We are very excited to bring the Women in Biotech series to Manchester for the first time in November 2020, though of course with the current situation this event will now take place in virtual format.
Two inspiring women in our sector based in the Manchester area will join us for a discussion around keeping strategic focus and clear leadership through challenging times.
We're looking forward to welcoming new attendees and catching up with the fantastic Women in Biotech community.
Using an interactive virtual platform, everyone will be able to move from virtual table to table similar to at an in-person event. Bring your favourite drink and join us for this fantastic early evening event with engaging online networking.
16.20 Welcome Jane Wall, Director of Business Development and Membership Services, BIA
Sally Shorthose, Partner, Bird & Bird
16.30 Discussion and Q&A
Kathryn Simpson, Kathryn Simpson Consulting (Chair)
Lisa Anson, CEO, Redx Pharma
Bhavna Hunjan, Head of Corporate Strategy and Development, C4X Discovery
We are excited to bring you this Women in Biotech event in virtual format.
You will be able to join us online to network and, similar to an in-person event, move from virtual table to table to mingle with other attendees. The platform we will be using also includes useful features which will allow you to message directly with other attendees and share LinkedIn details to connect. There is also a general chat for all attendees.
During the panel discussion you will be able to submit and vote on audience questions and we will try our best to cover everything in the time allocated.
What are the technical requirements to attend the virtual event?
There is no software installation or download required.
Please attend using a laptop or desktop computer with audio and video capabilities (webcam and microphone). The mobile or tablet views are still in the beta stage.
You will need to use one of the supported browsers to have the best user experience:
Chrome, Safari, or Firefox.
If you want to check the technical requirements in more detail, you can view their checklist here.
If your company has firewalls or browsing restrictions in place, please test your connection and liaise with your IT team in advance to ensure you are able to fully participate in the event.
Lisa Anson is Chief Executive Officer of Redx Pharma plc, appointed 1 June 2018.
Lisa was President of AstraZeneca UK from 2012 and has significant leadership experience in pharmaceuticals. Over a 20 year career at AstraZeneca plc, Lisa has held a number of senior commercial and general management roles in both the US and the UK including Global Vice President, Oncology and as Vice President of emerging brands where she worked closely with the Research and Development teams.
Lisa holds an MBA (awarded with distinction) from INSEAD, France and a First Class honours degree in Natural Sciences from Cambridge University in the UK. Upon graduating she joined KPMG in London as a management consultant and then moved to the US where she worked for a California based cancer disease management company, prior to joining Zeneca Pharmaceuticals (USA) in 1998 as a business development manager.
Lisa joined the Board of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) in 2012, chaired a number of UK industry committees and worked closely with Government and a wide range of industry stakeholders. She then became the first female President of the ABPI, a position from which she stepped down in 2018, and she was elected to the Board of the BIA in 2018.
Head of Corporate Strategy and Development, C4X Discovery
Bhavna Hunjan
Head of Corporate Strategy and Development, C4X Discovery
Bhavna is Head of Corporate Strategy and Development at C4X Discovery, and a member of the Executive Team. She has over 13 years’ experience across investment banking, strategic consultancy, and life sciences commercialisation, having previously held roles at Lehman Brothers, Nomura International, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Cancer Research UK. At C4XD she focuses on applying her extensive experience in deal structuring and execution, strategic planning, portfolio positioning and investment strategy to drive the company towards achieving its objectives.
Bhavna gained a first class Masters degree in Biochemistry from Oxford University. She was awarded a Rising Star in the Movers & Shakers in BioBusiness 2017, and also voted as one of 30 Rising Leaders in Life Sciences 2020 by In Vivo.
Kathryn is a respected and successful change leadership expert, with diverse career experience in Europe and North America. She has over 25 years of consulting and line experience with leading organisations (Unilever, Mars, KPMG and GSK). Since 2007 she has been leading her own independent consulting business, primarily working within the Life Sciences sector. By partnering with leaders at all levels within the sector, growth and sustainable success has resulted for the organisations she has worked with. She has recently published a book – “Leading for change – how to thrive during uncertain times”.
She provides each organisation the approaches they need to meet their unique situation. Tailored approaches are used to develop a consolidated understanding of their environment and the priority challenges they face. This provides the basis for facilitating customised workshops where leaders not only create a desired future but are ready to move forward and implement their ideas. Working with individual leaders or teams she advises how to bring other stakeholders with them, so they achieve success together. These practical and supportive approaches create focus, accountability and collaboration across organisations and their partners. Organisations are left with an increased leadership capability and tangible business results.
Sally has wealth of experience working with businesses at the cutting edge of research and technology and whose intellectual property is of prime importance.
Sally is one of our leading intellectual property (IP) partners. She provides a full range of intellectual property commercial advice and support to her clients, including licensing, partnering and exploitation agreements, research, development and marketing collaborations. She also frequently advises clients on regulatory and ‘freedom to operate’ matters, and manages significant due diligence matters. As a transactional intellectual property lawyer, she provides advice in relation to the protection and exploitation of a full range of IP rights, both in stand alone transactions and as part of an acquisition, divestment or investment activity.
Sally speaks on a variety of IP and regulatory life sciences topics at conferences and contributes to many leading publications; she is also the editor of the The Guide to EU Pharmaceutical Regulatory Law (published by Kluwer Law International), which is written entirely by the team at Bird & Bird with contributions from many offices. Sally is also leading the Bird & Bird Brexit Steering Committee; she gives regular talks and has published several articles on the implications of Brexit for the life sciences and medical devices industries.
The BIA’s Women in Biotech event series has been running for over 12 years and aims to connect, inspire, and support women across the sector.