Peter Abair is Executive Director at MassEcon. He joined MassEcon after serving as Executive Director of the MassBioEd Foundation, a non-profit committed to building the life sciences workforce in the region. He also served as Director of Economic and Global Affairs at MassBio, where he provided consulting services to companies looking to locate to or grow in Massachusetts, managed global partner programs and led the development and publication of MassBio’s annual economic analysis of the life sciences industry. Prior to joining MassBio, he served the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in several economic development functions including Director of the Massachusetts Department of Economic Development, Massachusetts Office of Business Development, and Associate Director of the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development. He also served as Director for Government Affairs at the Massachusetts Executive Office of Education. He began his career on the Washington, D.C. staff of the late Congressman Silvio O. Conte. Peter holds a B.A. in History and International Relations from Boston University and a M.A. in Public Policy and Administration from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He resides in Sudbury with his family, where he serves on several local boards and coaches youth baseball and hockey.

Sharon Cload is Vice President, Discovery Biotherapeutics, at Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) where her team works in partnership with the Immunology, Cardiovascular, and Fibrosis (ICF) and Mechanisms of Cancer Resistance (MoCR) Thematic Research Centers. Sharon joined BMS in 2008 at the Adnexus Therapeutics site in Waltham, and led the evolution of their core biologics discovery platforms. She was part of the team that launched BMS’ new research site in Kendall Square in 2018. Sharon has enjoyed being part of the vibrant Cambridge life sciences ecosystem in both biotech and pharma settings throughout her career. Prior to BMS, she held roles leading discovery teams at Archemix Corp. and Scriptgen Pharmaceuticals. She is passionate about cultivating relationships within the entrepreneurial community enable science that will benefit patients. Sharon was a post-doctoral fellow with Peter Schultz at the University of California, Berkeley and earned her Ph.D. in Bio-Organic Chemistry with Alanna Schepartz at Yale University. She is currently a member of the MassBio Board of Directors.