Commercial roles in Life Sciences

21 May 2026 - Utrecht

Behind every breakthrough in life sciences is a strong commercial engine that brings innovation to market. In this session, a Business Developer, a Director of Marketing & Communications, and a Senior Consultant will share how their roles contribute to translating science into real-world impact—from building partnerships and identifying opportunities to shaping strategic communication and advising organizations.

Through their personal journeys, the speakers will provide insight into the skills, challenges, and day-to-day realities of working on the commercial side of life sciences. Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of these career paths and practical guidance on how to transition into or grow within commercial roles.

Speakers

Wouter Strijker | Business Developer | Mimetas

Wouter Strijker is a professional with extensive experience in business development and advisory roles within the life sciences sector. Currently serving as Business Development Manager at MIMETAS since April 2017, Wouter previously held positions as Advisor and Junior Advisor at HollandBIO from September 2013 to April 2017. Wouter's academic background includes a Master's degree in Management, Policy-Analysis, and Entrepreneurship in Health and Life Sciences from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, complemented by a Bachelor's degree in Life Science and Technology from both Delft University of Technology and Leiden University. Additional experience includes internships at Edinburgh bioQuarter and to-BBB, as well as a research internship focused on DNA damage repair at Leiden University Medical Center. Wouter also has a history of teaching various subjects, including mathematics, at StudentsPlus Bijlessen.

Saskia Theunisse - de Jager | Director of Marketing and Communications | Oncode Accelerator

Saskia has a background in Molecular Microbiology and Business Marketing, with over 20 years of experience in various commercial roles within the Life Sciences and Diagnostics sector. She has worked across SMEs, large corporate biotech companies, and the non-profit sector. Saskia brings extensive experience in leading diverse, cross-functional projects and teams. Among other achievements, she played a key role in introducing the non-invasive prenatal test to markets across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Currently, Saskia serves as the Director of Marketing and Communications for the Oncode Accelerator program—a large public-private partnership funded by the National Growth Fund. Within Oncode Accelerator, she leads all Marketing and Communication efforts, including Public Relations. In doing so, Saskia contributes to Oncode Accelerator’s mission to collaboratively optimize and accelerate the development of new cancer therapies for the benefit of patients of all ages.

Oncode Accelerator

Oncode Accelerator is a public-private program which aims to innovate and accelerate the development of new cancer therapies by placing cancer patients at the core of preclinical therapy development.

We realize this through the power of three innovation platforms: Patient Cohorts, Organoids and Artificial Intelligence.

Over 30 partners leverage the full potential of the Dutch innovation ecosystem by building development pipelines for four of the most common types of cancer therapies: Small Molecules, Biologics, Cell and Gene Therapies, and Therapeutic Vaccines.

Our world-class toolbox of state-of-the-art technologies will result in more effective, personalized cancer therapies. This will bring us closer to our overarching vision: outsmarting cancer, impacting lives.

At Innovation for Health, we will announce the opening of our first call and are actively looking for partners in biotech and pharma that can bring lead candidates into our pre-clinical program.

Thilo Buck | Senior Consultant | Progress, Expert in Life Sciences

Thilo is a CMC specialist with over 10 years of academic and industry experience across pharmaceutical development, manufacturing and quality. He brings extensive hands-on experience translating scientific and process development into robust, compliant CMC strategies and documentation throughout the product lifecycle, from early clinical development to late-stage and commercial readiness.
He has supported biotech companies, CDMOs and GMP manufacturing organizations in aligning development, manufacturing and quality requirements with regulatory expectations. His experience spans CMC analytical and proves development, lifecycle management, process understanding, and implementation of control strategies across a wide range of modalities, including small molecules, biologicals, viral vectors, cell therapies, vaccines and radiopharmaceuticals.
Currently, Thilo supports late-stage development teams in preparation for pivotal clinical studies, focusing on CMC integration, study execution, technical reporting and regulatory readiness. His profile combines scientific depth with strong knowledge of GMP and quality systems, enabling effective collaboration across Regulatory Affairs, Quality Assurance, Manufacturing, QC and interactions with health authorities.

Progress - Experts in Life Sciences
Progress provides project management, interim management and consultancy services in the field of Pharmaceutical and Bioprocess Engineering, Manufacturing, Quality Control, Chemistry Manufacturing and Controls (CMC), Technology Transfer, Regulatory Affairs, Validation, Lean Six Sigma / Operational Excellence and Quality Management (GxP, QA, QP/RP).
Progress-holds a leading position in fast and effective support and has an excellent track record of ensuring customers reaching their goals. Our consultants utilize and share their wide knowledge and broad experience to accelerate your projects. Our services are characterized by a multi-disciplinary approach, flexibility, added value and persistence. Continuously training, motivating, inspiring and challenging our employees is a high priority for us.
We accelerate improvement!

FULL PROGRAMME HERE