Speakers
Cole Sims
Julian Hanak
Veronica Falco
Panel Session
It takes a village to raise a child, and it takes collaboration to raise a biotech. In this panel, we will explore how to find the right people to support your efforts, and how to ensure the collaboration is successful and worth the time and effort it takes to maintain.
Cole Sims is a PhD‑trained, early biotech leader with deep expertise in light-activated therapeutics and translational biology.
Having led asset development as Head of Biology and now as Business Development Lead at LightOx, he bridges scientific development with commercial strategy.
He leads on strategic partnerships across oncology and wound care programmes (both in defence and healthcare).
Julian has held leadership roles in the biotechnology and gene therapy sector for more than 30 years, working in both small biotech, CDMO and large pharma companies. Most recently he was CEO of Purespring Therapeutics, seeing the company through its $100M+ Series B raise. He has also held senior positions at Nightstar Therapeutics, Cobra Biomanufacturing, Biogen and AstraZeneca.
With special interests in early stage company and product development Julian is currently Entrepreneur in Residence at the University of Bristol.
Veronica Falco is a Business Development Transactions Manager at Cell and Gene Therapy (CGT) Catapult, a government-funded research and technology organisation focused on accelerating breakthrough research in advanced therapies to commercialisation and scale. Veronica is responsible for identifying and developing strategic partnerships across the cell and gene therapy ecosystem, working with therapy and technology developers, CDMO/CROs, pharmaceutical companies, and other key stakeholders in the CGT space. Her work focuses on enabling collaboration that accelerate innovation, support sector growth, and ultimately help translate advanced therapies into patient access. She also serves as Business Development Lead for the organisation’s Cell Delivery programme, contributing to strategy development and driving collaborations aimed at overcoming key barriers such as scalability, cost of goods, and speed to clinic.
Prior to this, she was Principal Consultant at Lindville Bio, where she supported early-stage stem cell therapy developers in navigating translational and commercial challenges. Her work included market and competitive analysis, fundraising and investor engagement strategy, Quality by Design (QbD) implementation, and the development of strategic partnerships to support therapy development. She also contributed to building organisational visibility through conference representation and digital content creation.
Earlier in her career, she worked in a cytogenetics laboratory, gaining hands-on experience across both conventional and molecular cytogenetics while liasing with genetic counselors, clinicians, and patient advocates, to remain abreast of industry advancements. She holds a BSc in Biomedical Sciences from Brunel University London and an MSc in Cell and Gene Therapy from Imperial College London.
Lea is Partnerships Manager at Ellele Health, where she leads commercial strategy and strategic partnerships for the Ellele Sampling Device and the Women’s Health Biobank. She is responsible for driving growth, building collaborations, and advancing the commercialisation of Ellele Health’s offering.
Lea brings extensive experience in commercial strategy across the life sciences and healthcare sectors. Prior to joining Ellele Health, she was a consultant at IQVIA and later a Partner at a boutique life sciences consultancy, advising leading pharmaceutical and biotech companies on the commercialisation of therapeutics, vaccines, and companion diagnostics across the EU5 and the United States.
She holds a BSc in Biotechnology from Imperial College London and a PhD in Structural Biology and Drug Discovery from the University of Oxford. Combining deep scientific expertise with strategic and commercial acumen, Lea focuses on translating innovation into real-world impact in women’s health.