Board elections 2026: corporate candidates
Nick Challoner
I have personal experience in sales, marketing, manufacturing and technology development in Personal Care, Home Care, Pharma, and AgTech, mostly in the provision of speciality ingredients and solutions. I served on the Exco of Croda International for 14 years, worked in both Asia and Latin America and have a history of developing commercial results from new technology.
I established and then had Executive responsibility for Croda’s Sustainability Strategy for a number of years. At Ingenza I have been in the role for one year and I am helping the business scale as it looks to expand into new markets and technologies.
I am culturally capable having held senior executive roles leading both geographical and sector led businesses/functions, with a clarity of communication and engagement to connect with, influence and lead both internal and external stakeholders across a range of business cultures and environments.
I have a broad base of leadership and management experience with a strong technological background and well-developed network. This includes experience and success in the development and execution of successful strategies covering organic high margin growth, technological investment/development and M&A all with a focus on enhanced financial/investor returns.
I also have considerable experience and success in identifying, acquiring and developing new and innovative technologies for selected markets and have served as a trustee of the SCI for four years and was the Chair of the Corporate Partners Committee during this period.
Ros Deegan
As CEO of OMass Therapeutics, I am passionate about the potential of the life sciences sector in the UK to contribute positively to the UK economy and to change the lives of patients through innovation.
I have over 25 years of experience in biotech, pharma and consulting in Europe and the US. I am a strong generalist with senior-level experience in early-stage biotech, and a successful track record in business development and financing, including supporting the transition from private to public. At OMass I have led its strategic development into a therapeutics company, raising >£110m. I joined OMass from Bicycle Therapeutics where I served as President, Chief Business Officer and a Director of the US subsidiary of the Company. I established the company’s Boston-based subsidiary and over a three-year period led three major transactions. Prior to that I served as Senior Vice President, Business Development and Operations at Trevena, Inc. During my tenure at Bicycle and Trevena, the companies moved four programmes into the clinic, and raised over $300 million in private and public financings. In addition to my role at OMass, I support emerging business leaders through mentoring, am a current BIA board member and am actively engaged in advocating for the sector within government, including previously serving on the advisory group for Harwell Science Park and the 2024 Prime Minister’s Business Council.
Bram Goorden
Goorden is the CEO of IXICO plc, an AI-driven CRO and precision medicine platform which is on a mission to advance medicine through the provision of imaging biomarker insights for the discovery, development and delivery of novel treatments in neurological disease.
Goorden is an accomplished executive and board director with 25+ years of experience building and leading life sciences organisations. He is also Chairman of the Board for Oncobit AG (Switzerland), Chairman of the Board for the Virdis Group (UK), and has held several NED/chairperson roles for companies in the life sciences space, where he helped the executive teams scale and exit the companies. He is a founding member of the Biopharma Hub (Cambridge, MA) and former Board member of the Swiss American Chamber of Commerce. He is furthermore involved in patient advocacy and philanthropy.
Prior to his current executive role, Goorden was the COO of SOPHiA Genetics (Boston, MA), a leader in data driven medicine, which he helped go public on the NASDAQ (SOPH) in 2021. At Foundation Medicine Inc. (Boston, MA) he was the first HQ-based executive to hold the role of VP International in charge of expanding FMI’s global footprint as a leader in precision medicine. He later facilitated the integration of FMI into the Swiss Roche AG group. Before joining FMI he was the CEO of Prometheus Labs (San Diego, CA), a Nestle Health Science (NHSc) company, which he made an accretive contributor to the group post-acquisition. Earlier in his career Goorden has held global roles of increasing responsibility in strategic, country management, BD and general operations leadership with Eli Lilly and UCB Pharma in various geographies. He began his career as a management consultant at Accenture where he supported strategic turnarounds for clients in biotech, utilities and government affairs.
Bram is a Belgian national with an MSc from the University of Antwerp in Engineering incl. a BA from the University of Bologna. He has an eMBA from Kellogg School of Management, followed executive educations at the Harvard Business School and is also a certified board director and systems psychology counselor.
He is passionate about improving patient care and has had the opportunity to successfully launch novel solutions in different areas of the life sciences. His international trajectory has made him appreciate and enjoy the importance of cultural differences and he strongly believes in the power of a diverse team and proper communication and governance to reach maximal potential. Goorden recently moved back from the US to Switzerland and holds office in London, UK.
Jonathan Haigh
Technical Thought-Leadership
Dr Jonathan Haigh is a life-sciences leader with 25 years’ experience across research, clinical delivery and commercial biomanufacturing in the UK and US. He holds a Cambridge PhD in antibody purification and an MBA with distinction from Durham University. A BIA SICom member and named inventor on bioprocessing patents, he combines scientific expertise, commercial judgement and international operational leadership.
Driving Growth in the UK Bioeconomy
Jonathan has played a central role in FUJIFILM Biotechnologies’ UK growth. He led the business in securing and deploying ~£1 billion of capital investment to expand national biomanufacturing capacity. This includes the UK’s largest single-use biomanufacturing facility and a ~£100m Process Development centre, strengthening advanced manufacturing, skilled employment and supply-chain resilience. He also promotes UK-Japan collaboration to sustain investment and advance priorities including vaccine sovereignty.
Innovative and Entrepreneurial Focus
His motivation for joining the BIA Board is to support innovation benefiting patients, society and the UK bioeconomy. Working across government, academia and industry, he helps organisations scale breakthrough ideas and deliver programmes of national and global importance. Jonathan would bring scientific credibility, executive governance, strategic vision and international perspective to the BIA Board, helping the UK life-sciences ecosystem remain innovative, investable and globally competitive.
Simon Kerry
I am standing for re-election to the BIA Board. Over the last two years, it has been a privilege to represent the interests of emerging biotech companies at the Board and I would be delighted to continue this effort.
I have broad experience as a CEO in the sector, mainly within young companies from Seed to Series A/B. This has helped me to understand the unique needs of developing companies and what it takes to help them thrive in difficult circumstances. I am currently the CEO of London-based chemogenetic company, Sania Tx Ltd, a UCL spinout. Before that, I was the CEO of Curve Therapeutics, taking IP out of the University of Southampton and securing £45 mn of investment in 2024. My experience takes in venture capital (nine years at Advent Life Sciences) and at biotechs in the US and Mainland Europe.
Tim Mitchell
I am a biotech founder-exec with a long (~40yr) and varied background in leadership, business and research gained from working in large pharma (SmithKline Beecham), international biotech (Millennium Pharmaceuticals) and service (Cambridge Discovery Chemistry) companies. I co-founded Sareum, a small molecule therapeutics company, 22 years ago and have been CEO until 2024, when I took a step back to the role of part-time COO. This has given me the opportunity to explore other roles within the industry, such as BIA Board membership.
My company, Sareum, listed on AIM in 2004, and has been funded by a combination of equity placements, licence income, R&D service revenue and Biomedical Catalyst/UKRI grant funding. We have taken small molecule programmes, in cancer and in autoimmune disease, from first concept through to completion early clinical studies, working alongside Cancer Research UK and other research collaborators. One of these clinical programmes was out-licenced in a $300M deal.
I believe my long experience as a biotech exec would be a useful asset to the BIA Board and its membership, whilst my wide experience in pharma, international biotech, and service companies gives me a good understanding of the issues affecting other members of the life science ecosystem.
Rosie Rodriguez
I am applying for the BIA Board to help strengthen the UK biotech and TechBio ecosystem, ensuring early-stage companies have the support they need to thrive.
As a BIA Board member, I would bring the perspective of the UK’s ambitious TechBio and scaling companies, with first-hand experience of the challenges of accessing talent, capital, infrastructure and partnerships needed to build globally competitive companies from the UK.
I would bring constructive challenge, sound judgement and a strong member perspective, working collaboratively with the Board and executive team to help the BIA deliver its mission for the UK life sciences sector.
David Thornton
The UK has an extraordinary life sciences ecosystem, but our challenge is increasingly one of translation: turning world-class science into scaled, globally competitive companies. That is where I believe I can add most value to the BIA Board.
As President of Genomics, I lead the back office, operations, science and commercial teams across a business working across drug discovery, data, AI and precision healthcare. My focus has been on building a sustainable, profitable business while expanding internationally, developing strategic partnerships and creating new SaaS and dass models.
Previously, as an SVP at IQVIA, I worked globally across life sciences, healthcare and technology, including major strategic partnerships and commercial transformation. This gives me perspective from both a scaled global industry leader and a UK growth company. I would bring a practical operator's voice to the BIA: focused on scale-up, access to capital, skills, adoption of new technologies, proportionate regulation and making the UK an attractive place to build and grow life sciences companies.
The BIA plays a critical role in connecting industry and government and representing the sector collectively. I would be committed to representing the breadth of its membership, while strengthening the Board's perspective on TechBio, genomics, AI and commercial scale-up.
Claire Wallace
Wallace brings extensive business acumen, a vast stakeholder network and trusted relationships across industry, academia and government. She is passionate about working collaboratively to strengthen the UK’s position as a world leader for biotechnology innovation, investment and growth.
Claire has significant experience leading complex global businesses, including delivering strategic oversight, driving commercial and operational performance, and optimising growth. Through senior leadership roles at Thermo Fisher Scientific, and her work with other industry partners, Claire has developed a deep understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing organisations across the sector, enabling her to represent the industry to senior decision makers.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Claire played an instrumental role in supporting the UK Government’s national testing response, working with key governmental, academia and industry partners. She played a key role in the rapid establishment and scaling of the Lighthouse Laboratories and wider UK testing network, whilst ensuring Thermo Fisher Scientific’s capabilities and expertise were mobilised at pace.
Claire brings a collaborative approach combined with strategic and commercial leadership, deep sector knowledge and an ability to connect stakeholders across the life sciences ecosystem to the BIA Board.
Stephen Ward
I am seeking election to the BIA Board to help convert the UK's scientific strength into investable, scalable businesses, resilient manufacturing and faster patient access.
Over 30 years, I have worked across industry, government and academia to translate advanced therapies and vaccines into effective, affordable treatments. I have aligned perspectives, identified systemic barriers and contributed to policy, strategy and delivery. At C-suite and Director level across start-ups and SMEs, and through establishing a Catapult, I have delivered national manufacturing, automation, robotics and digital capabilities and advocated for industry from regional to global level.
This experience directly supports BIA priorities: delivering the Life Sciences Sector Plan, improving the commercial environment for medicines, attracting scale-up capital, strengthening biomanufacturing and enabling innovation-friendly regulation.
I am passionate about ensuring the UK remains globally competitive for discovering, developing and manufacturing innovative medicines. That requires manufacturing investment, enabling technologies and world-class talent. My leadership of national skills and apprenticeship programmes reflects my commitment to building the workforce needed for growth.
I bring longstanding BIA experience, including eight years as Chair of the Manufacturing Advisory Committee, alongside Vice-Chair of the Medicines Manufacturing Industry Partnership. I would bring a collegiate, practical, delivery-focused voice, turning policy ambition into outcomes.