations and interim Head of Analytics & Data Sciences at Biogen, where she leads large global teams accountable for the strategic planning, execution and analysis of clinical trials across all phases of development in the therapeutic areas of MS/Immunology, Neuromuscular Disorders, Neurodegenerative Disorders and Therapeutics Development (Neurovascular therapies, Psychiatry, and Genetic Neurodevelopmental Disorders). Siân and her team are driving numerous innovation projects to transform clinical trials and accelerate clinical development. Prior to Biogen, Siân spent 20+ years Pfizer, where she held leadership roles in Clinical Development & Operations, Medical Writing, Preclinical Safety (Toxicology and Safety Pharmacology), Safety Risk Management and Regulatory Strategy, managing projects throughout development stages from research to post-approval in multiple therapeutic areas (including Oncology, Neurology, Psychiatry, Pain, Rare Disease, Immunology, Internal Medicine and Vaccines). Sian has a PhD in Pharmacology from the University of Cambridge (1996) where she also held post-doctoral research and academic posts.

Jami Rubin has spent more than 25 years as an equity analyst and banker as a partner at Goldman Sachs and PJT Partners. Jami has been ranked as a top pharmaceutical industry analyst and played a key role in significant corporate transactions with leading pharmaceutical companies including Pfizer, Abbott, AbbVie, Eli Lilly, and Mylan. Jami serves as an Independent Board Member of Relay Therapeutics and Gilda’s Club NYC and holds a BA in History from Vassar College.

Lloyd M. Segal is the President and CEO of Repare Therapeutics (Nasdaq: RPTX), a leading clinical-stage precision oncology company. Prior to Repare, Lloyd was a Managing Partner with Persistence Capital Partners. Lloyd began his career with McKinsey & Company, and subsequently served as CEO of several emerging biotechnology companies including Advanced Bioconcept Inc., Caprion Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Thallion Pharmaceuticals Inc. He currently serves on the board of directors of GBC American Fund. Lloyd previously served as Chairman of LMC Diabetes & Endocrinology, and was Chairman of the Board of MedReleaf (TMX:LEAF), which was sold to Aurora Cannabis for $3.2 billion in 2018. He served as Entrepreneur-in-Residence with Versant Ventures from 2016 to 2020. Lloyd was honored in 2013 by the Financial Times as Outstanding Director of the Year for public companies. Lloyd holds a B.A. in politics from Brandeis University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

Gopi Shanker is the Chief Scientific Officer of Tevard Biosciences. He has over two decades of broad drug discovery experience ranging from developing target concepts to advancing molecules through clinical development. He has a strong background across multiple drug modalities including small molecules, biologics and gene therapies for various CNS indications including schizophrenia, depression, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, chronic pain and migraine as well as several rare neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative diseases. Prior to joining Tevard, Gopi was at the Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research (NIBR), where he most recently served in the capacity of Head of Neuroscience with responsibility for strategic oversight of the entire neuroscience portfolio, encompassing psychiatric, neurodevelopmental and neurological disorders, and as a member of the neuroscience clinical development and commercial franchise leadership team. During his tenure at Novartis, Gopi advanced multiple new therapeutic programs through late preclinical and clinical development, including the global regulatory approval of Aimovig®. With a leadership role in drug discovery and early-stage clinical development, he was responsible for expanding Novartis’ portfolio in psychiatry, and developing a portfolio of gene therapy programs targeting neurodevelopmental disorders. He was also instrumental in several key partnerships including with the Stanley Center (Broad Institute), Amgen, Pear Therapeutics as well as the acquisition of Cadent Therapeutics. Prior to joining Novartis, Gopi led several drug discovery programs at Amgen and Regeneron. Gopi completed a Howard Hughes Medical Institute postdoctoral fellowship at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York. He earned his Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore.

Tamar leads global corporate affairs and is responsible for communications, government affairs, and policy for Alexion. In addition, she serves as Chairwoman of the Board for Alexion’s charitable foundation and serves as the Alexion lead for Inclusion and Diversity. Prior to Alexion, Tamar led Federal Executive Branch Strategy and State Government Affairs for Bristol-Myers Squibb. Tamar has more than 20 years of progressive experience in healthcare spanning across several sectors of the industry. Tamar holds a M.S. in Health Sciences with a concentration in Public Health from Trident University. Tamar also serves on the board of directors for MassBio Board, the Boston Chamber, and sits on the Schwartz Center (MassGeneral Hospital) Leadership Council.

Kenneth Turner is President & CEO of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC), an economic development and investment agency dedicated to supporting the growth and development of the life sciences in Massachusetts. He directs and oversees the center's operations, investment strategy, programs, and partnerships. Prior to joining the MLSC, Mr. Turner serves as Director of Diversity & Inclusion/Compliance with Massport. He oversaw and managed the Authority's multiple diversity programs, including business and supplier diversity, workforce diversity, and airport concessions, as well as compliance initiatives with Massport's Disadvantaged/Minority/Women Business Enterprise programs. Previously, Mr. Turner serves as Deputy Secretary for Administration & Finance for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Veterans' Services. He has over 20-years of general management and executive experience in various Fortune 100 media and package good companies including having served as Senior Vice President of Emerging Markets at AOL Time Warner as well a having held various positions at Hallmark Cards and Hasbro Toys. A retired U.S Navy Captain and submarine nuclear weapons system officer with 26-years of service. Mr. Turner holds a B.S degree in Liberal Arts from Southern University and A&M College, Baton Rouge, LA.

Patrick obtained a B.S. in Chemistry from the Rochester Institute of Technology in 1996 and a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry in 2001 from the University of Pennsylvania. Following completion of his Ph.D., he began his career at Pharmacia in the Neuroscience chemistry group and following the 2003 acquisition of Pharmacia by Pfizer, he moved to the Groton site. As a scientist, project leader and manager in the Groton Neuroscience chemistry group, Patrick led multiple programs into clinical trials. In 2011 he became a design head in neuroscience medicinal chemistry driving project delivery in support of the neuroscience portfolio. In 2016, Patrick became the head of the Neuroscience Medicinal Chemistry group and in 2017 the head of the Internal Medicine Medicinal chemistry group which includes the Applied Synthesis Technology group. In 2020, his responsibilities increased to include the discovery network group and the anti-viral medicinal chemistry efforts targeting protease inhibitors for COVID-19 leading to the discovery of Paxlovid. Patrick is the author and inventor on over 70 publications and patents.

Charles (“Chuck”) Wilson is the former President and Chief Executive Officer of Unum Therapeutics Inc. (now named Cogent Biosciences, Inc.), a company developing novel therapies for the treatment of cancer. From 2008 to 2014, Dr. Wilson served as Vice President, Global Head of Strategic Alliances for the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR), the research and early development division of Novartis. In this role he was responsible for leading partnering efforts across all disease areas up through clinical proof-of-concept. His efforts included academic and biotech collaborations, equity investing in early stage companies, in-licensing of compounds, and spin-out of assets/technologies to start ups. In 2001, Dr. Wilson co-founded Archemix, a Cambridge, MA biotech company focused on the development of aptamers as therapeutics, and served as its Chief Technology Officer where he was responsible for both developing the company’s technology platform and managing its drug discovery efforts. As part of the senior management team, Dr. Wilson helped the company raise over $100 million in equity financing and advance multiple programs into clinical development. Before moving into industry, Dr. Wilson was a professor in the Markey Center for the Molecular Biology of RNA at the University of California, Santa Cruz from 1994 to 2001. Trained in structural biology and molecular biology, Mr. Wilson received a PhD with David Agard (UCSF, HHMI) and received his postdoctoral training with Nobelist Jack Szostak (Havard University / Massachusetts General Hospital). He received a B.A. and M.A. from Boston University. In addition to serving as Board Chair for the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council, he also serves as a member of the Board for GigaGen, Inc.

Daphne Zohar is the Founder, CEO and Board Member of Seaport Therapeutics. Previously, she was the Founder, CEO and Board Member of PureTech Health, where she also co-founded PureTech’s entities, including Karuna Therapeutics, which was acquired by Bristol Myers Squibb for $14 billion. A successful entrepreneur, Ms. Zohar created PureTech, assembling a leading team to help implement her vision for the company, and was a key driver in fundraising, business development and establishing the underlying programs and platforms that have resulted in PureTech’s productive R&D engine, which led to 28 new medicines being advanced via its Wholly Owned Pipeline and Founded Entities, including Cobenfy (KarXT) that has just received US FDA approval. PureTech’s track record of clinical success is approximately six times better than the industry average and 80 percent of the clinical studies run by PureTech and its Founded Entities have been successful. Ms. Zohar has been recognized as a top leader and innovator in biotechnology by a number of sources, including EY, Goldman Sachs, Fierce Pharma, BioWorld, MIT Technology Review, The Boston Globe and ScientiAmerican. She serves on the BIO (Biotechnology Innovation Organization) Board Executive Committee as well as the Health Section Committee. Ms. Zohar is a member of the Duke-Margolis Center Policy Roundtable on the Inion Reduction Act (IRA) and the Health Affairs IRA Observatory. She is also a co-founder and host of the Biotech Hangout podcast, a weekly discussion of biotech news with a group of industry leaders and experts.