TMCnet News

Insights & Highlights from the Dohmen Life Science Services 2014 Entrepreneur Summit
[October 31, 2014]

Insights & Highlights from the Dohmen Life Science Services 2014 Entrepreneur Summit


MILWAUKEE --(Business Wire)--

Dohmen Life Science Services held their first Entrepreneur Summit, last week at the Harley Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, drawing more than 100 executives to reimagine the future of the life sciences industry.

Panels Share Key Insights: Life Science entrepreneurs addressed the crowd independently, then joined ...

Panels Share Key Insights: Life Science entrepreneurs addressed the crowd independently, then joined together to respond to audience questions. From left to right; Keith Murphy, CEO, Organovo, Geoff McDonough, CEO, Swedish Orphan Biovitrum (Sobi), Lisa Miller, CEO, Prometheus Laboratories, Inc., Laura King, former GE Executive and Founder of NeuWave medical and Elucent Medical and Andy Christensen, VP Personalized Surgery & Medical Devices at 3D Systems Corporation. (Photo: Business Wire)

Dohmen CEO and Dohmen Life Sciences Services (DLSS) President, Cynthia LaConte, said the invitation-only Summit was created as a forum for life science entrepreneurs within Medtech, Pharma and Biotech to envision a new, more efficient and effective industry paradigm that could positively affect the country's healthcare problem.

"The U.S. pays double every other country on healthcare, nearly three trillion dollars annually, and yet we aren't scoring as well on life expectancy and other key health metrics as countries paying half what we do per person," began LaConte in her opening address. "The industry has spent too much time and money on bringing undifferentiated products to market. A recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that over half of all drug approvals over the last 10 years received approval without demonstrating any tangible benefit to the patient. The convergence of genomics, disruptive technology, more efficient regulatory approval pathways for breakthrough therapies and consumer empowerment will allow the industry to shift from a volume driven paradigm to one that puts patient well being at the center of development and rewards for value."

LaConte described Dohmen's process of reinvention as one that preserved elements of its past that had enduring value, destroyed areas of the business that were no longer relevant and created new capability that anticipated where the industry was heading. She challenged Summit attendees to decipher what parts of the industry should be kept, destroyed or created anew as they consider the future of product development within life sciences.

Lessons in Transformation from Outside

Transformative leaders shared lessons from outside the industry about reinvention. Harley Davidson's Tim Hoelter, was one of 13 executives that resuscitated the iconic brand from the brink of bankruptcy by putting their customer in the center of everything they did. He underscored the importance of consumer connection and empowerment in branding, especially during periods of intense disruption. John Mackey, Co-founder of Whole Foods and author of Conscious Capitalism, emphasized the importance of purpose beyond profit. "A free enterprise capitlism engaged with evolved business consciousness will transform the world in the 21st century," said Mackey. Bill George, former CEO of Medtronic and author of True North, wrapped up the Summit, inspiring the audience to lead authentically, and to stay true to a moral compass regardless of external pressures.



Industry Entrepreneurs Provide Highlights and Insights

Laura King, founder and CEO of Elucent Medical, believes start-ups play a critical role in job creation, productivity and innovation, while driving down costs for the industry. Her talk emphasized the importance of understanding that patient need should drive development, adding that the patients' imperative defines the entrepreneurs' opportunity. King said Elucent's new medical device, which tags and locates breast tumors, eliminating a painful and expensive breast cancer procedure, significantly decreases treatment costs.


Keith Murphy, CEO, Organovo, illustrated incredible innovations in regenerative medicine. 3D bio printing of living human tissue, now used in pharmaceutical research, could someday replace animal models. The company also envisions the use of therapeutic human tissues, which could use a patch of tissues to repair a heart muscle, for example.

Jeff Yordon, chairman and CEO, Sagent Pharmaceuticals, a leader in generic injectibles, is a Chicago Innovation Award winner. He discussed the development of a preventive-measure labeling approach to reduce medication errors. The novel approach has the potential to save thousands of lives.

Geoff McDonough, M.D., CEO, Swedish Orphan Biovitrum (Sobi), emphasized the critical need within rare diseases to build value for patient partners first, and to engage with patients and customers to create sustainable value. McDonough also stressed that pioneering requires partners; including payers. Payer and regulator forums are valuable, McDonough said, because both parties are interested in partnerships that speed adoption.

Lisa Miller, former CEO, Prometheus Laboratories, said she seeks out employees who, like her, are "energized every morning by the possibilities to make these visions come to life and the responsibility to make a difference."

Andy Christensen, vice president personalized surgery and medical devices, 3D Systems Corporation, shared examples of how medical modeling and 3D printing technologies are giving patients new access to medical treatments, including those in third-world countries in need of prosthetics.

Convergence (News - Alert) Therapeutics Bring Sight to the Blind

Day two of the Summit began with a presentation by University of Southern California professor Dr. Mark Humayun, M.D., Ph.D. His 20-year pursuit to restore sight to the blind paid off in January of this year, when the first bionic artificial retina device, was commercially launched through Second Sight (News - Alert). Humayun shared three novel approaches to solving the same problem - using medical technologies and stem cell alternatives - a true convergence of technologies and therapeutics to restore sight to the blind.

Panels Discuss Operating Models and Funding Channels

Michael Gilman, Ph.D., CEO Padlock Therapeutics, Inc. shared that virtual operations are often an effective way to keep your fixed costs low and remain flexible. "At the end of the day, investors are trying to make sure each new dollar is invested at a lower risk than the previous dollar," said Gilman. George Zorich, former CEO, Agilis Biotherapeutics agreed, "Focus on your product -- getting it approved, marketing it, selecting a PE firm or capital partner that understands you and your business model---then outsource the rest!"

Summit attendee Laura Strong, Ph.D., President and Chief Operating Officer at Quintessence Biosciences, Inc., said she found the Summit unique and thought provoking, "It was a fantastic, high quality event for Biotech executives, with a program that managed to take us from big, strategic concepts such as being authentic leaders to the gritty details about where to find capital." The Summit was held on October 21 - 22nd, 2014, and will convene annually to advance innovative thinking for life science entrepreneurs.

About Dohmen Life Science Services, Intelligent outsourcing for the life sciences.TM

Dohmen Life Science Services provides outsourced insight and infrastructure to entrepreneurs seeking speed, scale and certainty as they bring their biopharma or medical device products to market. Our industry experts help hundreds of companies preserve capital, mitigate risk and stay focused on the future by supplying the very best people, processes and tools within the areas of finance, technology, quality, regulatory compliance, supply chain, customer services and patient support. DLSS is a subsidiary of the Dohmen Company. Privately held and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Dohmen has been finding ways to create a more efficient, effective and accessible healthcare supply system since 1858. More information can be found at DLSSSummit.com, DLSS.com and Dohmen.com.


[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]