Careers in Discovery

Yulia Lampi, coding.bio

"If you find that you're dissatisfied, pivot. If the place you're at isn't meeting your expectations, perseverance isn't going to help you."

Yulia Lampi is the Chief Scientific Officer of coding.bio, a company born in the pandemic who are using AI to advance cell therapies for cancer.

Yulia joined us to talk about cellular machines and why they could hold the key to targeting solid tumours, building a company around her life (rather than the other way round) and acheiving balance as a scientist.

Enjoy!

Victoria Marsh Durban, Cellesce

"You don't need to know everything about a job to be able to do it....imposter syndrome is a massive issue. You may not know every answer, but you're not expected to, and nobody does."

Victoria Marsh Durban is the CEO of Cellesce, a Cardiff-based Biotech championing the industrialisation of organoids.

Vicky talked to us about her journey from academic researcher to CEO, learning to run a business without any formal training and how going on maternity leave propelled her into a career in industry.

Enjoy!

Rabia Khan, Ladder Therapeutics

"There's not a single experience that you can have working for someone else that will teach you how to build a company. People will say this to you, but you really have to internalise it and when you're ready, you will go do it."

Returning to Careers in Discovery is Rabia Khan, now CEO of Ladder Therapeutics, a Biotech company focused on the novel problem of mapping the druggable transcriptome.

Rabia caught us up on the last two years, sharing what she's learned about becoming a Biotech CEO, why you're never quite "ready" to start a business and the importance of building the company you want to work for.

Enjoy!

Joanna Holbrook, Cambridge Epigenetix

"I think of genetics as your inherited risk of disease, and epigenetics as codifying your environmental risk. We know they work together and that they determine who will respond to which treatment, along with how well treatments are likely to work."

Joanna Holbrook is the Chief Scientific Officer at Cambridge Epigenetix, a company pushing the boundaries of DNA sequencing to enable precision medicine.

Jo joined us to talk about her international career, how 6 letter sequencing is creating new scientific frontiers, the secret of communicating with non-scientists and why good science is necessary, but not sufficient.

Enjoy!

Claire Thompson, Agility Life Sciences

"Meet people who do the role you're interested in, and ask them what they hate about their job - you'll find out a lot! Ask them what they like too, and you'll find it really insightful."

Claire Thompson is the CEO of Agility Life Sciences, an award-winning formulation development CDMO on a significant growth curve.

Claire talked to us about her key learns from her career so far, including the importance of coaching, not "chasing every ball" and why what other people think of you is none of your business.

Enjoy!

Ian Waddell, Cumulus Oncology

"If you're using rational persuasion - as most scientists do by default - and it's not working, and you feel like you're banging your head against a brick wall, it's not the brick wall that's stupid....it's not so much the influencing skills themselves that are important, because they can be learned, but understanding that it's up to you to change your approach when needed."

Ian Waddell is the Chief Scientific Officer of Cumulus Oncology, Europe's first oncology drug development accelerator.

A prominent figure in drug discovery, Ian joined us to discuss his career, the real advantages and challenges of working in a CRO and why sometimes, even if you're happy, moving on is the right thing to do.

Enjoy!

Simon Ward, Medicines Discovery Institute @ Cardiff University

"I would definitely encourage people to move from academia to industry, and vice versa. There are so many opportunities that involve interfacing between the two....they are different environments, clearly, each with pros and cons, but the perceived risk of not being able to go back just isn't there anymore."

Simon Ward has taken a varied route through his career in drug discovery and translational research, holding roles in academia, start-up Biotech and big Pharma.

Now Director of the Medicines Discovery Institute at Cardiff University, Simon joined us to talk about the research landscape in Wales, transitioning to leadership as a scientist, why you should prioritise managing your own career, and much more.

Enjoy!

Deborah O’Neil, Novabiotics

"Senior researchers have more entrepreneurial skills than they give themselves credit for. You've done something new and different, managed budgets and teams....all of those skills are transferrable."

Deborah O'Neil is the CEO of Novabiotics, a company leading the charge to harness innate immunity to treat infectious diseases.

Deborah joined us to talk about her key learns from over 18 years of building and running a successful Biotech company.

Enjoy!