Yesterday I attended my first meeting of the Bioscience Network at the Meadhall Restaurant in Cambridge MA. There were over 60 industry professional in attendance, some of which I had previously met. Interestingly enough, I connected with David Burton and Dan Broggi of db2/ARCHitecture, the designers of the building itself. It was nice to feel like I’ve started to develop friendships with some of the members of the BSN. Business cards and contact information is valuable, but face-to-face recognition can go much further in my opinion. Surprisingly, I was even approached by one member about a possible acquisition. Needless to say, this caught me off guard. I calmly gave off some contact information and jested, “everyone has their price.” I’m not holding my breath though- I’m more than happy with things just how they are.
I’m indebted to the Massachusetts Life Science Center for this unparallelled opportunity. Hopefully my internship can be extended with the year-long expansion of the program. I’ve learned so much in the past month and can’t wait to start rolling out even more of the big plans TRA360 has on the drawing board. More to come…
Ryan Connors, TRA360’s Summer Intern and I attended the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) Internship Challenge Summer 2011 Launch Event. Thanks to the MLSC for inviting us.
The event was hosted at the WPI Life Sciences and Bioengineering Center. The WPI Center is AMAZING! It’s a new, big, and exciting place to be and to work. The WPI Center is aptly located in Gateway Park—it’s a gateway to Boston/Cambridge, Worcester, and Western Massachusetts.
Susan Windham-Bannister and the entire MLSC staff know how to do things right. The venue was beautiful, the speakers were varied and engaging, and the three hours flew past.
Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray with MLSC interns (left to right: Sadie McCarthy, Kelsey Scheidemantel, & Max Notis)
Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray talked about growing up in Worcester and becoming the mayor before moving to the State House. His announcement that the Internship Challenge Program would be expanded to a year-round program was received by huge rounds of applause from both interns and sponsors.
Kevin O’Sullivan, President and CEO of Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives, got everyone jazzed up by his palpable passion and contagious energy. When speaking directly to the interns he said: “You’ve got ‘it’ (you know what I mean!)” and “I have one request: Stay here! Stay here in Massachusetts after you graduate.”
The armchair conversation with Susan, Joshua Boger, former CEO of Vertex Pharmaceuticals, and Lydia Villa-Komaroff, Chief Scientific Officer for Ctyonome/ST. There were so many jewels of insights offered by these three giants in our industry. Among the best were Lydia’s comments on the importance of curiosity and persistence (she spoke with 244 (!) prospects to get funding for Ctyonome and Josh’s phrase that people in our industry need to possess a “borderline psychotic confidence.”
Norm Garceau, Chief Scientific Officer of Blue Sky Biotech, spoke about leaving the comfort of Pfizer to join a start-up and Caitlin Pond, a 2010 Intern and Research Associate at Blue Sky Biotech, warmed our hearts with her honesty, commitment, and incredible energy.
Steve Kelly, CEO of Myomo, got the crowd laughing with his slideshow and great sense of humor. He also demonstrated how his company is making robotic products that are fundamentally changing people’s lives.
The Internship Challenge has grown by leaps and bounds since it was started in 2009. Take a look at these exceptional numbers:
Intern/Sponsor Data
Summer 2009
Summer 2010
Summer 2011
Student applications
508
899
1,323
Interns placed
104
170
216
Registered sponsors
77
140
178
Actual sponsors
59
94
123
We met a lot of people and had a great time! We’re thrilled to participate as an MLSC Internship Sponsor again this year. Ryan’s doing a superb job for TRA360. He’s just finishing his fourth week and he’s already a fixture.
While it’s great that Pfizer is making such a massive investment in the local R&D community, this comes from a company that has been slashing its R&D budget for years. Unless they are able to identify committed, innovative, and talented teams of people, this investment won’t reap the benefits that Pfizer sorely needs. What chances do you give to this Innovation Center for success?
“the Online Pharma MBA format is designed specifically to accommodate today’s executive schedule and global assignments by eliminating obstacles like geography and time-zones. Ideal for professionals in the pharma, biotech, device, diagnostics and healthcare sectors, our accelerated program offers the flexibility to participate in an industry-specific, lock-step curriculum, taught by our world-class faculty, and driven by state-of-the-art technology.”
After reviewing the website, this program seems like an excellent choice for marketing professionals, regulatory professionals, medical communicators, and medical writers who are interested in taking their experience in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, or medical devices to the executive level. Technical writers who are looking to make a career change that leverages their substantial experience in technology might also see value in a program like this one.
The tuition and fees are expensive; though they are comparable to other programs I have seen and heard about. If you’re interested in a program like this one at Saint Joseph’s and the fees are out of reach, there may be scholarships available. The website doesn’t say anything about them. Contact Christine Anderson, Senior Manager, Executive Relations & Industry Relations for more details.
