Business Builders: Danuta Jeziorska

Chief Executive Officer & Founder

As part of our series ‘Business Builders’, we interviewed Dr Danuta Jeziorska, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Nucleome Therapeutics, a drug target discovery biotech that is decoding the dark matter of the human genome to uncover novel ways to treat diseases. Her entrepreneurship story started with co-founding our own Oxford branch of the Innovation Forum in 2015, which she led for two years to a recognised venture that supports innovation from concept to market in Biobusiness in the UK. In 2018, after a decade of genomics research at Oxford University, she spun-out Nucleome Therapeutics and is on a mission to shine a light on the dark genome and bring precision medicine to patients.

Here Danuta explains her deeply rooted drive to make difference to patients and Nucleome’s journey from an academic endeavour to one of the UK’s most promising new biotech companies.

Tell us about your journey to becoming CEO at Nucleome.

It is not often that you find yourself at a life junction where your experiences finally connect and make sense. The opportunity to become CEO at Nucleome, however, was just that. I fell in love with genetics at school when I learnt that each cell in our body contains DNA, and that this instruction manual of life could go wrong and cause disease. I spent 16 years following this passion to understand how genes are turned on and off and how aberrations in this process can lead to disease. Eight of those years were spent conducting research at the University of Oxford where I also met my co-founders. In parallel, my entrepreneurial journey also began here as I had the opportunity to found and lead a venture which supported entrepreneurs and scientists to commercialise their ground-breaking research and also facilitate knowledge exchange between academia, industry and the NHS. The opportunity to become CEO of Nucleome perfectly combined my expertise and passion for science with my entrepreneurial drive. It allowed me to take my research forward beyond publishing and to do something amazing with the technologies I knew could impact the lives of patients.

The majority of disease-linked genetic changes are not located within genes, they are located within the remaining 98% of our DNA, which is called the dark genome. It is this dark genome that controls whether genes are switched on or off and so the key to unlocking the potential of that knowledge lies in understanding what these variants are doing, what genes they regulate and what the effect of that change is within our cells. Nuclome has the potential to do just that and plans to generate the precision medicines that are so desperately needed for autoimmune diseases.

This has been an incredible year for Nucleome. What would you pull out as the highlights?

We are living through strange times and over the past two years the world has shifted in ways we could not previously have imagined, providing extraordinary challenges and highlighting the tremendous impact and need of life sciences research.

Nucleome’s year wasn’t free of challenges either but, we quickly learnt how to navigate through these times of uncertainty and now have a strong compass that guides us. Despite the challenges, we managed to have an incredible year with our pioneering science published in prestigious scientific journals and widely celebrated in the media. This included a company spotlight in Nature Biotechnology and an article about our game-changing technology in Nature. A particular highlight this year was recognition achieved by the technology behind Nucleome in solving one of the most important genetic signals in the current pandemic by discovering a gene that potentially doubles the risk of death from COVID-19. The findings were published in Nature Genetics and gained significant international media coverage including in Fox News, Sky News, BBC News and many other top-tier publications including The Guardian, Bloomberg and The Daily Mail.

This is a great example of the power of our platform, demonstrating that we can truly uncover disease-gene-variant relationships in a clinically relevant way. As a company we have managed to validate our platform by re-discovering drug targets that show efficacy in patients. We have managed to map the dark genome of a number of immune cell types and discover the first wave of targets that we started to biologically validate, as well continuing to discover new targets to build a robust pipeline of drug discovery programmes for treatment of autoimmune diseases.

What have you enjoyed most about the last year?

One of my core motivators to become CEO at Nucleome, besides its incredible science and potential to positively impact patients, is creating great teams. I have a strong belief that a great team is the key to building a transformative business. I am delighted that we have attracted such exceptional talent, doubling in size over the last year. It has been extraordinary to work with such a dynamic, enthusiastic, passionate and highly motivated team of scientists, entrepreneurs and innovators who all have a shared ambition to transform the lives of patients. It is also important to note that as a team we are also working with a number of exceptional consultants, whose support and commitment are accelerating our progress.

We have a tremendous amount of support from our Board, investors, and strategic and scientific advisors. Nucleome is privileged to work with several industry leaders, including Dr Eliot Forster, Dr Rene Russo, Dr Ray Barlow, Dr Craig Fox, Dr Jane Dancer, Prof Chas Bountra and Dr Jonathan Hepple.

What does Nucleome’s success mean to you?

I co-founded Nucleome as a scientist with a deep understanding of the science and the true potential of the technology behind the company. I knew that treatments for many diseases are hidden in the dark genome and that decoding it could transform the lives of patients through precision medicine. Whilst I knew this was important, I didn’t really understand its true importance until I was diagnosed with a life-threatening cancer. There are moments that define our WHY, our purpose, and this was my moment. I was lucky that I had an early diagnosis, benefitted from recent advances in medicine, had extraordinary healthcare and have so many wonderful people in my life who helped me through it, for which I am extremely thankful. But not everyone is as fortunate and we are far from having curative treatments for many devastating diseases; devastating for patients, their families, and carers. My experience helped me understand the fragility of life. It showed the true meaning of what we do: we bring hope, we bring time, we bring life and it unlocked the real passion I have. We desperately need new treatments that are causal to the disease biology. Not just for life-threatening diseases but also for those chronic diseases that affect people every day.

What are you looking forward to achieving in 2022?

I am extremely excited about 2022. We are at a very exciting stage of our evolution as we have discovered the first wave of targets and started to biologically validate them, as well continuing to discover new targets to build a robust pipeline of drug discovery programmes. In parallel, we aim to continue building our Dark Genome Atlas, which will enable us to unlock the dark genome variant-gene associations in many high burden diseases and cell types to bring precision medicine to patients with high unmet need diseases.

Innovation Forum Oxford is recruiting for new team members — APPLY NOW

Can you see yourself as part of a team where current and past members have become successful startup founders, investment professionals, and innovation-focussed academics and clinicians?

“Working for the Oxford Innovation Forum was instrumental in securing an internship at a VC firm. The opportunity allowed me to demonstrate my passion for innovation and technology by learning and working closely with start-ups. I learnt so much about what a founder needs to complete during the early stages of a company, thereby making me a better investor. I have built an amazing network of academics, business leaders and innovators that I cherish.”
Current IFO Team Member

As Innovation Forum Oxford (IFO) we are one of 13 branches strategically located around the world run by more than 150 skilled and talented members and a network of more than 10,000 entrepreneurially–minded people that seek to build bridges between academics, industry leaders, investors, and policy makers. Together, we focus on the evolution and the future of today’s innovations, which range from the nascent stage to the cusp of commercial application. We deliver through three streams; local activities and workshops, a global accelerator IMAGINE IF! and an annual flagship HealthTech Leaders and Investors Conference.

Recently as a local branch IFO have run a packed roster of events, including creating a bespoke mentoring and training programme for female entrepreneurs (WE-ACE); running a series of interactive workshops to support and train scientists considering the journey to commercialising an innovation (ACE Saturdays 2019/20 and 2020/21); and organising a major scientific conference (Innovation in Genomics).

If you are anywhere on the spectrum, from intrigued to already passionate about science innovation, this is your opportunity to join IFO and create value. We are excited to announce that we are recruiting and you could be part of our IFO team–you can meet the current team here. We are looking for motivated, pro-active academics (MBA, PhD, Postdoc), clinicians and entrepreneurs with a passion for innovation and a curiosity for exploring the interface between academia/healthcare and entrepreneurship.

If you are interested in:

Applying your organisational and interpersonal skills to serve the science and innovation sphere
Experiencing, testing, and developing your team player skills
Diversifying and enhancing your professional profile on your CV beyond the academic/clinical scope
Becoming part of a strong local and international network in the innovation ecosystem
Connecting with senior executives and leaders in industry, academia, and the investment world and developing professional relations that will support your career development and potentially influence your future plans
Acquiring invaluable practical knowledge and broader awareness of the interface between academia/healthcare and the business world
Having the space for your abilities and imagination to make this experience your own

Then APPLY NOW!

Please note that Innovation Forum is a non-for-profit organisation and this is a volunteering position.

To apply please follow this link:

https://forms.gle/SMgKHNDE7bJhhWFM9

and submit by the 20th of December 2021.

WE ACE FOR WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS

Health and Life Sciences Focus
Nurturing an Authentic Leader’s Mindset
Cultivating a Confident Negotiator

WE ACE is a training and coaching programme dedicated to women entrepreneurs in health and life sciences, with a focus on leadership and negotiation.

The History of WE ACE
In 2018 Innovation Forum Oxford (IFO) created ACE (Awareness, Connectivity, Exchange) Saturdays–a series of workshops aimed at nurturing a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship amongst academic and clinical researchers in the sciences at the University of Oxford (as detailed in 2018 and 2019 programmes). Feedback from participants and experts highlighted a particular need for more women-focussed training and initiatives to address the unequal representation of women in the entrepreneurship ecosystem (very well-documented in various published reports). This coincided with a call from the University of Oxford to research, interrogate and create local support for women to address gender inequalities throughout the entrepreneurial ‘life cycle’. As a call to action, IFO conceived and organised WE ACE (Women Entrepreneurs ACE) in collaboration with two experts, Milly Sinclair and Ellen J. K. who describe the programme:

Ellen describes the programme as:

Each WE ACE session combines lectures, simulations, reflection, and practice. We focus on developing each entrepreneur personally and professionally. Founders learn by “doing”. Founders learn to craft deals involving high-stakes approaches, complex relationships, novel technology, and market uncertainty. Following the WE ACE 2020 programme alumnae have negotiated novel agreements with major global partners, venture capitalists, and co-founders.”

WE ACE Aims and Objectives
WE ACE is a transformative programme offered to women entrepreneurs (WE) in the health and life sciences sector specifically, in keeping with the ACE (Awareness – Connectivity – Exchange) ethos of Innovation Forum Oxford’s support for entrepreneurship and innovation in the Oxford ecosystem.

WE ACE is tailored to the needs of women founders at varying stages of their ventures, with the aim of best supporting them through their individual challenges. It focusses on participants’ understanding of their personal “offer to the world” and aligns that offer with their venture’s vision; in other words, leading self to inspire others to follow. By the end of the program, participants have:

Understood some of the common ‘pitfalls’ that sometimes inhibit women’s progression.
Reflected on their scientific and entrepreneurial journey to this point, and their learning.
Clarified what they want to contribute to the world through their scientific and entrepreneurial skill and born from their values, expertise and strength.
Explored communicating their offer with authenticity and confidence in a way that people can both hear and understand.
Practiced embodying their offer fully through understanding the power of Leadership Presence and practicing speaking it out.
Connected with other WE ACE participants and identified a peer mentor(s) to co-support each other through this process so intention becomes clear action.

WE ACE also incorporates a “learning by doing” approach to negotiation with real-time simulations and feedback at the core of the deal-making training. By the end of the program, participants have:

Understood their own negotiation style and approach to deal-making.
Identified key cognitive and behavioural biases that can impact negotiation and deal-making.
Tried new approaches to negotiation and deal-making through simulations and role plays which can enhance their current abilities to handle complex negotiation situations.
Gained a new awareness of approaches to negotiation and deal-making that may be used in effectively managing difficult situations.

These two dimensions of the programme are supported with one-to-one coaching sessions that give participants the dedicated space and tailored support to transform what they’ve learnt into actionable steps in their personal journey. Participants are coached through:

Creating a ‘stakeholder’ map to understand the key people that are needed to support their offer.
Practicing making requests and managing promises to their key stakeholders with feedback.
Creating a coherent, practical and SMART action plan to move forward with confidence.
Clarifying their next steps and understood potential blocks and enablers.

“I liked that we worked on realistic examples of negotiation situations and pitches. Knowing what I did well gives me additional confidence for the future. But, the most important learning for me personally was realising that I should stand up for my own ideas and values more—the programme has helped me do this in a more ‘grounded’ way.”
WE ACE 2021 Participant

WE ACE Cohorts

The first cohort of WE ACE began during COVID lockdown in 2020, and brought together 17 participants representing diverse backgrounds, skills, and aspirations. They have expressed how positively the programme impacted on their journey.

Innovation Forum Oxford is delighted to have completed the second cohort (2021) of its WE ACE training programme. We’re excited to follow the 2021 cohorts’ successes and look forward to sharing in each participant’s next steps. The cohort of 19 participants representing 16 countries of origin was generously supported by the University of Oxford Medical Sciences Division, which allowed the training to be delivered at no cost to those accepted onto the programme.

Some of the WE ACE 2021 cohort

“The constant opportunity to speak and reflect on my own opinion about difficult subjects that I hadn’t encountered before was a true learning experience”
WE ACE 2021 Participant

The 2021 cohort join a growing community of entrepreneurial women that began in 2020. This diverse group of female founders have together formed collaborations inside and outside of academia; co-founded and grown ventures; and collectively raised over a million pounds in follow-on funding.

We are proud to have created WE ACE, which is

NOT an incubator/accelerator, but focused on women’s mindset to serve their entrepreneurial endeavours.
A diverse group of women that creates and feeds into a virtuous cycle of women supporting women.
Part of IFO, part of global IF, with the benefits of its diverse like-minded community of science entrepreneurs and supporters.
Will be constantly shaped by feedback, impact and the continuous support from stakeholders.

We intend to run the next cohort of the programme in Spring 2022. Please contact the team on [email protected] with any questions and to register your interest in applying to the third cohort of the programme.

Launching WE ACE 2021: Apply now to be part of the new cohort

Are you a women entrepreneur in the health and life sciences, with or without a direct connection to Oxford? If so, WE ACE is for you.

See application details below. Recruitment closes on March 14th 2021

WE ACE returns for 2021!

WE ACE is a training and coaching program dedicated to women entrepreneurs in health and life sciences, with a focus on leadership and negotiation. The inaugural cohort of the program ran in the Summer of 2020 with great success.

This is what participants said about the program:

“This was one of the best entrepreneurial courses I have ever had (and I have had many). The course was so applicable, we gained a new tool in every session, which is so valuable to our growth.”

“I had the realization that I tend to avoid negotiations because I considered them uncomfortable, but they can be empowering with the right perspective, practice, and preparation! Definitely something everyone should learn!”

“I learned so many applicable tools that I can use now. The women in the course are so impressive. The non-stop feedback was so useful and powerful.”

“I was more engaged here than face-to-face! I feel like I poured more energy into this than any leadership coaching I’ve had in the past.”

“I learnt so much about myself with Milly’s leadership and body language course, I truly feel empowered. Ellen’s simulations on negotiations, deal making and understanding of term sheet has bolstered my confidence as a founder.”

The WE ACE program described by the experts and facilitators:

Meet co-instructor Milly Sinclair, who will share what excited her about co-leading the program with Ellen J. K.

Ellen J. K. also co-developed and instructed WE ACE. She describes the program as:

“WE ACE focusses founders on the skills they need at the individual, firm, and market levels to negotiate and create high-impact deals to fund and grow their ventures. It is a highly applied program which teaches entrepreneurs through individual development and real-time simulations of how to prepare for and confidently negotiate deals that are complex, fast-paced, and high-value.

Each WE ACE session combines lectures, simulations, reflection, and practice. We focus on developing each entrepreneur personally and professionally. Founders learn by “doing”. Founders learn to craft deals involving high-stakes approaches, complex relationships, novel technology, and market uncertainty. Following the WE ACE 2020 program alumnae have negotiated novel agreements with major global partners, venture capitalists, and co-founders.”

Want to Take Part?

We are currently recruiting participants for the Spring 2021 cohort of the program.

The sessions will run for six weeks
Tuesday afternoons 14:00-17:00 (UK time)
Hosted via video conference software.
The program is planned to start on March 23rd 2021, but this is subject to confirmation.
Recruitment closes on March 14th.

Link to the 2021 Program application form is here.

Thanks to generous support from the University of Oxford Medical Sciences Division and the Oxford Bioescalator we are delighted to be able to offer the program free of charge to participants. However, space will be limited due to the focussed nature of the workshops and participants will need to guarantee attending all sessions.

WE ACE 2021 Programme Dates (14:00-17:00 UK time)

16th March: Introduction and overview

23rd March: Session 1–Who am I and what is my offer to the world?

30th March: Session 2–Entrepreneurial dealmaking and negotiation

6th April: Session 3–Leadership presence

13th April: Session 4–Term-sheet negotiation practice

19th-23rd April: One-on-one coaching sessions

27th April: Session 5–Practice your real situations

4th May: Session 6–Embedding learning and next steps

The History of WE ACE

In 2018 Innovation Forum Oxford (IFO) created ACE (Awareness, Connectivity, Exchange) Saturdays–a series of workshops aimed at nurturing a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship amongst academic and clinical researchers in the sciences at the University of Oxford. Feedback from participants and experts in previous workshops highlighted a particular need for more women-focussed training and initiatives to address the unequal representation of women entrepreneurs. As a call to action, IFO collaborated with two experts, Milly Sinclair and Ellen J. K. to create WE ACE (Women Entrepreneurs ACE). Thanks to the generous support of the University of Oxford Medical Sciences Division we were able to offer this world-class program to participants free of charge.

You can read more about the inspiration behind the 2020 cohort of WE ACE here.

Selected past participants of WE ACE (2020 cohort)

Emotional Intelligence and Innovation: Guest post from Philip Gimmack, EQ Expert and ACE Saturdays Workshop lead

A guest post by Philip Gimmack, Emotional Intelligence Specialist, Founder of EQworks. Sign-up to Philip’s ACE Saturdays Workshop on Dec 5th here.

Emotional Intelligence & Innovation

When asked how emotional intelligence builds innovation skills I wanted to start from the beginning.

“Innovation is the creation, development and implementation of a new product, process or service, with the aim of improving efficiency, effectiveness or competitive advantage.”

By definition innovation is about initiating change and understanding the context around this change.

If emotions can be seen as our mechanism for recognising and helping to manage change, then it becomes clear that innovation must rely heavily on being emotionally in-tune.

Emotional intelligence (EQ) can be seen as a set of skills that develops emotional awareness and improves management of self and others helping us to adapt and thrive.

So by definition, EQ skills are skills for innovation.

This will not be a surprise to those who already understand that more broadly EQ skills are fundamental survival and success skills.

Here are a few key elements of emotional intelligence seen through the lens of innovation:

Objectivity

To be an innovator it’s vital to see a situation or a problem as it truly is. We can’t fix something, find a great solution or pivot our behaviours wisely to deal with an issue unless we read a situation well.

This may seem obvious, but we can all see the same thing slightly differently through the lens of our own experiences: What we’ve strongly experienced or feared tends to jump to the fore, particularly in times of change or challenge.

The trick is to view issues clearly, in a balanced way, based on evidence and with an understanding of our own beliefs and bias.

There are ways we can improve this for ourselves such as being open and working with people with very different experiences. Or regularly looking at our emotional experiences and understanding what and why we feel the way we do. These things are great ways to gain broader perspectives and balance. This awareness is called ‘reality testing’. It’s one of three key awareness components (we call radars) of emotional intelligence; the other radars are emotional self-awareness and empathy. Together these three radars help us see and know what is. Having these qualities well-developed and in-balance means we challenge perceptions and uncover beliefs well.

Value

Innovation, to me, is finding something of greater value than is currently known. How do we find this value? By knowing and bringing to the fore what’s of value. We do this by knowing what’s great about ourselves, knowing our core values that drive us, building and acknowledging our strengths, and finding where all these can most be of value to the world. It’s knowing this ‘fit’ that enables us to show our best to the world and also to be fulfilled.

Emotional Self-Awareness

Knowing ourselves is therefore fundamental to being a great innovator. Our emotions give us the information about what is right, wrong, good or bad about a situation, a decision, and life in general. By having a comprehensive emotional vocabulary and through practice we more accurately label our feelings in a given situation. This creates trust in ourselves, greater clarity of thinking and allows us to use our strengths and know our potential or limitations and how to best apply ourselves.

Empathy

Is it fair to say that the best innovations address the most important human needs? To understand those needs means understanding people and their viewpoints. It means being in tune with what others feel and need. Empathy is a group of such abilities enabling us to put ourselves in someone else’s shoes. Empathy-related skills allow us to take an idea and see where it can be best applied, and become more aware of its context. This complete change in viewpoint is one of the most important and difficult skills we can learn. It’s also the basis of good marketing, negotiation, and persuasion.

Emotional expression

One of the most important aspect of innovating is relaying ideas, listening to what others think and explaining the virtue and way of working. Simplifying explanations relies on good use of language and vocabulary.

These are just a few elements of emotional intelligence. Imagine developing one element, just a little more. What effect could it have? Now imagine developing all these a little. The cumulative effect on overall EQ would far outweigh the mere sum of the parts. As they each grow, they support each other more. This is the way we build emotional intelligence skills for all types of people and roles. Using psychometric assessments, we home in on where the need is greatest. It’s powerful stuff, some might say, innovative.

Learn more about Philip and his work as an EQ expert here.

Sign-up to Philip’s ACE Saturdays Workshop on Dec 5th here.

IMAGINE IF! 2020/2021 Accelerator — Meet the Oxford Mentors and Apply Now!

UPDATED APPLICATION DEADLINE

Do you have a scientific idea with the potential to become an entrepreneurial success?

How would bespoke mentorship from leaders in the Oxford ecosystem – tailored to both your needs and timetable – propel your idea to the next stage?

How could the Oxford prize of a residency at the Barclays Eagle Lab and Wood Centre for Innovation transform your team and venture?

What if you had the opportunity to pitch at the global IMAGINE IF! competition in Barcelona to a panel of international investors?

Apply to the IMAGINE IF! Accelerator Here

UPDATED APPLICATION DEADLINE: DECEMBER 15

You can read more about previous local and global winners Oxford BioMe and how important IMAGINE IF! was to their success here.

Prize

Winners of the Oxford IMAGINEIF! final will be offered a residency at the Barclays Eagle Lab and Wood Centre for Innovation in Headington. The prize includes access to bespoke mentoring and funding opportunities, combined with the space and support needed to scale your venture in an environment dedicated to accelerating early stage science and technology companies.

About IMAGINE IF!

IMAGINE IF! is a global accelerator with a dedicated program of mentorship and the opportunity to pitch to an investor panel to win non-dilutive capital and six-month’s lab space. The competition is tailored to early state ideas with a particular focus on technology and science that transforms healthcare and the environment. The competition is run by Innovation Forum as Local Finals tied to Innovation Forum branches (like Oxford) and a Global Final of winners from across the globe.

Hear more about the IMAGINE IF! Program from Iwan Roberts, Innovation Forum CEO, below:

IMAGINE IF! is unique in providing a tailored mentoring program to all local finalists to develop entrepreneurial ideas and pitches with the seasoned expertise of those who have seen this journey many times. Oxford finalists will also be particularly well-supported with access to our successful ACE-Saturday workshops.

More information on how to apply to IMAGINE IF! is available here.

Oxford Branch Mentors for 2020/21

Recapping WE ACE 2020: Register your interest for the next cohort

WE ACE is a programme of workshops dedicated to women entrepreneurs in health and life sciences, with a focus on leadership and negotiation. The inaugural cohort of the programme ran in the Summer of 2020 to great success.

What is the WE ACE programme?

Meet co-instructor Milly Sinclair, who will share what excited her about co-leading the programme with Ellen J. K.

Ellen J. K. also co-developed and instructed WE ACE. She describes the programme as:

“WE ACE focusses founders on the skills they need at the individual, firm, and market levels to negotiate and create high-impact deals to fund and grow their ventures. It is a highly applied programme which teaches entrepreneurs through individual development and real-time simulations of how to prepare for and confidently negotiate deals that are complex, fast-paced, and high-value.

Each WE ACE session combines lectures, simulations, reflection, and practice. We focus on developing each entrepreneur personally and professionally. Founders learn by “doing”. Founders learn to craft deals involving high-stakes approaches, complex relationships, novel technology, and market uncertainty. Following the WE ACE 2020 programme alumnae have negotiated novel agreements with major global partners, venture capitalists, and co-founders.”

The History of WE ACE

Want to Take Part?

We are currently recruiting participants for a new cohort of the programme to run in the 20/21 academic year. If you are a female entrepreneur in the health and life sciences with a connection to Oxford please email [email protected] with the following details:

1. Name and Job Title/Affiliation

2. A brief bio (100 words)

3. A brief description of how you think you would benefit from the WE ACE programme. (100 words)

Participants of WE ACE

Women Entrepreneurs – WE ACE Workshop Series (UPDATED)

REGISTER HERE

REGISTRATION DEADLINE 5th MAY

WE ACE is a programme of workshops dedicated to women entrepreneurs in health and life sciences, with a focus on leadership and negotiation.

Feedback from participants and experts over two-years of workshops highlighted a particular need for more women-focussed training and initiatives to address the unequal representation of women entrepreneurs.

As a call to action, IFO collaborated with two experts, Milly Sinclair and Ellen J. to create WE ACE (Women Entrepreneurs ACE). Both Milly and Ellen are experts in their separate fields of consultancy and have developed a unique, tailored programme to support women achieve their entrepreneurial goals while effectively using their skills, experience and gifts to solve new challenges in this ever-changing world.

We are excited to launch WE ACE as an exclusive online-only coaching and development programme. You can meet Milly in the video below and learn more about the content and vision of the WE ACE program.

In an effective response to the current COVID-19 situation, the WE ACE programme’s schedule and content has been thoughtfully reimagined. The original three full-day workshops have been adapted to eight sessions, typically 1-2 hrs long, delivered on Tuesday afternoons throughout May and June.

These sessions will retain the core ethos that has driven previous years’ ACE workshops: learning by doing. The new online format offers unmissable opportunities; geography is not a barrier–participants can join from any location with the sessions scheduled to suit multiple time zones.

We’re excited to use this new delivery format to offer an extended period of meaningful connection between experts and peers to create tangible action plans and a lasting network. A silver lining of moving WE ACE online is the opportunity we now have to offer dedicated one-to-one coaching sessions. This is a rare opportunity to experience the power and effectiveness of mentorship tailored to you and your goals.

The new programme schedule is below:

Session 1 (one-to-one coaching)

From Registration to 12th May (time agreed upon with experts)

Understanding your goals and how to meet them.

Session 2 (group session and peer mentor assignment)

12th May, 14:00-15:45 BST

Your entrepreneurial journey so far and planning a future driven by your values, expertise and strengths.

Session 3 (group session)

19th May, 14:00-15:45 BST

Embodying your goals and communicating your offer effectively with authentic presence and language—both spoken and unspoken.

Session 4 (one-to-one coaching)

20-26th May

Reflecting on your learning so far.

Session 5 (group session)

26th May, 14:00-15:45 BST

Understanding your approach to deal making and managing uncertainty, complexity, and relationships.

Session 6 (group session)

2nd June, 14:00-15:45 BST

Practicing and mastering negotiation both in writing and face-to-face.

Session 7 (group session)

9th June, 14:00-15:45 BST

Planning your future with confidence by identifying enablers and transforming the inner critic.

Session 8 (group session)

16th June, 14:00-15:45 BST

Deal-making simulation and small group feedback.

Thanks to generous support from the Medical Research Council we are delighted to be able to offer the program free of charge to participants. However, space will be limited due to the focussed nature of the workshops and participants will need to guarantee attending all sessions.

Want to join us?

To express your interest in joining the program please register on our Eventbrite page (here) by Tuesday May 5th. In order for us to better the programme content to participants the Eventbrite registration will require you to include the following:

A brief bio of yourself (100 words)
A statement of how you feel you would benefit from the WE ACE training (100 words)
Confirmation that you will attend all training sessions

Please note that registration alone does not guarantee you a place on the programme. We will confirm details with selected participants after the registration deadline.

For more information on previous years’ (2018 and 2019) ACE-Saturdays Workshops click here and here.

SVC2UK: Growing and Funding Biotech Start-Ups Event

Silicon Valley Comes to the UK–Growing and Funding Biotech Start-Ups

16^th November, Oxford Bioescalator

Oxford Innovation Forum is excited to partner with SVC2UK , the SBS Entrepreneurship Centre, and the Bioescalator to host a day of entrepreneurial masterclasses and discussion on November 16^th as part of Silicon Valley comes to the UK in Oxford.

Silicon Valley comes to the UK (SVC2UK) returns to Oxford this year after many successful past events. Boasting multiple programmes spread across Oxford, Cambridge, and London, SVC2UK is an opportunity to hear from prominent entrepreneurs and investors as they discuss and debate the state-of-the-art in innovation from both sides of the Atlantic.

This event will feature masterclasses from local innovators including Tim Funnell (MiroBio) and Rajarshi “Banjo” Banerjee (Perspectum Diagnostics) before a panel discussion with investors and innovators chaired by Alan Roth (Fitzroy Partners and Oxford Royal Society Entrepreneur in Residence).

REGISTER HERE

Programme

12:30 – Networking lunch and Registration

13:30 – Masterclass I: “Venturing into Biotech – how to successfully spinout from university research and understanding VC funding” with Tim Funnell

14:30 – Masterclass II: “Making successes in translational medicine” with Banjo Banerjee

15:30 – “How to successfully fund and grow biotech start-ups” Panel chaired by Alan Roth

16:30 – Close

Attendance is free of charge, but please REGISTER to avoid disappointment due to limited numbers.

Speakers

Tim Funnell, DPhil

VP Operations, MiroBio

Tim has an academic training in pharmacology and pursued a career in pharma consulting after a DPhil in Oxford. He later moved into funding and supporting university spin-outs as an early employee of Syncona, the Wellcome Trust’s biotech venture fund, with expertise in gene and cell therapies. His next move was across the Atlantic where he was a Principal at Third Rock Ventures in Boston, experiencing the difference in style between US and European investing. Tim has been part of the founding team of a number of biotech ventures bringing in over £100M of funding since 2013.

Tim returned to Oxford as an Entrepreneur in Residence at OSI before launching MiroBio where he leads business operations. MiroBio is developing novel therapeutics to treat a range of autoimmune diseases by leveraging receptor signalling in immune cells based on ground-breaking research from the University of Oxford.

Rajarshi Banerjee, MD DPhil

CEO, Perspectum Diagnostics

Rajarshi co-founded Perspectum in 2012, and has grown the company to over 150 people across Oxford, Singapore and San Francisco. He has worked in the National Health Service since 2002 and trained in cardiology, public health and internal medicine in London and Oxford. He developed the MR techniques for rapid non-invasive liver assessment during his DPhil in Oxford, and commercialised these through Perspectum as LiverMultiScan, which is now FDA cleared and used in over 200 sites.

Rajarshi continues to work as an Honorary Consultant Physician in Oxford, with research into the phenotyping of metabolic and liver disease in adults and children. He has many years of experience in running clinical trials and working in multidisciplinary scientific teams to develop applications for precision medicine.

Danuta Jeziorska, DPhil

CEO, Nucleome Therapeutics

Danuta is a co-founder of Nucleome Therapeutics that spun out from a decade of research at Oxford University with the ambition to unlock the non-coding part of the genome for drug target discovery and development. The company’s pioneering genomics platform uses the 3D structure of the genome and AI powered computational genomics to decode and mine the regulatory “dark matter” of the human genome to help deliver the next generation of genetically guided therapeutics.

Previously, Danuta co-founded and led Innovation Forum Oxford, for which she was recognised as one of the Movers and Shakers in BioBusiness in 2018 in UK.

Danuta has over 12 years of experience in decrypting how genes are regulated and continues to work as a Honorary Research Scientist at University of Oxford.

Angela Hobbs

CEO, Wilkinson Hall ltd

Angela Hobbs formed her first start-up in the early 1990’s working with international clients including dmg media, ipc Magazines, Max Factor, British Airways and Selfridges. In 2008, during her MSc she focused on all things glass – elevators, ceilings and cliffs and produced her final dissertation on Internal & Eternal Barriers to Women. In 2016 Angela accepted the role of Managing Director at Triteq, a former client. Designing and driving the transition for this electronic engineering company to a full-scale product design consultancy working on innovative projects including FDA approved safety critical medical devices, health apps and energy products.

In October this year Angela created her new consultancy, Wilkinson Hall Ltd positioned in the emerging but controversially termed FemTech “right time, wrong term” industry. Her first prototype is in development, due for launch in February 2020.She brings an understanding of what it takes to design and build a business, delivering the products and services that customers want. Clients and partners include Oxford University Innovation, Oxford Enterprise Trust, Versus Arthritis, ImagineIF and the Design Council. In October she designed and delivered a New Product Development programme for Oman Export Week.

Alessandro Philip Maiano

Managing Partner, Wilbe.com

Corporate solicitor turned venture operator turned early-stage investor. Alessandro founded Wilbe in 2015 to advise deep tech ventures and since 2017 is Managing Partner at Wilbe Ventures. Wilbe Ventures is an operational early-stage VC firm focused on research-based ventures solving problems related to health, climate crisis and security. Before Wilbe he trained as a corporate solicitor in London in the Tech team and worked as in-house counsel at Sorin Group (now Livanova Plc) a company listed on NASDAQ at the forefront of medical devices innovation. Obsessed about equality and accessibility, he is a Business Champion at Disability Rights UK and wakes up every morning to RATM.

Alan Roth, PhD

Director, Fitzroy Partners; Royal Society Entrepreneur in Residence at the University of Oxford

Alan’s career has spanned both academia and business on both sides of the Atlantic. After completing a PhD in organic chemistry at Columbia and a postdoctoral fellowship here at Oxford, Alan pursued roles in pharma R&D consulting and investment. He founded Chiral Quest, a leading chiral component provider, and took the company public in 2003. As a director at Fitzroy Partners Alan focusses on emerging health sciences ventures.

In 2019 Alan became the Royal Society Entrepreneur in Residence here in Oxford, which includes continuing to teach a course in scientific entrepreneurship to graduate students and staff across the science, engineering, and medicine faculties. Alan has been appointed as a visiting professor at universities in the UK, USA, Germany and China.

About Silicon Valley comes to the UK

SVC2UK exists to support entrepreneurs on their journey to scale, removing barriers and opening up the ecosystem.

Now in its thirteenth year, SVC2UK alumni and community span the globe. SVC2UK run a series of intimate, invitation-only events that culminate in a 3 day summit held in the UK during November, which connect world-leading investors and serial entrepreneurs to academics, students, policy makers and first time founders.

SVC2UK’s ambition is to deepen relationships between Silicon Valley and Europe, inspire and grow the entrepreneurial ecosystem – specifically the female founder community, ultimately building growth that sustains our purpose and economies.

Help us co-create your strategy acceleration platform today!

“Good ideas need good strategy to realize their potential”

Reid Hoffman, Founder, LinkedIn

As part of Innovation Forum Oxford’s (IFO) commitment to accelerating the development of innovative science and technology, IFO is collaborating with INSTA Associates to build INSTA-Insights:

an online platform that will provide free strategy acceleration services to researchers and early stage science ventures.

INSTA Associates support researchers in exploring the commercialisation path of science-based ideas as well as entrepreneurs in tackling the challenges of early stage ventures. These ideas and ventures have the potential to solve some of the world’s biggest problems but carry, like all start-ups, a high risk of failure.

To help your venture avoid common pitfalls and develop strategy for success, IFO and INSTA Associates invite scientists, researchers, healthcare professionals, and entrepreneurs to embark on the co-creation journey of INSTA-Insights. The more we understand about your needs and approach to building your venture, the better platform we can give you.

The co-creation journey starts with this survey:

https://innovationms.typeform.com/to/ktTqwA

The survey should take no more than a few minutes to complete and the responses will remain anonymous. Your contribution would be much appreciated and most helpful if sent in by the 18^thJune 2019.

The co-creation journey continues, if you wish, with:

“Strategy for Start-ups” workshop on Saturday July 13th 2019. The workshop is part of the A.C.E. Saturdays program, a series of five workshops delivering the basic business skills through “learning by doing”. You can register for the “Strategy for Start-ups” workshop following this link.
Focus Groups 1 and 2, Friday 28^th June, Oxford (location to be confirmed) where we will discuss the result of this survey and get crystal clear on your needs. Tuesday 23^rd July, Oxford (location to be confirmed) where we shall present a first prototype of the platform.

About INSTA Associates

INSTA Associates is led Michele Scataglini and Nigel Greenhill, alumni of the Saïd Business School. The activities and methodologies of INSTA Associates are inspired by their experience on the Strategy and Innovation post graduate diploma at the Saïd Business School and work with Prof. MJ Ventresca, and built upon their learnings over the past 20 years, consolidated into an advisory toolkit used to advise corporates and entrepreneurs.

Select your branch

Author: Dr Tom Peach